FSBA Session Spotlight – December 9, 2019

The Legislature will hold a sixth, and final, round of Interim Committee Meetings this week to lay more groundwork for the 2020 Legislative Session that will convene on January 14, 2020.  Several committees/subcommittees will consider bills addressing topics of interest including, among others, health and safety, curriculum, personnel issues, and school choice options.  In addition,…

FSBA Session Spotlight — Governor DeSantis’ Budget Recommendation

State law requires the governor to release his/her state budget recommendations at least 30 days before the opening of the legislative session.  Governor DeSantis unveiled his state budget recommendation on Monday with time to spare.  It is important to keep in mind that the governor’s budget recommendation is exactly that:  a recommendation.  It is the…

FSBA Session Spotlight — November 15, 2019

The Legislature held a 5th week of Interim Committee Meetings this week.  Several bills and topics of interest were considered, including funding, health and safety, public records, and ethics.  The outcome of the legislative meetings of interest is provided in the first file below.  In addition, updates on several federal issues are provided in the…

FSBA Session Spotlight — November 12, 2019

The Legislature will hold a 5th week of Interim Committee Meetings this week.  Several bills of interest will be under consideration, including bills relating to funding, health and safety, public records, and ethics.  In addition, the State Board of Education will be meeting on Friday in Brunnell, Florida.  The agenda includes review district turnaround option…

Florida pre-k issues leave lawmakers with long to-do list

On a recent day at Celebration Baptist Kinderschool, the 4-year-olds gathered with their legs crisscrossed on their multicolored carpet to listen to a book about bats.  “What’s that big word we learned?” the teacher asked, referencing a previous lesson about owls.  “Nocturnal!” the toddlers shouted back. Read More  

Prekindergarten, early education get limelight from House committee

The Florida House made clear Tuesday that prekindergarten and early education will receive heavy attention in the coming legislative session, as the state aims to better prepare its children for kindergarten and beyond.  “This is where it starts. It starts with early learning,” Education Committee chairwoman Rep. Jennifer Sullivan said to introduce her panel’s two-hour…

FSBA Session Spotlight — September 16, 2019

This week, the Legislature will hold the first of six weeks of Interim Committee Meetings in preparation for the regular 2020 Legislative Session on January 14, 2020.  This first round of meetings will focus on a review of the state’s financial outlook and the Legislative Budget Requests (LBRs) submitted by state agencies, updates on the…

School Boards Association looks to new ideas for 2020 legislative platform

A year ago, with school safety still high on Florida’s list of concerns, the state’s school boards association focused much of its legislative platform on increasing campus security with armed officers and hardened facilities.  Having gotten much of what it asked for, the association is looking to new ideas for the 2020 session, for which…

FL’s Pre-K program has high participation but may not always prepare kids for kindergarten

Of the 50 states, Florida’s prekindergarten program has the highest percent of 4-year-olds enrolled in the early learning programs. Only Washington D.C. has a higher percentage.  Nearly 175,000 little students attended in 2017-18 — 77 percent of Florida’s 4-year-olds. That’s according to a 2018 analysis called “The State of Preschool 2018.” Read More Read the…