Florida Senate - 2025 SB 1398 By Senator Rodriguez 40-01385A-25 20251398__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to resilience infrastructure loans; 3 creating s. 718.13, F.S.; creating the Resilience 4 Infrastructure Loan Program within the Department of 5 Commerce for a specified purpose; providing 6 definitions; providing for the sources of funds; 7 requiring the department to contract with the State 8 Board of Administration for a specified purpose; 9 authorizing the department to take certain actions 10 independently of the Division of Bond Finance of the 11 State Board of Administration; providing requirements 12 and interest rates for the loan program; authorizing 13 the department to adopt rules; providing requirements 14 for the repayment of a loan; providing an 15 appropriation; providing an effective date. 16 17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 18 19 Section 1. Section 718.13, Florida Statutes, is created to 20 read: 21 718.13 Resilience Infrastructure Loan Program.— 22 (1) There is created within the Department of Commerce the 23 Resilience Infrastructure Loan Program to provide loans to 24 Floridians for infrastructure projects that are based on 25 resilience engineering principles and any other statutory or 26 regulatory requirements under the Florida Building Code, the 27 Florida Fire Prevention Code, or the Life Safety Code. The 28 department shall administer the loan program. 29 (2) As used in this section, the term: 30 (a) “Department” means the Department of Commerce. 31 (b) “District” means a citizen-initiated financing district 32 created under the Resilience District Act of 2025 and limited to 33 the performance of those specialized functions authorized by the 34 act which solve infrastructure and resilience problems affecting 35 the district’s geographic area. 36 (c) “Infrastructure” means any fixed capital expenditure or 37 fixed capital costs associated with the construction, 38 reconstruction, or improvement of facilities that have a life 39 expectancy of at least 5 years and any land acquisition, land 40 improvement, design, and engineering costs related thereto. 41 (d) “Loan program” means the Resilience Infrastructure Loan 42 Program created by this section. 43 (e) “Resilience engineering principles” means principles 44 that focus on the general capability of a system to adapt to 45 unexpected hazards and to continue the system’s regular function 46 after its failure. 47 (3)(a) Funds credited to the loan program shall consist of 48 state and federal grant funds. Implementation of the loan 49 program is subject to legislative appropriation. The department 50 shall contract with the State Board of Administration for the 51 investment and management of funds for the loan program in order 52 to have the greatest return on investment. 53 (b) The department may issue bonds or take any action 54 independently and without acting by or through the Division of 55 Bond Finance of the State Board of Administration unless 56 participation of the Division of Bond Finance is otherwise 57 required by law. 58 (4)(a) The department shall review and identify 59 infrastructure projects that meet the underwriting criteria 60 established by the department by rule. 61 (b) Funds from the loan program may only be awarded to the 62 district identified in the application. 63 (c) The interest rate on funds awarded under the loan 64 program may not exceed the maximum interest rate set forth in s. 65 215.84(3), unless the State Board of Administration authorizes 66 an interest rate in excess of the maximum rate set forth in s. 67 215.84(3). 68 (5)(a) Requirements for the loan program include both of 69 the following: 70 1. The duration of the loan must be for 20 years or less. 71 2. The loan may only be used for infrastructure projects 72 that are required by law or regulation to ensure structural 73 safety of the structure. 74 (b) The department may establish additional underwriting 75 criteria by rule. 76 (6) Repayment of a loan awarded under the loan program to a 77 district must: 78 (a) Begin immediately after the completion of the 79 infrastructure project. 80 (b) Be completed within 3 years after the date the loan 81 repayment begins under paragraph (a). 82 Section 2. For the 2025-2026 fiscal year, an appropriation 83 is contingent on nonrecurring funds being appropriated from the 84 Indian Gaming Revenue Clearing Trust Fund within the Department 85 of Financial Services to the Department of Commerce to fund the 86 Resilience Infrastructure Loan Program created by this act. 87 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.