Florida AI legislation update: House feud threatens DeSantis’ AI guardrails and data center limits

TALLAHASSEE - Florida's 2026 legislative session is seeing a significant divide between the House and Senate over the regulation of artificial intelligence.

Governor Ron DeSantis has proposed a framework that would give parents control over children’s interactions with "companion chatbots" and require disclosures when residents are interacting with AI systems.

Additionally, the governor’s plan seeks to protect the state’s power grid from the massive resource demands of "hyperscale" data centers.

The backstory:

AI data centers are increasingly being scrutinized for their immense resource consumption.

Unlike standard offices, these facilities require significant land, consume large amounts of electricity, and massive amounts of water to cool server stacks. 

Governor DeSantis has specifically warned that without legislative guardrails, utility companies may pass the costs of building new power infrastructure for these centers directly onto existing residential customers.

The other side:

House Speaker Daniel Perez (R-Miami) has emerged as the primary roadblock to the Governor’s AI agenda. 

Perez has openly criticized the administration, vowing that the House will no longer act as a "rubber stamp" for executive priorities. 

He has specifically raised concerns that the Governor’s state-level "Bill of Rights" may clash with federal AI standards recently proposed by the Trump administration. 

Because of these concerns, the House versions of these bills (including HB 1395 and HB 659) have been assigned to multiple committees, effectively burying them for the time being.

What they're saying:

Governor Ron DeSantis: "We don't want to see them building a massive data center and then sending you the bill. Data centers take up the power equivalent of a half a million-person city, we feel very, very strongly about protecting the consumer."

House Speaker Daniel Perez: "As policy makers, our understanding of the issue is complicated by the rapid emergence of this complex technology, and, as we've seen with social media, short-term legislative choices can have serious long-term consequences."

Big picture view:

The standoff in Tallahassee extends beyond AI. This "bad blood" between the state’s top two Republicans is currently bleeding into other critical legislative priorities, including a heated debate over property tax elimination and the overall state budget.

If the House and Senate cannot reconcile their differences, several high-profile consumer protections could remain in limbo through the end of the session.

What's next:

The 2026 Legislative Session is currently at its midpoint. Observers are watching to see if a compromise can be reached before the final budget negotiations begin.

While the Senate’s version of the AI Bill of Rights (SB 482) advances, its fate remains tied to whether a companion bill can move forward in the House.