The Senate Fiscal Policy Committee amended and reported favorably CS for CS for SB 1612, a multipart bill revising financial‑institution rules, after extended stakeholder debate focused on the state’s IOTA (Interest on Trust Accounts) arrangements.

Senator Grau, the bill sponsor, said SB 1612 would "help financial institutions be more efficient and competitive with their federal counterparts," describing changes that range from timing of semiannual assessments to allowing certificates of acquisition for bank purchases.

A suite of three amendments to the bill adjusted language affecting the interest rate that financial institutions must pay on pooled law‑firm trust accounts (IOTA) and how that rate is documented. Amanda Fraschel of the Florida Civil Legal Aid Association testified against the amendment, warning of a potential conflict with the Florida Supreme Court rule that governs the IOTA program and asking the committee to oppose the change so the court could address the issue.

Fraschel told senators: "Because attorneys are regulated by the Supreme Court they will have to continue to follow the court's current IOTA regulation, yet if this legislation is passed banks which are regulated by state statute will have to comply with this new bank regulation which does not meet the standard set by the court."

Banking representatives said the proposed statutory language is meant to make the program sustainable and predictable. Scott Jenkins, speaking for "Bankers for Sustainable IOTA program," described the program's history and said the Florida Bar Foundation's change to the required rate in 2023 produced a dramatic, unsustainable spike in funds and that the amendment would reset a sustainable and comparable rate. "The current arbitrary rate jeopardizes the entire program," Jenkins said.

Community banker David Dothrow, CEO of Winter Park National Bank, described the operational cost of managing high‑volume trust accounts and warned of liquidity mismatches if banks were forced to treat IOTA funds as long‑term investments.

Anthony DeMarco of the Florida Bankers Association said banks have tried to resolve the issue with the bar and court without success and supported the amendment as a legislative solution.

After amendment debate and a series of substituted amendments, the committee adopted the amendment and later adopted the bill on a roll call. The transcript shows stakeholder groups on both sides of the issue — legal‑aid advocates and numerous banking organizations — and senators discussed constitutional and regulatory overlaps between statute and court rule. The committee recorded a favorable report on the bill.