TALLAHASSEE, Florida — A bill that would prohibit local governments from adopting net-zero greenhouse gas policies advanced through its final Florida House committee Tuesday, while similar language was added to a sweeping Senate tax bill.
Details: Under the legislation, governments on every level — from counties to school boards — would be banned from adopting or enforcing net-zero policies, or policies aimed at balancing the amount of greenhouse gases emitted with the amount removed from the atmosphere. Local governments would also be barred from imposing taxes, penalties or emission caps on greenhouse gases.
“There are energy policies and environmental policies already laid out in state statute,” said state Rep. Berny Jacques (R-Seminole), who co-sponsored House bill H.B. 1217. “We just want to make sure local governments are in conformity with the state policies and to avoid a patchwork that would be much more possible.”
The moves continue Florida Republicans’ efforts to reshape state energy and climate policy. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation in 2024 that deleted some references to climate change in state statutes and restructured the state’s energy policy goals. The Senate also released a standalone tax bill Tuesday, S.P.B. 7046, which included similar language to the House bill on net-zero bans.
