Last Call for 2.12.26 – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida

Last Call – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.

First Shot

Breaking — A first look at the House budget: flhouse.gov/Budget/2026

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Happening now: Billy Horschel and Gov. Ron DeSantis finished 6 under par (66) at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

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Florida Insurance Commissioner Mike Yaworsky has opened registration for the Office of Insurance Regulation’s 2026 Insurance Summit, a two-day event aimed at giving industry professionals a direct line into Florida’s regulatory machinery.

Scheduled for April 15-16 in Tallahassee, the Summit will bring together insurance executives, government affairs professionals, actuaries and attorneys for what OIR describes as a deep dive into the mechanics of compliance and oversight.

“Our agenda is packed with knowledge and tips from regulators about data calls, complying with emergency orders, the essentials of financial reporting and more as well as national perspectives from other top regulators and experts on artificial intelligence,” Yaworsky said in a news release. “This is an opportunity you will not want to miss. I encourage interested participants to register early, as spots will fill up quickly.”

Registration is open through March 30 and available online here. The agenda, subject to change as the event approaches, is available here.

In addition to formal panels, OIR staff will host dedicated office hours, giving attendees the opportunity to ask detailed questions about property and casualty regulation, life and health markets and procedural requirements.

The Summit will be held at the Augustus B. Turnbull III Florida State Conference Center, located on FSU’s main campus.

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A Senate panel this week advanced legislation making a fleet of mostly technical changes to the statutory framework undergirding Florida’s car dealer franchise system.

At the center of the proposal is a cap on allocation concentration. If a manufacturer ships more than 1,000 vehicles of a particular brand into Florida during a 12-month period, it may not send more than a third of them to the same dealership or group of dealerships with common ownership.

“Common ownership,” for purposes of the bill, is defined as more than 30% overlapping equity or control, meaning large dealership groups would be restricted from consolidating too much of a brand’s Sunshine State allocation under one umbrella.

In the simplest of terms, SB 1562 ensures Florida commuters who haven’t entered the CarPlay era will continue hearing dueling ads for the same truck from different dealers back-to-back.

The legislation also updates Florida’s rules governing succession and transfers of franchise agreements. Manufacturers would be permitted to reject a proposed sale, transfer, or inheritance of a dealership if approving it would cause them to violate the new one-third cap.

The word “permitted” has the low-end torque here. Manufacturers would not be required to block an inheritance-based consolidation that exceeds the cap; they would simply be granted the option to do so.

If they exercise that right and a franchise ultimately terminates, the bill clarifies who gets what in the divorce: Manufacturers repurchase new vehicles with fewer than 2,000 miles on the odometer, along with qualifying parts, tools, and signage. Vehicles over that mileage threshold would be treated as used inventory and left with the jilted ex-franchisee.

The broader thrust of the bill is less about curbing monopolies — pricing power and consumer impact appear to be optional accessories — than about preserving the architecture of Florida’s franchise system by limiting how much of a single brand one ownership group can control. Large national dealership chains looking to hoover up local stores may find the guardrails a bit tighter. Local broadcast admen can rest easy.

Like virtually every dealership-related bill of the mid-2020s, this one steers clear of changes to the list of manufacturers exempt from Florida’s ban on factory-owned dealerships — the recurring Tesla carve-out remains untouched.

The bill passed out of Commerce and Tourism on a 9-1 vote; it now heads to Rules, the final stop before a potential floor vote. HB 989, the House’s non-identical companion (the Trailblazer to the Senate’s Yukon, if you will), cleared its first Committee last week. 

If signed into law, it would take effect July 1, 2026 — just in time for dealers’ annual plea for subprime borrowers to do their duty and clear some lot space ahead of a looming late-model delivery.

Evening Reads

—“Saying Goodbye to Dawson Leery” via Chris Cillizza of So What

—”Donald Trump just blew up a load-bearing pillar of climate regulation in the US. What happens now?” via Umair Irfan of Vox

—”Senate Democrats block DHS measure as funding deadline approaches” via Lindsay Wise

—”ICE is crashing the US court system in Minnesota” via Maddy Varner of WIRED

—”Why Pennsylvania’s two most powerful Democrats don’t speak” via Lisa Lerer and Katie Glueck of The New York Times

—”Can Democrats retake the U.S. House? It could depend on Florida.” via Michael Van Sickler of the Tampa Bay Times

—”Senate budget chief: No spending proposals this week” via Janelle Irwin Taylor of Florida Politics

—”Thoroughbred horse racing ‘decoupling’ clears House, but its fate is murkier in the Senate” via Janelle Irwin Taylor of Florida Politics

—“Panel presses Shevaun Harris about her work at DCF during AHCA Secretary confirmation hearing” via Christine Sexton of the Florida Phoenix

—”Groveland Four bill is ready for the Senate floor after final Committee vote” via Gabrielle Russon of Florida Politics

Quote of the Day

“What we have is a bumper sticker, we have a slogan, but we don’t have a policy.”

— Former Sen. Jeff Brandes, criticizing the as-yet-undefined scope and extent of homestead property tax abolishment.

Put it on the Tab

Look to your left, then look to your right. If you see one of these people at your happy hour haunt, flag down the bartender and put one of these on your tab. Recipes included, just in case the Cocktail Codex fell into the well.

Former Sen. Jeff Brandes gets an Invisible Gin for noting that the nuts and bolts of property tax repeal could fit on a 2” by 6” vinyl decal with room to spare. 

Pour Rep. Danny Nix a Picket Fence for carrying a bill editing pesky minimum lot size ordinances, which could benefit aspiring first-time homebuyers.

Anything blue, take your pick, and send it along to Shev Jones, the blue Senator whose Blue Envelope program bill would train boys in blue to better communicate with people on the autism spectrum.

Breakthrough Insights

Tune In

Gators, Wildcats battle for SEC top spot

The Florida Gators host Kentucky on Saturday with first place in the Southeastern Conference on the line (3 p.m. ET, ABC).

The Gators, ranked 14th in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 poll, sit atop the SEC standings, a game ahead of Arkansas and Kentucky entering the weekend. Florida (18-6, 9-2 in SEC) has won four straight games, including an 86-66 victory over Georgia on Wednesday night. Xaivian Lee led the Gators with 18 points and seven assists in the gam,e while Rueben Chinyelu scored seven points and grabbed 20 rebounds. 

Florida has now won nine of ten games, eight by double-digits.

No. 25 Kentucky (17-7, 8-3 SEC) has won three straight games and eight of the last nine. The matchup with Florida is the 11th game against a ranked team this season.

The Wildcats are led by senior guard Otega Owey, who averages 17.1 points per game. Only one other Kentucky player, guard Denzel Aberdeen, averages double-figures (12.3 points per game).

Last season, as Florida was en route to a national championship, the Wildcats took the only meeting between the two teams 106-100. Florida and Kentucky will meet again in the regular season finale on March 7 in Lexington.

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Last Call is published by Peter Schorsch, assembled and edited by Phil Ammann and Drew Wilson, with contributions from the staff of Florida Politics.