HB 803 Florida: What Contractors Need To Know About Private Provider Fee Reductions
HB 803 is the current Florida bill contractors should watch for private-provider fee and process updates. Florida Statute 553.791 remains the legal foundation that authorizes private providers for plan review and inspections.
This page is an informational contractor guide, not legal advice. Project scope, jurisdiction rules, and the current statutory text still control.
At A Glance
The current-law snapshot
HB 803
Current 2026 Bill To Watch
553.791
Core Florida Statute
25% / 50%
Commercial Scope Benchmarks
July 1, 2027
Uniform Form Target
What your team should remember
Plain-English takeaways for owners, supers, PMs, and permit coordinators.
The clean way to explain the law is to separate the statute from later bills. The statute creates the private-provider path. HB 803 is the current update contractors are asking about.
2026 private-provider update
HB 803 is the current bill contractors should watch for private-provider fee treatment, cost-based fee logic, anti-punitive-fee direction, and uniform permit-application standardization.
Contractor takeaway
Use HB 803 when discussing the current private-provider fee and process story, especially on commercial work.
Where FCC fits
FCC can help contractors use the private-provider path correctly for plan review and inspection scope without pretending to take over the whole permit process.
This is not a blanket discount promise. The current commercial framing depends on project scope, how much qualifying work the private provider handles, and how the local jurisdiction applies the statute.
For commercial projects, the current framework points to a 25 percent reduction when the private provider handles part of the qualifying plan review or inspection scope.
Applies when
- The project is commercial.
- The private provider handles only part of the qualifying scope.
- The jurisdiction applies the fee framework to the project facts.
Contractor note
This is the realistic framing when the building department or other local reviewers still retain part of the review or inspection scope.
Commercial Fee Framework
Private provider handles part of the qualifying scope
For commercial projects, the current framework points to a 25 percent reduction when the private provider handles part of the qualifying plan review or inspection scope.
Applies when these facts line up
- The project is commercial.
- The private provider handles only part of the qualifying scope.
- The jurisdiction applies the fee framework to the project facts.
Contractor Note
This is the realistic framing when the building department or other local reviewers still retain part of the review or inspection scope.
Commercial builders
Use HB 803 to clean up owner conversations around commercial fee treatment, private-provider scope, and the cost of waiting on review cycles.
- Update internal language from HB 405 to HB 803.
- Separate fee treatment from schedule savings.
- Map which scopes FCC can handle before the permit package slows down.
Permit coordinators
HB 803 matters because the wrong bill number or fee percentage can create avoidable confusion with owners, local agencies, and internal teams.
- Use the 25 percent / 50 percent commercial framework.
- Keep NTBO and permit-filing responsibility clear.
- Watch the July 1, 2027 uniform-application standardization target.
Trade contractors
Even if your work is not a large commercial package, HB 803 explains why private-provider workflows are becoming more central to Florida construction planning.
- Know when fee claims are commercial-specific.
- Use private-provider speed for eligible review and inspection scope.
- Do not assume every inspection leaves the jurisdiction.
Guardrails
What HB 803 does not do
- It does not make every project automatically cheaper.
- It does not eliminate the building department.
- It does not make FCC the permit filer.
- It does not make FCC the NTBO filer.
- It does not move zoning, fire, public works, utilities, drainage, and similar retained items into FCC scope.
Sources
Verify The Source
Check the statute and bill language before you quote it on a project.
Your team files the permit and NTBO
The contractor or owner still handles permit submission and Notice to Building Official filing with the jurisdiction.
FCC handles eligible private-provider scope
FCC reviews plans and performs virtual inspections for the scope assigned under the private-provider workflow.
Jurisdiction-retained items stay local
Zoning, fire, public works, utilities, drainage, and similar local approvals can still control parts of the project.
FCC files the COC when appropriate
After required FCC inspections pass, FCC files the Certificate of Compliance at the right stage.
Key Terms For HB 803 And Private Providers
- HB 803
- The 2026 Florida bill contractors should watch for current private-provider fee and process updates.
- Florida Statute 553.791
- The Florida statute that authorizes private-provider plan review and inspection work.
- Private Provider
- A qualified provider authorized to perform plan review, inspections, or both as an alternative to waiting only on the local building department for those services.
- Notice to Building Official
- The notice filed with the local building department when a private provider will be used. FCC does not file this notice for the contractor or owner.
- HB 405
- A dead 2026 bill that created confusion. Contractors should not cite HB 405 as current law for the private-provider provisions that moved through HB 803.
- HB 683
- A prior enacted update that matters to the broader private-provider and virtual-inspection workflow timeline.
Florida Statute 553.791
The core statute behind private-provider plan review and inspection authority.
HB 803 Contractor Guide
Article-style breakdown of the 2026 HB 803 private-provider fee story.
What Happened to HB 405
Clarifies why HB 405 is not the bill contractors should cite now.
Private Provider Fee Reductions
Evergreen fee-reduction framing for Florida private-provider projects.
Notice to Building Official
Explains who files the NTBO and what stays with the contractor or owner.
Plan Reviews
How FCC handles private-provider review work for residential and commercial projects.
Virtual Inspections
How FCC handles live and eligible offline inspections under the private-provider model.
Need A Faster Private-Provider Path For A Florida Project?
HB 803 explains the current fee and process story. FCC helps contractors use the private-provider path correctly with fast plan reviews, virtual inspections, and clear boundaries around what still stays with the jurisdiction.