Help to get our bill Sponsored

Dear FMCA members:

During the 2025 Florida State Legislative Session the Florida Marine Contractors Association is trying to get a bill passed that will consolidate the 5 current subcategories listed under Marine Specialty Contractor licensing category into 1 category.

The previous Statute had one category for the licensing of Marine Specialty Contractors:
Marine Specialty Contractors. The newly created Statute has added 4 additional categories: 1. Marine Specialty Contractors; 2. Marine Bulkhead Work Specialty Contractors; 3. Marine Dock Work Specialty Contractors; 4. Marine Pile Driving Specialty Contractors; and 5. Marine Seawall Work Specialty Contractors

We are concerned the new categories will create confusion among consumers, contractors and in the permitting departments that make the determination of what permits need to be issued for a particular marine construction project. We are also concerned that this new Statute will also create confusion with the insurance liability of marine structures built under this Statute.

Our lobbyist in Tallahassee Scott Barnhart has successfully gotten bills in the drafting offices in both the State House and State Senate. Senator Jason Brodeur (R-Seminole County) and State Rep. Jim Mooney (R-FL Keys) and their staffs played instrumental roles in assisting our efforts to get these bills into the drafting process.

State House Drafting #94043
State Senate Drafting #10-01511-25

We have several weeks before the beginning of the 2025 Legislative Session. To get our bills considered during the session, we need to identify a member of the State House and State Senate to sponsor these bills and support them as they move through the legislative process in Tallahassee. State House Members are restricted to sponsoring only 6 bills. State Senators are unlimited in the amount of bills they can sponsor. We would encourage you to reach out to your State House and State Senators to request they sponsor and support these bills. Please let me know if you have any questions and let me know the feedback you hear back as a result of your outreach.

Thanks for your assistance on this effort.