Capitol Connection

2023 LEGISLATIVE SESSION: WEEK 1

This week kicked off the start of Florida’s 125th Regular Legislative Session. On Tuesday, March 7th Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, (R- Naples) addressed the Senate Chamber with her opening remarks that may be found here. Speaker of the House Paul Renner, (R- Palm Coast) also addressed the House Chamber with his opening remarks that may be found here. Governor Ron DeSantis also gave his annual State of the State address to all members of the legislature and his remarks may be found here.


Committees continued to meet with bills being introduced including HB 249 Level 2 Background Screenings, by Representative Dana Trabulsy, (R- St. Lucie) and HB 19 Individual Education Plans, by Representative Allison Tant, (D- Tallahassee) which passed out of the House Education & Employment Committee. Also being presented this week HB 223 Public School Student Progression for Students with Disabilities passed out of the House PreK-12 Appropriations Committee making it the second committee stop for that bill.


Furthermore, there was major movement in both House and Senate priority legislation. In the Senate its omnibus housing package SB 102 Housing, by Senator Alexis Calatayud (R-Miami), passed out of the Senate and is now in messages to the House. In the House HB 1 School Choice, by Representative Kaylee Tuck, (R-Lake Placid) passed its final committee on Friday with approval from the House Education Quality Subcommittee.


As always, we look forward to bringing you weekly information on legislation that effects Florida’s communities, children, and families throughout the 60 day Regular Legislative Session. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out. 


Until next time!


Sincerely,


The Florida Alliance of Children's Councils & Trusts

Healthy Development

HB 655 - Suicide Prevention

Rep. Trabulsy

SB 914 - Suicide Prevention

Rep. Garcia

❶❷❸


These similar bills rename the Commission on Mental Health & Substance Abuse, revise the purpose and duties of the commission to include assessment of the state's suicide prevention infrastructure, and allow certain diagnoses to be made through telehealth.

HB 591 - Social Media Protection for Minors

Rep. Rayner-Goolsby

❷❸

SB 792 - Social Media Protection for Minors

Sen. Jones

❶❷❸


These identical bills require social media platforms to disclose specified information, resources, measures, and disclaimers and prohibit certain schools from requiring students to register, enroll, or participate in social media platforms for educational purposes.

HB 121 - Florida Kidcare Program Eligibility

Rep. Bartleman

❶❷❸

SB 246 Florida Kidcare Program Eligibility

Sen. Calatayud

❶❷❸

These identical bills increase the income eligibility threshold for coverage under the Florida Kidcare program, require applicants seeking coverage under the program to provide specified documentation, require that premiums for certain enrollees under the program be based on a tiered system of uniform premiums, and provide that certain amendments made by this act are subject to federal approval through a waiver or state plan amendment.

HB 1245 - Florida Kidcare Program Income Eligibility

Sen. LaMarca

❶❷❸

This similar bill establishes a tiered system of family premiums for Title-XXI coverage under the Florida Kidcare program beginning on specified date. It authorizes AHCA to seek federal waiver approval or submit any state plan amendments as necessary, increases the income eligibility threshold for coverage under the program to conform to changes made by the act, and provides that specified amendments are subject to federal approval.

HB 1463 - Childhood Mental Health, Safety, and Welfare

Rep. Beltran

❶❷❸

SB 1620 - Childhood Mental Health, Safety, and Welfare

Sen. Grall

❶❷❸


These similar bills revise the array of services offered by the child and adolescent mental health system of care and address access to and use of digital devices both during and outside of school instruction.

HB 435 - Newborn Hearing Screenings

Rep. Melo

❶❷❸

SB 394 - Newborn Hearing Screenings

Sen. Polsky

❶❷❸


These identical bills define the term "congenital cytomegalovirus test" and revise newborn hearing screening requirements to require that all newborns, rather than only those who fail the initial newborn hearing screening, be tested for congenital cytomegalovirus, etc.

Early Learning

HB 1155 - Provisional Child Care Licensing

Rep. Maney

❶❷❸

SB 538 - Provisional Child Care Licensing

Sen. Trumball

❷❸

These identical bills require a local licensing agency or the Department of Children and Families to issue a provisional license or registration for a family day care home under certain circumstances.

HB 1021 - Child Care and Early Learning Providers

Rep. McFarland

❶❷❸

SB 990 - Child Care and Early Learning Providers

Sen. Grall

❶❷❸

These similar bills revise provisions relating to taxes for preschools & child care providers, licensing, training requirements, screenings, timeframes, insurance, & regulation. Provides an exemption for public and private preschools from specified special assessments levied by a municipality, a tax credit for certain contributions made to a child care facility, authorizes specified tax credits for corporations establishing and operating or making payments to, child care facilities for their employees under certain conditions, requires the Department of Children and Families to conduct specified screening of child care personnel within a specified timeframe and issue provisional approval of such personnel, and provide that an insurer may not deny, cancel, or refuse to renew a policy on the basis that the policyholder operates a large family child care home.

HB 703 - Early Childhood Music Incentive Program

Rep. Garcia

❶❷❸

SB 478 - Early Childhood Music Incentive Program

Sen. Perry

❷❸

These identical bills rename the Early Childhood Music Education Incentive Pilot Program as the Early Childhood Music Education Incentive Program. Revises criteria for a school district’s eligibility to participate in the program and deletes an obsolete provision requiring the University of Florida’s College of Education to conduct a specified evaluation.

HB 193 - Instructional Hours for the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program

Rep. Nixon

❶❷❸

SB 426 - Instructional Hours for the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program

Sen. Davis

❶❷❸

These identical bills revise instructional hours required in the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program to provide for an 8-hour program day in summer & school-year programs.

K-12 Education

HB 1 - School Choice

Rep. Tuck

❶❷❸

SB 202 - K-12 Education

Sen. Simon

❶❷


These similar bills revise provisions relating to the Family Empowerment Scholarship Program, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program, obligations of eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organizations, and part-time enrollment in public schools. Require the State Board of Education to provide recommendations by a specified date to the Governor and the Legislature for repeals and revisions of the Florida Early Learning-20 Education Code to be considered in the 2024 legislative session. Authorize vehicles other than buses to transport students and permits district school boards to use advanced degrees in setting salary schedules for instructional personnel or school administrators.

SB 758 - Reading Strategies

Sen. Calatayud

❶❷❸

Education Quality Subcommittee 1


These similar bills address reading and mathematics instructional and intervention programs and materials.

HB 465 - Workforce Education

Rep. Esposito

❶❷❸

SB 630 - Open Door Grant Program

Sen. Burgess

❶❷❸


These similar bills require the Commissioner of Education to approve or disapprove final Master Credential List; require Credentials Review Committee to submit a new list to the commissioner within the specified timeframe & increases amount DOE may reimburse an institution through Open Door Grant Program for a completed workforce training program.

HB 379 - Student Use of Social Media Platforms

Rep. Yeager

❷❸

SB 52 - Required Instruction in Public Schools

Sen. Burgess

❷❸


These similar bills require members of the instructional staff of public schools to provide instruction on social media safety; defines the term "social media"; requires the Department of Education to make social media instructional material available online, requires district school boards to notify parents of the availability of the instructional material, and requires each school district to prohibit & prevent students from accessing social media platforms through use of internet access provided by school districts.

HB 633 - Class Size

Rep. Salzman

❷❸

SB 1236 - Class Size

Sen. Wright

❶❷❸


These identical bills revise a specified reduction calculation for certain school district funding for school districts that fail to meet certain class size requirements as well as revising provisions related to students of active duty military personnel.

HB 733 - Middle School and High School Start Times

Rep. Temple

❷❸

SB 1112 - Middle School and High School Start Times

Sen. Burgess

❶❷❸


These identical bills provide requirements for middle and high school start times and require charter schools to meet such requirements.

Out-Of-School Time Programs

HB 249 - Level 2 Background Screenings

Rep. Trabulsy

❷❸

SB 676 - Background Screenings

Sen. Grall

❶❷❸

These similar bills revise provisions related to level 2 background screenings for certain persons who have access to children & participation in the Care Provider Screening Clearing House. These bills require the clearinghouse to allow the results of certain screenings after a certain date to be shared among specified agencies and qualified entities. The bills revise requirements for independent sanctioning authorities to participate in specified background screening system, expand agencies & entities which may utilize the Criminal Justice Information Program for fingerprint searches, and requires the program to develop, for federal approval, a specified method for identifying or verifying individuals and requires specified entities to initiate criminal history checks through FDLE or clearinghouse by a specified date. Provides requirements for clearinghouse and revises requirements for educator certification or employment in positions that require direct contact with certain students.

Children with Disabilities

HB19 - Individual Education Plan

Rep. Tant

❶❷


SB 636 - Individual Education Plans

Sen. Simon

❷❸

These identical bills require IEPs for certain students to contain information and instruction on legal rights & responsibilities that transfer to students at age 18 and require information to include ways in which a student may provide informed consent to allow his or her parent to continue to participate in educational decisions.

HB 223 - Public School Student Progression for Students with Disabilities

Rep. Bartleman

❶❷

SB 290 - Public School Student Progression for Students with Disabilities

Sen. Jones

❶❷❸

These similar bills require comprehensive plans for student progression to provide for specified students with disabilities to be retained in prekindergarten at the discretion of a student’s parent, requiring such students to receive intensive reading interventions, and revising the requirements for certain students with disabilities to receive a good cause exemption from mandatory retention in grade 3.

Child Protection

HB 143 - Task Force on the Monitoring of Children in Out-of-Home Care

Rep. Williams

❷❸

SB 204 - Task Force on the Monitoring of Children in Out-of-Home Care

Sen. Rouson

❶❷


These similar bills create a Task Force on Monitoring of Children in Out-of-Home Care and provides for membership. Requires the task force to convene by specified date, authorizes the task force to conduct meetings through teleconference or other electronic means, and provides duties of the task force. Requires the Florida Institute for Child Welfare to conduct focus groups & submit its findings to the task force, requires DCF to submit certain monthly reports to the task force, requires the task force to submit report to Governor & Legislature, and provides for repeal of the task force.

HB 1101 - Education for Children and Young Adults in Out of Home Care

Rep. Tramont

❶❷❸

SB 272 - Children and Young Adults in Out of Home Care

Sen. Garcia

❶❷❸


These similar bills require the Department of Children and Families to establish the Office of the Children’s Ombudsman to serve a specified purpose. Specifies dates by which the office must be established and certain information and training and processes provided. Requires the department to work with all stakeholders to educate children and young adults in out-of-home care regarding their rights and protections and the benefits available to them, and requires specified staff to provide certain materials to children and young adults in out-of-home care and explain certain rights and protections. Requires the department to adopt rules.

HB 875 - Dependent Children

Rep. Trabulsy

❶❷❸❹

SB 1384 - Legal Proceedings for Children

Sen. Burton

❶❷❸


These similar bills revise provisions related to guardian and attorney ad litem access for dependent children, modify out-of-home case plan requirements, and authorizes the Pathway to Prosperity program to provide grants to youth and young adults aging out of foster care.

HB 1007 - Children Removed from Caregivers

Rep. Borrero

❶❷❸

SB 1064 - Children Removed from Caregivers

Sen. Yarborough

❶❷❸


These identical bills require community based care lead agencies to provide trauma focused assessment and services to children removed from caregivers.

HB 1201 - Dependent Children

Rep. Trabulsy

❶❷❸

SB 1634 - Child Welfare

Sen. Brodeur

❶❷❸


These similar bills provide for access to records and the ability to initiate court proceedings related to dependent children.

Juvenile Justice

HB 1363 - Costs of Supervision or Care of Children

Rep. Arrington

❶❷❸

SB 1180 - Cost of Supervision or Care

Sen. Simon

❶❷❸


These similar bills remove provisions for fees for costs of care or supervision of certain children & for assessment & collection of such fees, provides such fees may not be ordered, balances for such fees may not be collected, unpaid civil judgments for such fees are void & unenforceable, warrants issued solely based on alleged failure to pay such fees are void & any person whose driver license was suspended for failure to pay such fees shall be eligible for reinstatement.

HB 1273 - Juvenile Justice

Rep. Bracy Davis

❶❷❸

HB 605 - Expunction of Criminal History Records

Rep. Smith

These similar bills revise the criteria for the criminal record expunction process for juveniles.

SB 504 - Expunction of Criminal History Records

Sen. Rodriguez

❶❷❸


Economic Self-Sufficiency

HB 627 - Housing

Rep. Busatta Cabrera

❷❸


SB 102 - Housing

Sen. Calatayud

❶❷


These identical bills cite this act as the "Live Local Act" and delete the authority of local governments to adopt or maintain laws, ordinances, rules, or other measures that would impose controls on rents. Provides an exemption from ad valorem taxation for land that meets certain criteria, authorizes local governments to adopt ordinances to provide an ad valorem tax exemption for portions of property used to provide affordable housing meeting certain requirements, suspends, for a specified period, the General Revenue Fund service charge on documentary stamp tax collections, and authorizes the Governor, under the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund, to approve state or local public infrastructure projects to facilitate the development or construction of affordable housing.

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