Florida Statutes

Fla. Stat. § 112.3135 (2025)

Restriction on employment of relatives.

✓ 2025 Florida Statutes — current through the 2025 Regular Session

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112.3135 Restriction on employment of relatives.—

(1) In this section, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) “Agency” means:

1. A state agency, except an institution under the jurisdiction of the Board of Governors of the State University System;

2. An office, agency, or other establishment in the legislative branch;

3. An office, agency, or other establishment in the judicial branch;

4. A county;

5. A city; and

6. Any other political subdivision of the state, except a district school board or community college district.

(b) “Collegial body” means a governmental entity marked by power or authority vested equally in each of a number of colleagues.

(c) “Public official” means an officer, including a member of the Legislature, the Governor, and a member of the Cabinet, or an employee of an agency in whom is vested the authority by law, rule, or regulation, or to whom the authority has been delegated, to appoint, employ, promote, or advance individuals or to recommend individuals for appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement in connection with employment in an agency, including the authority as a member of a collegial body to vote on the appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement of individuals.

(d) “Relative,” for purposes of this section only, with respect to a public official, means an individual who is related to the public official as father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, first cousin, nephew, niece, husband, wife, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, or half sister.

(2)(a) A public official may not appoint, employ, promote, or advance, or advocate for appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement, in or to a position in the agency in which the official is serving or over which the official exercises jurisdiction or control any individual who is a relative of the public official. An individual may not be appointed, employed, promoted, or advanced in or to a position in an agency if such appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement has been advocated by a public official, serving in or exercising jurisdiction or control over the agency, who is a relative of the individual or if such appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement is made by a collegial body of which a relative of the individual is a member. However, this subsection shall not apply to appointments to boards other than those with land-planning or zoning responsibilities in those municipalities with less than 35,000 population. This subsection does not apply to persons serving in a volunteer capacity who provide emergency medical, firefighting, or police services. Such persons may receive, without losing their volunteer status, reimbursements for the costs of any training they get relating to the provision of volunteer emergency medical, firefighting, or police services and payment for any incidental expenses relating to those services that they provide.

(b) Mere approval of budgets shall not be sufficient to constitute “jurisdiction or control” for the purposes of this section.

(3) An agency may prescribe regulations authorizing the temporary employment, in the event of an emergency as defined in s. 252.34, of individuals whose employment would be otherwise prohibited by this section.

(4) Legislators’ relatives may be employed as pages or messengers during legislative sessions.

History.—ss. 1, 2, 3, ch. 69-341; ss. 15, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 70, ch. 72-221; s. 3, ch. 83-334; s. 1, ch. 89-67; s. 4, ch. 90-502; s. 2, ch. 94-277; s. 1407, ch. 95-147; s. 1, ch. 98-160; s. 42, ch. 99-2; s. 11, ch. 2007-217; s. 47, ch. 2011-142.

Note.—Former s. 116.111.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 8 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1992–2021 · leading case: City of Miami Beach v. Galbut, 626 So. 2d 192 (Fla. 1993).

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City of Miami Beach v. Galbut, 626 So. 2d 192 (Fla. 1993). · cites it 6× “For the reasons set forth below, we agree that section 112.3135(2) does not prohibit Galbut's reappointment to the Board of Adjustment.”

William R. Crews v. State of Florida, 183 So. 3d 329 (Fla. 2015). · cites it 2× “313(1) (defining “public officer” for purposes of section); § 112.3135(1)(c) (defining “public - 15 - As was mentioned above, Petitioner finds support for his ambiguity argument in the dissenting views of Judge Altenbernd in LaMorte, who found the phrase “misconduct in office”…”

In Re Code of Jud. Conduct, 643 So. 2d 1037 (Fla. 1994). · cites it 2× “See also Fla. Stat. § 112.3135 (1991). Canon 3D(3).”

Kinzer v. State Com'n on Ethics, 654 So. 2d 1007 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995). · cites it 6× “The Ethics Commission made a finding that Kinzer had violated the anti-nepotism law, § 112.3135, Fla. Stat. (1989), by reason of a 1990 vote in favor of his wife's appointment to an unpaid advisory board.”

Galbut v. City of Miami Beach, 605 So. 2d 466 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). · cites it 4× “Russell Galbut appeals a declaratory judgment which construed Florida's anti-nepotism law, section 112.3135, Florida Statutes (1991).”

In Re Amendment to Code of Jud. Conduct, 918 So. 2d 949 (Fla. 2006). · cites it 2× “See also Fla.Stat. § 112.3135 (1991). Canon 3D. Appropriate action may include direct communication with the judge or lawyer who has committed the violation, other direct action if available, or reporting the violation to the appropriate authority or other agency.”

Code of Jud. Conduct, 838 So. 2d 521 (Fla. 2003). · cites it 2× “See also Fla.Stat. § 112.3135 (1991). Canon 3D. Appropriate action may include direct communication with the judge or lawyer who has committed the violation, other direct action if available, or reporting the violation to the appropriate authority or other agency.”

Pasek v. Kinzel (M.D. Fla. 2021). “§ 112.3135 (2)(a); (Doc. 22-1 at 23 (“The employment of relatives in the Clerk’s office is prohibited, unless specifically approved by the Clerk, in accordance with Chapter 112.”

— 112.3135(1)(c) — 1 case

William R. Crews v. State of Florida, 183 So. 3d 329 (Fla. 2015). “313(1) (defining “public officer” for purposes of section); § 112.3135(1)(c) (defining “public - 15 - As was mentioned above, Petitioner finds support for his ambiguity argument in the dissenting views of Judge Altenbernd in LaMorte, who found the phrase “misconduct in office”…”

— 112.3135(2) — 1 case

City of Miami Beach v. Galbut, 626 So. 2d 192 (Fla. 1993). “For the reasons set forth below, we agree that section 112.3135(2) does not prohibit Galbut's reappointment to the Board of Adjustment.”

— 112.3135(2)(a) — 3 cases

Galbut v. City of Miami Beach, 605 So. 2d 466 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). “Russell Galbut appeals a declaratory judgment which construed Florida's anti-nepotism law, section 112.3135, Florida Statutes (1991).”

Kinzer v. State Com'n on Ethics, 654 So. 2d 1007 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995). “The Ethics Commission made a finding that Kinzer had violated the anti-nepotism law, § 112.3135, Fla. Stat. (1989), by reason of a 1990 vote in favor of his wife's appointment to an unpaid advisory board.”

— 112.3135(l)(c) — 1 case

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