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CS/HB 1041 2026
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to business development incentives for 2
veterans and military spouses; creating s. 295.189, 3
F.S.; providing a short title; providing legislative 4
findings and intent; providing definitions; requiring 5
the Department of State to waive specified fees for 6
certain businesses; providing eligibility and 7
registration requirements for such waivers; providing 8
applicability; providing tax exemptions for certain 9
businesses; providing eligibility requirements for 10
such exemptions; requiring the Department of Revenue 11
to establish procedures for claiming such exemptions; 12
providing applicability; providing for rulemaking and 13
interagency cooperation; providing annual reporting 14
requirements; providing an effective date. 15
16
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 17
18
Section 1. Section 295.189, Florida Statutes, is created 19
to read: 20
295.189 Business development incentives for veterans and 21
military spouses.— 22
(1) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the "Florida 23
Veterans and Military Spouses Business Development Act." 24
(2) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT.— 25
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(a) The Legislature finds that veterans and military 26
spouses contribute significantly to this state's economy through 27
their skills, expertise, and entrepreneurial efforts. 28
(b) The Legislature recognizes the challenges of frequent 29
relocations and economic instability faced by many military 30
spouses. 31
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that this act 32
attract and support veteran-owned and military spouse-owned 33
businesses by providing incentives. 34
(3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 35
(a) "Military spouse" means a spouse of: 36
1. An active duty member of the United States Armed 37
Forces; or 38
2. A veteran. 39
(b) "Veteran" has the same meaning as in s. 1.01(14). 40
(c) "Veteran-owned or military spouse-owned business" 41
means a business entity: 42
1. That employs 200 or fewer permanent full-time 43
employees. 44
2. That, together with its affiliates, has a net worth of 45
$5 million or less or, if a sole proprietorship, has a net worth 46
of $5 million or less including personal and business 47
investments. 48
3. That is organized to engage in commercial transactions. 49
4. That is domiciled in this state. 50
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
5. That is at least 51 percent owned and operated by one 51
or more veterans or military spouses. 52
6. The management and daily business operations of which 53
are controlled by one or more veterans or military spouses. 54
7. That has a professional license, if required by the 55
industry, in the name of a veteran or military spouse who owns 56
the business entity. 57
(4) FEE WAIVER.— 58
(a) The Department of State shall waive all fees for: 59
1. A new business established by a veteran or military 60
spouse. 61
2. An existing veteran-owned or military spouse-owned 62
business that relocates to this state. 63
(b) The Department of State shall establish registration 64
requirements for such fee waivers, which must include: 65
1. For veterans, a DD Form 214 or another acceptable form 66
of identification as specified by the United States Department 67
of Veterans' Affairs; or 68
2. For military spouses, verification of a military spouse 69
relationship and that the other spouse is on active duty or a 70
veteran. 71
(c) The fee waivers apply to veteran-owned or military 72
spouse-owned businesses established between July 1, 2026, and 73
June 30, 2031. 74
(5) TAX EXEMPTIONS.— 75
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(a) Eligible veteran-owned and military spouse-owned 76
businesses shall receive: 77
1. A 5-year tax exemption from the corporate income tax. 78
a. A business that is 100 percent veteran-owned or 79
military spouse-owned shall receive the 5-year tax exemption 80
after being in business for at least 5 years. 81
b. A business that is at least 51 percent veteran-owned or 82
military spouse-owned but does not qualify for the tax exemption 83
under sub-subparagraph a. shall receive the 5-year tax exemption 84
after being in business for at least 7 years. 85
2. A one-time sales tax exemption on equipment and 86
supplies directly related to business operations. 87
(b) The Department of Revenue shall establish procedures 88
for claiming the tax exemptions. 89
(c) For veteran-owned and military spouse-owned businesses 90
relocating to this state, the tax exemptions apply for 5 years 91
after the date on which the business is established. 92
(6) ADMINISTRATION.—The Department of Veterans' Affairs, 93
the Department of Revenue, and the Department of State shall: 94
(a) Develop rules for administering this section. 95
(b) Ensure interagency cooperation for seamless 96
implementation of this section. 97
(7) ANNUAL REPORTING.—Beginning December 31, 2026, and 98
each December 31 thereafter, the Department of Veterans' Affairs 99
shall submit a report to the Governor, the President of the 100
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives that 101
includes: 102
(a) The number of veteran-owned and military spouse-owned 103
businesses that were established in this state or that relocated 104
to this state. 105
(b) Economic metrics such as job creation and tax revenue 106
impact from veteran-owned and military spouse-owned businesses. 107
(c) Demographic data for the participating veterans and 108
military spouses. 109
Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 110