The bill amends section 373.4136 of the Florida Statutes to establish a revised credit release schedule for mitigation banks, effective July 1, 2025. It outlines specific percentages for the release of mitigation credits based on the recordation of conservation easements, completion of construction activities, and the achievement of interim and final success criteria. Additionally, it allows applicants to propose alternative credit release schedules and requires the Department of Environmental Protection or water management districts to modify existing schedules upon request under certain conditions. The bill also prohibits the release of mitigation credits for freshwater wetland creation until specific success criteria are met, enhancing the management and accountability of mitigation banks.

Moreover, the bill introduces new annual reporting requirements for mitigation banks, mandating that they submit an accounting of available credits to the relevant department or water management district starting July 1, 2026. This accounting will not include the names of parties reserving credits or contract prices. The department or water management district will compile this information to evaluate the state's mitigation banking system and report findings to legislative leaders by October 1, 2026, and annually thereafter. The bill also removes previous provisions that allowed certain projects to utilize mitigation banks regardless of their location within the designated service area, specifically deleting eligibility for projects with partial adverse impacts within the service area, linear projects, and those with total adverse impacts of less than one acre.