Gov. Ron DeSantis signed HB 925 on May 22, 2026, giving Florida's clerks of court a bigger slice of the fees and fines they collect, a change clerks say will ease a funding crunch that left some offices relying on county subsidies. The measure takes effect July 1, 2026, and supporters say the extra revenue will help keep court operations running and online services from stalling out.
What the law changes
CS/HB 925 overhauls how certain fines and forfeiture revenues are distributed, allowing clerks to retain the full amount, rather than half, of the cumulative revenue excess and increasing the portion of specific penalties that flows into clerks' fine and forfeiture funds. The bill also tweaks how civil traffic penalties issued inside municipalities are split and gives clerks new options to publish legal notices online. According to the Florida Senate, the governor approved the measure, which carries an effective date of July 1, 2026.
How much money we're talking about
Analysts and clerk leaders expect the new formulas to reroute millions to clerks' offices. Allowing clerks to keep the full cumulative excess is projected to send roughly $13.3 million statewide back into their budgets, while boosting clerks' share of civil traffic fines to 28.2% could add about $8.1 million, according to The Florida Bar. The same analysis notes that HB 925 restores a 10% clerk share for school-bus camera infractions and is intended to cut down on clerks' dependence on county subsidies for day-to-day court functions.
Local clerks react
St. Johns County Clerk Brandon J. Patty called the overhaul "a welcome relief" and told Florida Politics his office could gain more than $79,000 in 2027 and nearly $190,000 in 2028 under the new revenue splits. Patty credited the leadership and advocacy of the Florida Court Clerks & Comptrollers for steering the bill through the Legislature. Other county clerks around the state echoed that praise, saying more predictable revenue will make it easier to plan for staffing, cybersecurity upgrades and e-services instead of scrambling to plug budget holes.
What cities lose and counties gain
The flip side is that municipalities are now looking at thinner slices of some fines. The law reduces the portion of certain penalties that cities receive and redirects that money into clerks' fine and forfeiture funds, a shift city officials say could leave gaps in services that depended on those dollars. As outlined in the Senate summary, the new percentages increase clerks' shares of some civil penalties while cutting municipal allocations. Local finance directors and city managers now have to rebalance municipal budgets around a different flow of fine revenue under the law, according to the Florida Senate.
Clerks say they need it
The Florida Court Clerks & Comptrollers, which pushed HB 925 as a top legislative priority, has called the law a "meaningful investment" that will help safeguard clerks' constitutional duties and improve access to justice. In a legislative update, the group pointed to roughly a $75 million statewide funding gap clerks had warned about and thanked Gov. DeSantis and the bill sponsors for moving the measure across the finish line. Clerks say the additional revenue will go toward core operations, from staffing to technology, easing the pressure on counties that have been backstopping court budgets.
What's next
With HB 925 taking effect July 1, 2026, clerks and county finance teams now have to fold the new revenue splits into fiscal plans that start the same day. The Florida Bar reports that the law should help stabilize court operations and fund ongoing digital upgrades, while municipal leaders say they will be tracking collections closely to see how the new fine distribution really hits local services.
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