Bill > S0498

Introduced Session

An act relating to trust fund interest for purposes approved by the Supreme Court; creating s. 655.97, F.S.; authorizing financial institutions to hold funds in specified trust accounts to be used for specified purposes; requiring such financial institutions to pay a certain minimum interest rate or dividend; requiring that the interest rate be a specified percentage; requiring a financial institution to submit a quarterly rate validation sheet and affidavit to the Chief Financial Officer attesting that it will pay a minimum certain interest rate or dividend; requiring that the affidavit attest that certain information is true and factual; requiring the Chief Financial Officer to verify certain information; providing applicability; providing an effective date. WHEREAS, in September 1981, the Florida Supreme Court implemented the nation’s first Interest on Trust Accounts (IOTA) program, establishing a vital funding source for civil legal aid, justice system improvements, and public service programs for law students, and WHEREAS, Funding Florida Legal Aid (FFLA), formerly known as The Florida Bar Foundation, and the Florida Bankers Association have cooperated for decades to sustain the program and encourage participation, and WHEREAS, in March 2023, the Florida Supreme Court adopted new rules requiring lawyers to secure interest rates based on the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate, compelling banks to pay higher rates for IOTA accounts than for other similar accounts, and WHEREAS, 44 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have mandatory IOTA programs modeled after Florida’s pre 2023 system, while 5 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands operate voluntary or opt-out programs, and WHEREAS, the 2023 rule change made Florida an outlier compared to other jurisdictions where IOTA rates are typically benchmarked against interest-bearing checking account rates, and WHEREAS, the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate serves as a benchmark for lending and is not used to set deposit account rates, and WHEREAS, the 2023 rule change resulted in banks paying higher rates on funds in IOTA accounts, resulting in record revenues, exceeding $279 million, paid to FFLA during the 2023 2024 fiscal year, nearly four times the prior peak rate and far exceeding average annual interest revenues, and WHEREAS, in October 2024, the Florida Supreme Court authorized FFLA to hold nearly $143 million in reserve, and WHEREAS, it is in the best interests of this state for the Legislature to establish statutory benchmarks for IOTA rates to ensure regulatory safety, fairness, and sustainability, similar to the quarterly interest rate determinations made by the Chief Financial Officer for interest paid on court judgments, NOW, THEREFORE,

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Committee Categories

Erin Grall (R)*, 

Other Sponsors (3)

Died in Messages (on 06/16/2025)

Official Document