School safety bill would arm teachers. But what else does it do?

Florida’s school safety bill has divided Republicans and Democrats over the issue of allowing classroom teachers to carry guns on campus.  But as the bill heads for a vote by the full Senate, other provisions dealing with mental health, campus crime reporting and active shooter policies have broad bipartisan support. Despite what both parties view as…

FSBA Session Summary — April 17, 2019

Today’s agenda includes both House and Senate floor sessions followed by a Senate committee meeting. Of particular interest, during the Senate Session, the Senate will consider its school safety bill (which has now been renamed “Implementation of Legislative Recommendations of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High Public Safety Commission”) – on 2nd Reading.  Several amendments have…

FSBA Session Spotlight — April 16, 2019

As we begin the seventh week of the Legislative Session, please take a few minutes to watch our FSBA Week 6 Video Update featuring FSBA Executive Director Andrea Messina providing a recap of the main events during the sixth week of the Session.  In addition, this is a good time to provide a quick update…

Justices to hear Parkland liability dispute

The Florida Supreme Court said Friday it will hear arguments in a dispute about how much the Broward County School Board could be forced to pay to parents and victims in last year’s mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.  Justices issued a unanimous order saying they will take up the case and will…

FSBA Session Spotlight — April 11, 2019

Today’s agenda includes House and Senate committee meetings and a House floor session. Of particular interest, the Senate will consider its school safety bill — SB 7030 – and the House will consider a PCB relating to taxation and tax relief.  The House floor session provides 3rd Reading on several bills of interest that had…

FSBA Session Spotlight — April 10, 2019

Today’s agenda includes both Senate committee meetings and House and Senate floor sessions. Bills of interest under consideration today include bills relating to term limits for school board members, parental rights, school choice, local referenda, career education, public records, and government accountability. Today’s schedule is posted below and will be updated to show the outcome on…

Stoneman Douglas commission reviews how school districts are doing at keeping kids safe

embers of the state commission investigating the Parkland school shooting on Tuesday debated the pros and cons of rating school districts on how well they are implementing policies to keep children safe.  The discussion was part of the commission’s first hearing in more than three months, which began with reports of progress in making schools…

FSBA Session Spotlight — April 9, 2019

Before diving into the sixth week of the Legislative Session, please be sure to watch our FSBA Weekly Video Update featuring FSBA Executive Director Andrea Messina providing a recap of the main events during the fourth week of the Session.  Today’s agenda includes consideration of the omnibus school choice bill — HB 7095 – in the…

FSBA Session Spotlight — April 3, 2019

Today’s agenda includes consideration of several bills of interest including bills relating to health and mental health, curriculum, early learning, hurricane recovery, school choice, and government accountability. Today’s schedule is posted below and will be updated to show the outcome as soon as possible (please forgive any delays in our reporting this week while we…

FSBA Session Spotlight — April 2, 2019

Today’s agenda includes consideration of several bills of interest including bills relating to health and mental health, curriculum, early learning, hurricane recovery, school choice, and government accountability. Today’s schedule is posted below and will be updated to show the outcome on these bills after each meeting concludes.   [toggle title=”Committee/Subcommittee Meetings – April 2, 2019“]…