Interim Committee Week #3

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

Interim Committee Week #3 | January 17-20, 2023

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Dear Colleagues and Friends,

Last week, the Legislature held their third week of interim committee meetings. House and Senate committees continue to receive presentations from state agencies and others on a variety of issues. Some presentations to note from last week’s meetings included:

Senate Agriculture Committee – Presentations on the Impact of the 2022 Hurricanes on Agriculture and the State of the Citrus Industry
House and Senate Judiciary Committees – Update on the new Sixth District Court of Appeals
House Ways and Means Committee – State revenue overview
House Select Committee on Hurricane Resilience and Recovery – Recovery update on Hurricanes Ian and Nicole

A handful of bills were heard by the first committees of reference. One noteworthy bill heard was HB 99, related to intercollegiate athlete compensation and rights. The bill, which was heard by the House Postsecondary Education and Workforce Subcommittee, makes several changes to the state’s name, image and likeness (NIL) laws for college student-athletes. These changes would allow colleges and universities to be more involved in connecting student-athletes with possible endorsements. Although Florida law does not currently allow this, it is being done in other states. The bill was reported favorably with one amendment by the subcommittee.

The Legislature will return this week for committee week 4. As a preview to this week, the House Choice & Innovation Subcommittee will take up major education policy on Thursday, January 26. HB 1, related to school choice, would greatly expand eligibility for the state’s school voucher programs and follows other states that have passed universal school choice policies.

I would be happy to speak with you about any of the issues above. For more information, please contact me.

Warmly,

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