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HB 1475 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 charitable giving; creating s. 2
496.432, F.S.; providing legislative findings; 3
defining terms; prohibiting a charitable organization 4
that accepts a contribution pursuant to a written 5
donor-imposed restriction from violating the terms of 6
that restriction without potential penalty; 7
authorizing a donor, or a donor's legal 8
representative, to file a complaint within a specified 9
timeframe if a charitable organization violates a 10
donor-imposed restriction contained in an endowment 11
agreement; specifying the venue where the complaint 12
may be filed; providing that the complaint may be 13
filed regardless of whether the endowment agreement 14
expressly reserves a right to sue or enforce the 15
agreement; prohibiting a donor or donor representative 16
from seeking a judgment awarding damages; requiring a 17
charitable organization to notify a donor, or a 18
donor's legal representative, if it cannot fulfill a 19
term in the endowment agreement and offer the donor, 20
or the donor's legal representative, an alternative 21
solution that closely matches the initial term in such 22
endowment agreement; authorizing a charitable 23
organization to obtain a judicial declaration of the 24
rights and duties expressed in an endowment agreement; 25
HB 1475 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
requiring the charitable organization to seek a 26
judicial declaration in any suit brought under the act 27
or by filing a complaint; authorizing a court to order 28
one or more remedies consistent with the charitable 29
purposes expressed in the endowment agreement if the 30
court determines that a charitable organization 31
violated a donor-imposed restriction in the endowment 32
agreement; prohibiting the court from ordering the 33
return of the donated funds to the donor or the 34
donor's legal representative; providing construction; 35
providing severability; creating s. 496.433, F.S.; 36
providing legislative findings; prohibiting a state 37
agency or a state official from imposing any annual 38
filing or reporting requirements on certain 39
organizations regulated or exempted from regulation 40
under ch. 496, F.S., which are more burdensome than 41
the requirements authorized by state law; providing 42
applicability and construction; providing an effective 43
date. 44
45
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 46
47
Section 1. Section 496.432, Florida Statutes, is created 48
to read: 49
496.432 Safeguarding Endowment Gifts Act.— 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
(1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.—The Legislature finds that it is 51
necessary to provide legal recourse to individual charitable 52
donors when their giving restrictions are not followed by a 53
recipient charitable organization according to an endowment 54
agreement. 55
(2) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 56
(a) "Charitable organization" means an organization 57
organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, 58
scientific, literary, educational, testing for public safety or 59
other specified purpose and that is tax exempt from federal 60
income tax as an entity described in s. 501(c)(3) of the 61
Internal Revenue Code. 62
(b) "Donor" means an individual or entity that has made a 63
contribution of property or money to an existing endowment fund 64
or a new endowment fund of a charitable organization or of a 65
charitable trust pursuant to the terms of an endowment agreement 66
that may include donor-imposed restrictions or conditions 67
governing the use of the contribution. 68
(c) "Donor-imposed restriction" means a written statement 69
within an endowment agreement which specifies requirements for 70
the management or use of endowment funds. 71
(d) "Endowment agreement" means a written agreement 72
between a charitable organization and a donor or between a 73
charitable trust and a donor regarding the contribution made by 74
the donor and accepted by the charitable organization or the 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
charitable trust, which agreement may include donor-imposed 76
restrictions or other conditions governing the use of the 77
contribution. 78
(e) "Endowment fund" means an institutional fund or part 79
thereof which, under the terms of a gift instrument, is not 80
wholly expendable by the institution on a current basis. The 81
term does not include assets that an institution designates as 82
an endowment fund for its own use. 83
(f) "Gift instrument" means a record or records, including 84
an institutional solicitation, under which property is granted 85
to, transferred to, or held by an institution as an 86
institutional fund. 87
(g) "Legal representative" means the administrator or 88
executor of a person's estate; a surviving spouse if a court 89
judgment has settled the accounts of the estate; or a person 90
designated in an endowment agreement, whether or not born at the 91
time of such designation, to act in place of a party to the 92
agreement for all matters expressed in the agreement and all of 93
the actions it contemplates, including, but not limited to, 94
interpreting, performing, and enforcing the agreement and 95
defending its validity. 96
(h) "Property" means real property, personal property, or 97
money, cryptocurrency, stocks, bonds, or any other asset or 98
financial instrument. 99
(3) PROTECTIONS AFFORDED.— 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
(a) Except where specifically required or authorized by 101
federal or state law, a charitable organization that accepts a 102
contribution pursuant to a written donor-imposed restriction may 103
not violate the terms of that restriction without potential 104
penalty. 105
(b) If a charitable organization violates a donor-imposed 106
restriction contained in an endowment agreement, the donor, or 107
the donor's legal representative, 90 days after notifying the 108
charitable organization of the breach, may file a complaint 109
within 6 years after discovery for breach of such agreement. The 110
complaint may be filed in a court of general jurisdiction in the 111
county where a charitable organization named as a party has its 112
principal office or principal place of carrying out its 113
charitable purpose, or in a court of the United States whose 114
district includes such county. The complaint may be filed 115
regardless of whether the endowment agreement expressly reserves 116
a right to sue or enforce the agreement, and it may not seek a 117
judgment awarding damages to the donor or donor representative. 118
(c) If a charitable organization is unable to fulfill a 119
term in the endowment agreement, the charitable organization 120
must notify the donor, or the donor's legal representative, 121
within 30 days after discovering it is unable to fulfill the 122
terms and offer an alternative solution that closely matches the 123
initial term in the endowment agreement. 124
(d) A charitable organization may obtain a judicial 125
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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
declaration of the rights and duties expressed in an endowment 126
agreement containing donor restrictions as to all of the actions 127
the endowment agreement contemplates, including, but not limited 128
to, the interpretation, performance, or enforcement of the 129
agreement, and a determination of its validity. The charitable 130
organization shall seek a judicial declaration in any suit 131
brought under this section, or by filing a complaint. 132
(e) If the court determines that a charitable organization 133
violated a donor-imposed restriction in an endowment agreement, 134
the court may order one or more remedies consistent with the 135
charitable purposes expressed in the endowment agreement. The 136
court may not order the return of donated funds to the donor or 137
the donor's legal representative. 138
(f) This act does not affect the authority of the Attorney 139
General to enforce any restriction in an endowment agreement; 140
limit the application of the judicial power of cy pres; or alter 141
the right of an institution to modify a restriction on the 142
management, investment, purpose, or use of an endowment fund in 143
a manner permitted by the endowment agreement and by the Florida 144
Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act created in 145
s. 617.2104. 146
(4) SEVERABILITY.—If any provision of this section or its 147
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the 148
invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of 149
the section which can be given effect without the invalid 150
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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
provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this 151
section are declared severable. 152
Section 2. Section 496.433, Florida Statutes, is created 153
to read: 154
496.433 Charity Protection Act.— 155
(1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.—The Legislature finds that it is 156
necessary to minimize burdens on the charitable sector and to 157
create a grantmaking environment centered on effectiveness and 158
fiscal impact on charitable organizations. 159
(2) PROTECTIONS AFFORDED.— 160
(a) Except where specifically required or authorized by 161
federal law, a state agency or state official may not impose any 162
annual filing or reporting requirements on an organization 163
regulated or specifically exempted from regulation under this 164
chapter which are more burdensome than the requirements 165
authorized by Florida law. 166
(b) This subsection does not apply to state grants or 167
contracts or to fraud investigations. 168
(c) This subsection does not restrict enforcement actions 169
against specific nonprofit organizations. 170
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 171