HB 1521 Florida House · 2026 Regular Session

Domestic Animals

Summary

Domestic Animals; Requires FDLE to post on its website specified information relating to individuals convicted of specified animal cruelty offenses; requires clerk of each court & county detention facility to provide FDLE with such information; requires pet dealers to disclose financing terms before sale of animals & provide copies of specified medical records to consumers; revises provisions relating to purchase, exchange, & return of animals; authorizes certain actions for contestation of veterinary expenses or demands of pet dealer for refund or exchange; provides for award of punitive damages; provides that certain violations constitute unfair method of competition or unfair or deceptive act or practice & subject to penalties; requires DBPR to post on its website certain best management practices & information related to selection of breeders, purchase of animals, & animal cruelty.

Bill status in committee 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Feb 2026

House Passage

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 9, 2026 Last action Mar 9, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

H 1521 c2 → H 1521 c3 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was revised to strengthen consumer protections and clarify enforcement procedures. Key changes include expanding the requirement for courts to provide criminal conviction data to the Department of Law Enforcement, adjusting the timeline for consumers to return animals that are unfit for purchase from 30 days to 14 days, and updating the effective date for the new cruelty reporting section to January 1, 2027. Additionally, the bill now explicitly requires pet dealers to disclose all financial terms before a sale and removes provisions that allowed consumers to waive their right to return an animal.

Scope change

The scope of enforcement was expanded by mandating that clerks of court and county detention facilities actively provide criminal data to the Department of Law Enforcement, whereas the previous version only required the department to post information.

TIMELINE

The timeframe for a consumer to return or exchange an animal certified as unfit was reduced from 30 days to 14 days.

The effective date for the new animal cruelty reporting subsection was updated to January 1, 2027.

ENFORCEMENT

A new requirement was added for clerks of court and county detention facilities to provide criminal conviction data to the Department of Law Enforcement.

REQUIREMENT

Pet dealers are now required to disclose all financial terms to the consumer before the sale of an animal.

Provisions allowing consumers to waive their right to return an animal were deleted.

Floor votes · House Feb 24, 2026

How they voted

24–0

Passed · 2 other

Total votes 26

Feb 24, 2026

D Democratic7

5 Yea 2

71% Yea

R Republican19

19 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 25, 2026

Committee

Bill referred to House Calendar

lower

Feb 25, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Commerce Committee

lower

Feb 24, 2026

House · Passed

House Vote: pass (24-0-2)

house

Feb 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable with CS by Commerce Committee

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Lower · Passed

Added to Commerce Committee agenda

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Lower · Passed

Now in Commerce Committee

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Committee

Referred to Commerce Committee

lower

Feb 18, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Budget Committee

lower

Feb 16, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable with CS by Budget Committee

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Added to Budget Committee agenda

lower

Feb 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

Now in Budget Committee

lower

Feb 10, 2026

Committee

Referred to Commerce Committee

lower

Feb 10, 2026

Committee

Referred to Budget Committee

lower

Feb 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee

lower

Feb 5, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable with CS by Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee

lower

Feb 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

PCS added to Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee agenda

lower

Jan 15, 2026

Lower · Passed

Now in Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee

lower

Jan 15, 2026

Committee

Referred to Commerce Committee

lower

Jan 15, 2026

Committee

Referred to Budget Committee

lower

Jan 15, 2026

Committee

Referred to Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee

lower

1 primary · 8 co-sponsors