The Florida House has scheduled two floor sessions during the first week of the 2021 legislative session, as Speaker Chris Sprowls, R-Palm Harbor, plans to quickly pass a bill that would provide COVID-19 liability protections to businesses.
The House is slated to hold floor sessions March 4 and March 5, according to a tentative schedule posted on its website. Those sessions would be in addition to more-ceremonial floor events on March 2, the opening day of the 2021 legislative session.
While the House has not posted details about which bills it will consider during the first week, Sprowls told reporters Thursday that he wants to move quickly on the proposal (HB 7) that would help shield businesses from lawsuits related to COVID-19.
“I would like to get business liability done as soon as possible,” he said. Sprowls said another priority is a bill (HB 9) that would crack down on scammers who provide fraudulent information about COVID-19 vaccines.
The business liability bill, sponsored by Rep. Lawrence McClure, R-Dover, has cleared its committees, making it ready for action by the full House.
The vaccine fraud bill, sponsored by Rep. Ardian Zika, R-Land O’ Lakes, still must get approval from the House Judiciary Committee, which is scheduled to meet March 1.
