Hillsborough County, FL Public Health Rules: Syringe Disposal (2026)
Key Facts
- Authorized by
- Sec. 28-254, under F.S. § 381.0038(4)
- Exchange ratio
- One-for-one, clean for used
- Eligible operators
- Hospital, clinic, med school, or 501(c)(3)
- Funding source
- Private grants/donations only
- Annual report due
- August 1 to Board and state DOH
- Adopted
- Ord. No. 20-1, effective Feb. 6, 2020
Summary
Hillsborough County authorizes a needle and syringe exchange under Sec. 28-250 through Sec. 28-260 of the Code of Ordinances, run only by a county-contracted operator on a strict one-for-one exchange basis, to cut HIV, hepatitis and other blood-borne disease transmission. No state, county or municipal money may fund it; the operator must run on private grants and donations alone.
(a) In accordance with F.S. § 381.0038(4), the syringe service program is authorized to operate in the geographic boundaries of Hillsborough County. (b) The syringe service program shall offer the free exchange of clean, unused needles and hypodermic syringes for used needles and hypodermic syringes, with the primary goal of preventing the transmission of HIV, AIDS, viral hepatitis, and other blood-borne diseases among intravenous drug users and their sexual partners and offspring. (c) The syringe service program may operate at one or more fixed locations or through mobile health units. (d) It shall be unlawful to operate a syringe service program unless the operator is under contract with the County pursuant to the requirements of F.S. § 381.0038(4).
Full Breakdown
The Board of County Commissioners authorized the syringe service program under Sec. 0038(4), covering both incorporated and unincorporated Hillsborough County unless a municipality like Tampa, Temple Terrace or Plant City adopts its own competing ordinance, in which case the municipal rule controls under Sec. 28-252. Before the program could start, the Board had to sign a letter of agreement with the Florida Department of Health, enlist the county health department for ongoing advice, and put a written contract in place under Sec. 28-255 and Sec.
28-256. That contract can only go to a licensed hospital, a Chapter 400 Part X health care clinic, an accredited Florida medical school, a licensed addictions receiving facility, or a 501(c)(3) HIV/AIDS service organization, and it must build in measurable objectives, monthly progress tracking and specific remedies for noncompliance. Operators run the exchange one clean needle and syringe for each used one turned in, hand out disease-transmission education materials at every exchange, and provide or refer participants to onsite HIV and hepatitis screening, drug treatment, opioid-antagonist kits, housing help and job counseling under Sec.
28-258. Sec. 28-257 requires the operator to keep a written security plan covering needle and syringe counts on hand and in storage and safe disposal of returned needles. Sec. 28-259 requires an annual report to the Board and the state health department by August 1 tracking participants served, needles exchanged, and treatment and testing referrals, without collecting participants' personal identifying information. Sec. 28-260 bars any public funding: the operator must run on private grants and donations.
Violations & Fines
Sec. 28-254(d) makes it unlawful to run a syringe service program in the county without an operator contract meeting F.S. § 381.0038(4). The ordinance sets no separate fine schedule of its own; enforcement runs through the operator's contract, which under Sec. 28-256 must specify concrete consequences and remedies for noncompliance with its oversight and accountability terms, alongside whatever state licensing sanctions apply to the contracted hospital, clinic, medical school, addictions facility or HIV/AIDS nonprofit running it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a needle exchange program legal in Hillsborough County?
Can taxpayer money pay for the syringe exchange?
What security rules apply to exchange sites?
Does the exchange apply inside Tampa or Plant City too?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Hillsborough County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Hillsborough County to another location·View the Florida public health rules overview
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