Rep. JJ Grow has a plan for Session:

Concentrate on the job at hand.

“My approach is to keep my head down and work hard on my bills,” Grow, an Inverness Republican, said.

Grow is starting his second Regular Session after being elected to the open House District 23 seat in 2024.

In his freshman year, Grow helped pass a Citrus County local bill to clarify the sheriff’s oversight of agency employees.

Another bill that would have allowed transportation concurrency for counties with populations under 200,000 passed the House unanimously but never reached the Senate floor for a vote.

That bill is back, and Grow is confident of its success.

“Get it so these developments will share in the cost of transportation,” he said.

Concurrency is designed to ensure roads have sufficient capacity to accommodate the additional traffic from new development.

HB 97 allows small counties to set road levels of service in capital improvement plans, providing a baseline for new developments.

Ocala Republican Sen. Stan McClain, who sponsored the Senate companion last year, is doing the same this year in S 324.

Grow has also joined the chorus calling for property tax reform. He sponsored HJR 903, which would place a constitutional amendment on the November ballot to limit the annual increase in taxable value of non-homestead property to 3%. It’s currently set at 10%.

Grow said he believes some changes are needed.

“I totally understand why people are anxious right now. Affordable has become almost unaffordable,” he said. “Between property tax, home insurance, car insurance, and inflation, it’s gotten to a point where it’s hard to cover your expenses and have a little money to live on.”

Grow’s other bills include HB 95, which allows a pathway for trained volunteers to provide armed security at houses of worship.

“Faith communities across Florida have repeatedly expressed concerns about safety during worship,” he said. “Many congregations — especially small and rural ones — lack the resources to hire licensed security professionals but still face credible risks.”

Florida Peninsula Insurance, one of the largest property insurers in Florida, is decreasing rates by 8%, Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

Speaking at a Davie press conference, DeSantis said 83 other companies filed for rate decreases and 100 others are keeping their rates flat.

“As of January, the 30-day average request by companies for home rates are down 2.3%,” DeSantis said. “We’re one of the probably the only states in the country where you’re seeing a decrease.”

DeSantis and state administrators held a presser to highlight progress that Florida has made lowering property insurance. DeSantis’ remarks come just before the start of the 2026 Legislative Session, where DeSantis is pushing lawmakers to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot to repeal property taxes — which he says hurts Floridians worse in the pocketbook than property insurance.

A study by the Florida League of Cities warned that eliminating property taxes would hurt local governments’ essential services.

Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky and DeSantis both credited recent state reforms in helping stabilize Florida’s property insurance costs. Some of the changes put in place make it more difficult for homeowners to sue property insurance carriers to get coverage. 

“We had 8% of homeowners’ claims nationwide, but that accounted for almost 80% of litigation expenses nationwide right here in Florida,” DeSantis said.

Yaworsky said he is hopeful lawmakers won’t repeal some of the tort reforms in the 2026 Legislative Session.

DeSantis said as carriers save money from fewer lawsuits to fight, they are passing the savings back to consumers. 

In addition to Peninsula, Security First Insurance, which covers 62,000 homes, also posted an 8% average decrease, the Governor said.

Meanwhile, the top five auto insurers averaged 6.5% premium decreases, DeSantis said.

Over 12 months, 42 auto insurance companies signaled rate decreases, with 32 of those companies filing the decrease notice within the past six months, DeSantis said.

Progressive Insurance previously agreed to give $1 billion in rebates to customers that are expected to go through by Thursday, DeSantis added.

“You talk to every single one of these companies, the only reason this is happening is because of the market reforms,” DeSantis. “And honestly. they’re kind of forced to do this, right? Because it’s a competitive market.”