Florida legislation · 2026 Regular Session
Florida S250: Rural Communities
Status: Chaptered, April 10, 2026
Requiring the state land planning agency to give preference for technical assistance funding to local governments located in a rural area of opportunity; revising the conditions required for a county to be considered a fiscally constrained county; creating the Office of Rural Prosperity within the Department of Commerce; requiring the Office of Rural Prosperity to administer the Renaissance Grants Program to provide block grants to eligible communities; creating the Public Infrastructure Smart Technology Grant Program within the Office of Rural Prosperity; creating the Florida Arterial Road Modernization Program within the Department of Transportation, etc.
What the bill says
An act relating to rural communities; reenacting and amending s. 20.60, F.S.; revising the list of divisions and offices within the Department of Commerce to conform to changes made by the act; revising the annual program reports that must be included in the annual report of the Department of Commerce; amending s. 163.3168, F.S.; requiring the state land planning agency to give preference for technical assistance funding to local governments located in a rural area of opportunity…
From the engrossed text, January 14, 2026:
A bill to be entitled An act relating to rural communities; reenacting and amending s. 20.60, F.S.; revising the list of divisions and offices within the Department of Commerce to conform to changes made by the act; revising the annual program reports that must be included in the annual report of the Department of Commerce; amending s. 163.3168, F.S.; requiring the state land planning agency to give preference for technical assistance funding to local governments located in a rural area of opportunity; requiring the agency to consult with the Office of Rural Prosperity when awarding certain funding; amending s. 201.15, F.S.; requiring that a certain sum be paid to the credit of the State Transportation Trust Fund for the exclusive use of the Florida Arterial Road Modernization Program; amending s. 202.18, F.S.; redirecting the transfer of certain communication services tax proceeds; amending s. 212.20, F.S.; revising the distribution of sales and use tax revenue to include a transfer to fiscally constrained counties; amending s. 215.971, F.S.; providing construction regarding agreements funded with federal or state assistance; requiring a state agency to expedite payment requests from a county, municipality, or rural area of opportunity for a specified purpose; requiring each state agency to report to the Office of Rural Prosperity by a certain date with a summary of certain information; requiring …