If you build in Florida and you use a private provider, a recent opinion from the Florida Attorney General's office is worth your attention. In July 2026, the AG's office weighed in on how local building departments must treat projects that use a licensed private provider under Section 553.791, Florida Statutes — and the takeaway is clear: the state's private provider framework is a statewide standard, and local practices cannot override it.
For developers, general contractors, design professionals, and property owners, this removes a lot of the gray area that has slowed projects and quietly inflated permit budgets for years. Below is a plain-English breakdown of what the opinion addresses and the specific steps your project team should take now.
The short version
When you retain a properly licensed private provider to perform your plan review or inspections, the local building department's role is narrower than many jurisdictions have treated it. The opinion reinforces four principles that already flow from Florida law:
- Local departments cannot require inspections that duplicate work already performed by your private provider.
- Local governments cannot impose policies or procedures that are more stringent than state law.
- Jurisdictions cannot charge you for plan review or inspection services they did not actually perform.
- When unauthorized fees have been collected, those fees must be refunded.
None of this is a loophole. It is the private provider law — Section 553.791 — working the way the Legislature designed it. The AG opinion simply confirms that the statewide framework means the same thing in every county and city.
1. No more duplicate inspections
One of the most common friction points on private provider projects has been the "we'll re-inspect it anyway" response from a local department. That practice adds days to your schedule and cost to your budget for work your private provider already completed and certified.
The state framework — reinforced by HB 803, which took effect July 1, 2026 — limits a local government's ability to re-review plans already approved by a qualifying private provider and to re-perform inspections your provider has already conducted. There are narrow, legitimate exceptions (document completeness, local ordinances such as floodplain requirements, and specific administrative or life-safety items), but blanket duplicate inspections are not one of them.
What this means for you: your certified inspections should move your project forward, not reset the clock.
2. Local rules can't be stricter than state law
Florida's private provider statute is a statewide standard. A city or county cannot layer on extra requirements — additional licensure checks, extra insurance verification beyond the required registration, or bespoke local procedures — that go beyond what state law allows. HB 803 goes a step further and prohibits local governments from discouraging applicants from using private providers or creating unnecessary barriers to doing so.
What this means for you: if a jurisdiction asks for something that isn't in the statute, you are entitled to ask which provision of state law requires it.
3. You only pay for services actually performed
This is where the dollars are. Under HB 803, when a private provider performs your qualifying plan review and inspections, the local government is prohibited from charging plan review or inspection fees for the services it did not perform. On top of that, the law mandates permit fee reductions:
- A minimum 50% reduction in commercial permit fees when a private provider handles all qualifying plan review and inspection work, and
- A minimum 25% reduction when a private provider performs part of that scope.
What this means for you: on a commercial project, using a private provider for the full scope should cut your permit fees roughly in half — and eliminate charges for services the jurisdiction didn't provide.
4. Unauthorized fees must be refunded
The opinion also addresses what happens when a jurisdiction has already collected fees it shouldn't have. The answer: those unauthorized fees are subject to refund. If you have paid full plan review or inspection fees on projects where your private provider performed the work, that is worth reviewing.
What this means for you: past projects may be worth a look, not just future ones.
HB 803 is the backbone here
The AG opinion sits on top of a law that already reshaped Florida permitting in 2026. The provisions of HB 803 most relevant to your projects:
- A 10-business-day "shot clock" for the building department to review plans or issue a permit when a private provider is used — down from 20 business days. For single-trade residential work, it drops to 5 business days. If the department misses the deadline, the application is deemed approved.
- Mandatory fee reductions for commercial projects of 50% (full scope) and 25% (partial scope).
- Limits on duplicate plan review of work a qualifying private provider already approved.
- A prohibition on banning virtual inspections performed by private providers.
- A requirement that departments give at least 5 business days' notice before auditing private provider work.
Together, the statute and the AG's opinion point in the same direction: faster approvals, lower fees, and fewer redundant steps for teams that use a private provider.
What your project team should do now
- Keep clean documentation. Retain your private provider's certifications, inspection records, and plan review approvals for every project.
- Audit your permit invoices. Review recent permit fees against the 25%/50% reduction standard and the prohibition on charging for services the jurisdiction didn't perform.
- Ask for the statutory basis. If a jurisdiction requires a duplicate inspection or an extra step, politely ask which provision of state law requires it.
- Plan around the shorter timelines. Build the 10-business-day shot clock into your schedule and hold jurisdictions to it.
- Use a private provider that knows every jurisdiction. Statewide rules are only useful if your provider knows how each department applies them in practice.
Where Tew & Taylor fits
Tew & Taylor has been Florida's private provider partner since 2008, registered in more than 300 municipalities across the state. We handle private plan review, building inspections, and permitting support under Section 553.791 — with same-day inspections and two-day plan review — so your project captures every advantage the law now guarantees: no duplicate steps, lower fees, and a permit timeline you can actually plan around.
If you want a second set of eyes on your permit fees, your documentation, or an upcoming project, contact our team and we'll walk you through it.
Legal sources: Florida Attorney General Opinions, HB 803 (2026), and F.S. §553.791.
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