Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation Friday that expands Florida’s restrictions on foreign influence, adding new ethics rules, disclosure requirements and penalties tied to certain foreign governments and foreign terrorist organizations.
The measure, HB 905, titled the Foreign Interference Restriction and Enforcement Act, takes effect July 1. It applies to “foreign countries of concern,” a category that includes China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, the Venezuelan regime of Nicolás Maduro, and Syria.
The bill is intended to limit what state officials describe as hostile foreign influence in government, public institutions, critical infrastructure and the state economy.
“This legislation combats hostile foreign influence in Florida by establishing new restrictions on agreements and partnerships involving countries of concern such as Iran and Cuba, as well as penalties for violations,” said the governor. “The bill also strengthens ethics and disclosure requirements for elected officials and government employees, because public officials should be serving Floridians—not foreign adversaries.”
HB 905 prohibits public officers, public employees, local government attorneys and candidates from soliciting or accepting gifts or benefits from a foreign country of concern, a designated foreign terrorist organization or someone acting on their behalf. Violators could be required to repay twice the value of the benefit, in addition to any other penalties.
Several provisions focus on formal relationships between Florida public entities and the targeted countries. The bill prohibits sister city and sister state affiliations involving countries of concern and terminates existing agreements. It requires the Department of State to maintain a public list of foreign consulate offices and sister city and sister state affiliations in Florida.
The legislation also repeals the Florida-China Linkage Institute and places new limits on the state’s remaining linkage institutes. Those institutes will be barred from entering agreements or participating in activities with countries of concern. The bill also ends their authority to designate certain foreign students as in-state residents for tuition purposes.
Other sections apply to charities, businesses and criminal penalties. Charitable organizations will be prohibited from accepting contributions or support from designated foreign terrorist organizations. Local governments and tax collectors will be allowed to revoke business tax receipts for businesses operating in Cuba in violation of federal law, while knowingly submitting a false declaration related to such activity would become a third-degree felony.
The bill also enhances penalties for crimes committed to benefit foreign governments or foreign terrorist organizations and prohibits certain preplanned adoption agreements and gestational surrogacy contracts involving citizens or residents of countries of concern.