by Christine Sexton, Florida Phoenix
December 3, 2025
Despite overwhelming opposition from city, county, hospital, and school district lobbyists, a House spending panel Wednesday approved a bill to increase the amount of money people injured by the government can recover in negligence cases.
The House Budget Committee spent less than 15 minutes Wednesday discussing the merits of HB 145, offered by Sarasota Republican Rep. Fiona McFarland, before voting 22-2 to pass the bill.
HB 145 would increase the “sovereign immunity” limits per person from $200,000 to $500,000 and up the cap per incident from $300,000 to $1 million. The new limits would apply to claims that occur between Oct. 1, 2026, and Sept. 30, 2031. After five years, the caps would increase to $600,000 and $1.2 million, respectively.
HB 145 still must be considered by the House Judiciary Committee before it is ready for a House floor vote. Although the bill is being fast tracked in the House and is a priority for House Speaker Daniel Perez, its fate is less certain in the Florida Senate. There is no companion bill filed as of now and the Senate didn’t consider similar legislation last year.
Bob Harris with the Panhandle Area Education Consortium testified that his clients, a group of 14 school districts in northwest Florida, won’t be able to afford the insurance premium increases that, he said, would occur if the bill becomes law.
“The difficulty is this: We know if these increase in caps go in, we’ll see an increase in the number of cases. It’s the pot-of-gold-at-the-end-of-the-rainbow syndrome. We know that will happen,” Harris said.
Sovereign immunity stems from the Latin phrase “rex non potest peccare,” which translates to “the king cannot commit a legal wrong.” In legal terms, it refers to the state’s authority to exempt itself as a legal sovereign from civil lawsuits, although the state does allow negligence claims against itself and its subdivisions — agencies, cities, counties, and public hospitals — within limits.
Complicated process
Injured parties can sue for damages and collect within the liability thresholds established by law, but if they win awards in excess of the limits they must go to the Legislature in the form of what’s called a “claims bill” to collect. But the claims bill process is lengthy. It also allows the defendant to challenge the jury verdict at the legislative level.
Once a claims bill is filed, each chamber’s presiding officer refers it to a special master, who essentially reconsiders the jury’s recommendation. Claims bills also go before House and Senate committees that consider special masters’ recommendations. Ultimately, the bills must pass in both chambers.
McFarland, who has sponsored similar legislation for the past three years, didn’t disagree that the bill increases liability for government entities.
“I know it’s hard. I know their costs will go up, their costs for insurance, their costs for liability. I know that it will increase. Of course, that’s what the numbers say,” McFarland said. “I’m just saying that its worth it. It’s time to update it. ”
The House this week also passed a bill that allows wrongful death lawsuits for the loss of developing fetuses,
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