Relating to the approval of land use assumptions, capital improvement plans, and impact fees.

Contracts

• Development Agreements (Chapter 380/381): Review all active agreements containing "fee locking" or "current rate" clauses. You must amend these to explicitly reference the Section 395.059 Independent Audit as a condition precedent for any fee payment.
• Consulting Agreements: If your firm provides CPA services to a municipality, you are now statutorily disqualified from performing that municipality's impact fee audit if you have provided *any* other services in the preceding 12 months.

Hiring/Training

• Government Relations Teams: Retrain lobbyists and permit expediters. The vote count for fee increases is no longer a simple majority; it requires a two-thirds supermajority.
• Advisory Committee Staffing: Monitor local Capital Improvements Advisory Committees. The law requires 50% representation from the real estate, development, or building industries. If a city attempts to use its Planning & Zoning Commission as this committee without meeting that quota, their actions are voidable.

Reporting & Record-Keeping

• The "Clean" Audit: For any proposed fee increase, you must demand the municipality's Independent Financial Audit. This document must be posted to the entity's website 30 days prior to the hearing notice.
• Data Validation: Your teams now have 60 days (increased from "on or before") prior to the hearing notice to review Land Use Assumptions and Capital Improvement Plans. Use this window to identify calculation errors before the public hearing.

Fees & Costs

• Fee Freeze: Municipalities are prohibited from increasing an impact fee if the fee was adopted or increased within the preceding three years.
• Refunds: The statute creates a specific cause of action for the refund of impact fees if the municipality fails to comply with the audit, voting, or timing requirements.