HB 535 — Public Lodging and Public Food Service Establishments

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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 A bill to be entitled An act relating to public lodging and public food service establishments;

providingauthorizing definitions;public food service establishments to include an automatic gratuity or service charge in certain circumstances;

requiring publicsuch food service establishments that charge an operations charge to provide specified notice;

prohibitingproviding public food service establishments that charge an operationsexception; charge that is used to compensate employees from also charging an automatic gratuity;

requiringprohibiting billsautomatic andgratuity receiptsor toservice containcharges in certain information;circumstances;

prohibitingproviding afor privatethe causecomputation of action;automatic or suggested gratuity or service charges;

providing effectiveconstruction; dates.

providing an effective date.

and a Page 1 of 98 CODING:

hb535-02-c2hb535-01-c1 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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 nontransient public lodging establishment as defined in subparagraph 2.

(11) "Transient establishment" means any public lodging establishment that is rented or leased to guests by an operator for transient occupancy whose intention is that such guests' Page 2 of 98 CODING:

hb535-02-c2hb535-01-c1 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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 occupancy will be temporary.

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hb535-02-c2hb535-01-c1 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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 509.141 Refusal of admission and ejection of undesirable guests;

(e) who, In the case of a public food service establishment, fails to make payment for food, beverages, or Page 4 of 98 CODING:

hb535-02-c2hb535-01-c1 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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 services;

"You are hereby notified that this establishment no longer desires to entertain you as its guest, and you are requested to Page 5 of 98 CODING:

hb535-02-c2hb535-01-c1 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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 leave at once.

(5) A law enforcement officer may place under arrest and take into custody a guest who violates subsection (3) in the Page 6 of 98 CODING:

hb535-02-c2hb535-01-c1 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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 presence of the officer.

EffectiveSection July 1, 2026, section 509.214, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

509.214 Notification of automaticAutomatic operations gratuity chargeor andservice charge.— (1)(a) A Every public food service establishment receipts.—may (1)include Aswhich usedincludes inan thisautomatic subsection,gratuity or service charge in the term:price of food or beverages for parties of six or more guests.

(a)the "Gratuity"meal or(b) "tip"A meanspublic afood sumservice presentedestablishment byshall ainclude customeron asthe afood giftmenu, orand contributionon inthe recognitionface of serviceevery performed,bill theprovided paymentto a guest, and amounton the face of whichevery isitem ator receipt required to be signed by a guest the discretionbill ofprovided to the customer.customer notice that Page 7 of 8 CODING:

(b) "Operations charge" means an automatic fee or charge, other than a government-imposed tax, that a customer is required to pay in addition to the cost of the food and beverage Page 7 of 9 CODING:

hb535-02-c2hb535-01-c1 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 CS/CS/HBCS/HB 535 2025 purchased.an automatic gratuity or service charge is included.

The termnotice includes,must butlist isthe notrecipient limitedof to,the gratuity or service charges,charge automaticand gratuities,the creditpercentage cardthe surcharges,person andor deliverybusiness fees.entity is receiving.

(2)(c) EveryA publicguest foodis servicenot establishmentrequired whichto chargespay an operations charge includes an automatic gratuity or service charge inpursuant theto pricethis ofsubsection theif meal shall include a notice on the foodguest menu,requests writtennot contract,to andpay websitesuch orgratuity mobile application where food and beverage orders are placed, as applicable, that includes the amount or percentageservice of the operations charge and the purpose of the operations charge.

Such(2) noticeA mustpublic appearfood inservice aestablishment fontmay thatnot isinclude equalan toautomatic gratuity or greaterservice thancharge in the fontprice usedof forfood menu item descriptions or thebeverages generalfor provisionsparties of thefewer writtenthan contract.six guests.

(3) If thean publicautomatic foodor servicesuggested establishmentgratuity doesor notservice providecharge menus,is tablebased service,on orthe writtenprice contractsof forthe banquet,food catering, or eventbeverages services,purchased theby operationsa chargeguest, noticeit must appearbe inbased an obvious and clearly readable manner on the menuprice boardof or on an obvious and clearly readable sign by the registerfood whereor thebeverages customerbefore pays.taxes.

However,(4) aFor publicpurposes foodof servicethis establishmentsection, thatthe chargesterms an"gratuity" operationsand charge"service thatcharge" isinclude usedany totype compensateof employeescharge mayor notrequired alsopayment chargeother anthan automaticthe gratuity.price of food or beverages.

(3) There must be a notice and on the face of the bill provided to the customer that an operations charge notice that an automatic gratuity is included.

The notice must clearly state the percentage or amount of the operations charge.

(4) Each copy of a receipt that a customer receives must Page 8 of 9 CODING:

Words stricken are deletions;

words underlined are additions.

hb535-02-c2 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 CS/CS/HB 535 2025 contain separate lines for gratuity, an operations charge, and sales tax so that it is clear to the customer what is being charged.

If the operations charge is an automatic gratuity, it must be separately stated on the receipt.

(5) This section does not create a private cause of action related to compliance with the requirements of this section.

ExceptThis as otherwise expressly provided in this act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2025.

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