Sunshine Sentinel

The Florida House and Senate have passed a bill that seeks to limit the restrictions that government can impose on home-based businesses.

Sponsored by Rep. Mike Giallombardo (R-Cape Coral), FL HB403 will clarify the definition of a home-based business, allow home-based businesses to operate in residentially zoned areas and specify what business taxes home-based enterprises are obligated to pay. The bill also restricts the extent to which local governments can regulate and require licensure for such businesses.

"During these difficult times, we need to ensure the government does not impede entrepreneurs looking to build a business," Giallombardo wrote in a March 9 Facebook post. "Once upon a time, Disney, Hewlett-Packard, and Apple all started out as small home-based businesses. You never know who could be the next Walt Disney, and the government should not prevent you from doing so. I filed HB 403 to create pathways for home-based businesses to succeed."

According to The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), small businesses are crucial to the economy of the Sunshine State and are often conducted in garages and around kitchen tables. NFIB further notes that local Florida business codes are often contradictory and far more burdensome than typical zoning laws. The NFIB supports FL HB403, saying it will ease the regulatory burden on entrepreneurs.

"We believe entrepreneurs have a right to create and operate businesses at home as long as those businesses don’t bother their neighbors or violate local zoning ordinances," NFIB wrote in a statement. "House Bill 403 would stop local governments from creating a patchwork quilt of confusing and conflicting rules and regulations that would affect home-based businesses beyond ordinary zoning laws and homeowners’ association rules."

Justin Pearson, managing attorney at the Institute for Justice, said the number of Floridians starting a home business rose in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and that the bill will remove much of the unnecessary government restrictions that might Floridians from starting and running a home business.

“Half of all businesses are home-based, yet many of Florida’s city and county governments have created unnecessary red tape preventing Floridians from pursuing the American dream,” Pearson said. “This reform ensures that, no matter where they live in the Sunshine State, Floridians can start home-based businesses with confidence.”

The institute also clarified a crucial detail of FL HB403 – its distinction between business conducted inside and outside a residence. The institute says FL HB403 bans local government from regulating business that occurs strictly inside residences, but allows for local legislation outside the home. This allows concerns such as “parking, noise, or emissions” to still be addressed by city and county governments.

JP Morgan, Chase and Co. reports that small businesses are responsible for 45% of total U.S. GDP and 48% of total U.S. employment.

According to the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council, 50% of small businesses are home based.