Florida Senate - 2026                                     SB 140
       
       
        
       By Senator Rouson
       
       
       
       
       
       16-00457A-26                                           2026140__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to whistleblower protections for
    3         employees and independent contractors of property
    4         insurers; creating s. 626.9898, F.S.; prohibiting
    5         property insurers, or their agents or affiliates, from
    6         taking adverse actions against employees or
    7         contractors for specified reasons; authorizing such
    8         employees or contractors to bring a civil action
    9         within a specified timeframe; authorizing a court to
   10         order certain relief; providing an effective date.
   11          
   12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   13  
   14         Section 1. Section 626.9898, Florida Statutes, is created
   15  to read:
   16         626.9898 Whistleblower protections for employees and
   17  contractors of property insurers.—
   18         (1) Notwithstanding s. 448.102, a property insurer, or any
   19  of its agents or affiliates, may not discharge, suspend, demote,
   20  threaten, harass, or take any other adverse action against an
   21  employee or independent contractor because the employee or
   22  independent contractor has, in good faith, disclosed to any
   23  governmental agency or the news media an activity, a policy, or
   24  a practice of the insurer or its agents or affiliates which is
   25  in violation of law, constitutes unethical conduct, or involves
   26  fraudulent insurance practices.
   27         (2) An employee or independent contractor aggrieved by a
   28  violation of this section may bring a civil action in a court of
   29  competent jurisdiction within 2 years after discovering that the
   30  alleged violation occurred or within 4 years after the adverse
   31  action was taken, whichever is earlier. Such court may order the
   32  relief authorized in s. 448.103(2).
   33         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.