TODAY’S HAPPENINGS
In the House Economic Affairs Committee:
HB 147 – Concrete Masonry Education by Caldwell – PASSED WITH A CS
Creates Florida Concrete Masonry Education Council, Inc.; requires council to operate under written contract with DEO; provides powers & duties of council; provides restrictions; provides for appointment & terms of governing board of council; authorizes council to accept grants, donations, contributions, & gifts under certain circumstances; authorizes council to make payments to other organizations under certain circumstances; provides for collection of voluntary assessment on concrete masonry units; requires manufacturers who elect to pay assessment to commit to paying assessment for a specified period; requires council to adopt bylaws; provides for adoption of bylaws & amendments to bylaws.
In the House Judiciary Committee:
HB 753 – School Safety by Stube – PASSED WITH A CS
Provides exception to prohibition on possession of firearms or other specified devices on school property or other specified areas for authorized concealed weapon or firearm licensees as designated by school principals or district superintendents; provides requirements for designees; requires school boards to formulate policies & procedures for dealing with active shooters & hostage situations; requires that active shooter training for each school be conducted by law enforcement agency that is first responder agency for school; requires district school boards & private schools allow campus tours by local law enforcement agencies for specified purposes & that their recommendations be documented; permits district school boards to commission one or more school safety officers on each school campus. [NOTE: Today’s amendment addressed one of FSBA’s central concerns about the bill by requiring that any designee authorized to carry a concealed weapon under the bill would be appointed by the district superintendent with approval by the school board (as opposed to the former language of the bill that would allow school principals to designate these individuals without district-level approval). FSBA remains opposed to this bill overall, but supports this amendment.]
In the House State Affairs Committee:
HB 1327 – Government Accountability by Metz – PASSED
Revises various audit provisions to include district school boards or exclude water management districts; revises responsibilities of department heads, Supreme Court, Florida Clerks of Court Operations Corporation, Justice Administrative Commission, each state attorney & public defender, criminal conflict & civil regional counsel, capital collateral counsel, Guardian Ad Litem program, local governmental entities, & governing bodies of charter schools to include responsibility of establishing certain internal controls; revises responsibilities of district school board’s internal auditor to permit certain audits & reviews; requires each Florida College System institution to file certain annual financial statements with State Board of Education; requires each school district, , Florida College System institution, & state university to establish certain internal controls.
HB 7107 – Administrative Procedures by Rulemaking – PASSED WITH A CS
Revises requirements for notice of rule development, notice of proposed rule, & notice of change; authorizes electronic delivery of certain notices; revises requirements for certain agency filings with JAPC; requires certain agency personnel to attend public hearings; requires agency to publish notice of convening separate proceeding & tolling rulemaking deadlines during separate proceedings; revises requirements for substantially affected persons to submit proposals for lower cost regulatory alternatives following notice of change; revises requirements for agency’s consideration of lower cost regulatory alternatives; provides addition documents to be listed on agency website under certain conditions; provides additional requirements for calculation of estimated regulatory costs; creates presumption of adverse impact on small business; requires petition to establish community development district to include certain economic impacts statement.
In the Senate Session:
Bills on 3rd Reading
SB 160 – Food Distributed Free of Charge by Bullard – TEMPORARILY POSTPONED ON 3RD READING
Limiting the liability of public schools with respect to canned or perishable food donated to charitable or nonprofit organizations, etc.
SB 864 – Instructional Materials / Adoption by Hays – READ 3RD TIME; PASSED THE SENATE
Providing that the district school board has the constitutional duty and responsibility to select and provide adequate instructional materials for all students; requiring a district school board or consortium of school districts to implement an instructional materials program; repealing provisions relating to bids, proposals, and advertisement regarding the adoption of instructional materials; requiring the district school board, rather than the commissioner, to conduct an independent investigation to determine the accuracy of district-adopted instructional materials, etc. [NOTE: The bill passed very narrowly on a vote of 21-19. FSBA is opposed to the Senate version of this bill, but supports the House version – HB 921 – which retains the state level review and adoption process and the local level review and adoption OPTION. However, the House may choose to pass the SENATE version of the bill when it arrives in the House in Messages from the Senate. We will be urging the House to keep and pass the House version of this bill.]
SB 1642 – Education Accountability by Education – READ 3RD TIME; AMENDED; PASSED THE SENATE
Providing definitions for the statewide, standardized assessment program and school grading system; requiring the Department of Education to develop a district report card; revising criteria that necessitate a school’s improvement plan to include certain strategies; revising legislative intent for the K-20 education performance accountability system, etc. [NOTE: FSBA continues to have concerns that this bill (and its House companion — HB 7117) does not go far enough to address the issues relating to the transition to new state standards and assessments.]
SB 358 – Volunteers / Organized Youth Sports by Ring – READ 3RD TIME, PASSED THE SENATE
Revising the definition of the term “athletic coach”; expanding provisions relating to athletic coaches for independent sanctioning authorities to require such authorities to conduct specified background screening of certain coaches of youth athletic teams; providing that the duty may not be delegated; providing for disqualification; providing for exemption from disqualification; requiring that specified documentation be maintained for a specified period by such authorities, etc.
Bills on 2nd Reading
SB 674 – Background Screening by Bean – READ 2ND TIME; AMENDED; PLACED ON 3RD READING
Authorizing the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to share reproductions of driver license images with the Department of Health and the Agency for Health Care Administration for specified purposes; exempting a person whose fingerprints are already enrolled in a certain Federal Bureau of Investigation program from the requirement that such fingerprints be forwarded to the bureau; requiring the fingerprints of an employee required to be screened by a specified agency and included in the clearinghouse also to be retained in the national retained print arrest notification program at a specified time, etc.
SB 850 – Education by Legg – READ 2ND TIME; AMENDED; PLACED ON 3RD READING
Requiring a school that includes certain grades to include information, data, and instructional strategies in its school improvement plan; revising the kind of lab schools that receive a proportional share of the sparsity supplement; requiring a district school board, in consultation with the district school superintendent, to make CAPE Digital Tool certificates and CAPE industry certifications available to students, including students with disabilities, in prekindergarten through grade 12, to enable students to attain digital skills; deleting calculations for paid and unpaid high school credits, etc.
In the House Session:
Bills on 3rd Reading
HB 7167 – School Choice by Education Appropriations – READ 3RD TIME; PASSED THE HOUSE Revises & creates provisions relating to educational choice. [NOTE: This is the recently filed House bill that combines the provisions of HB 5103 relating to vouchers for students with disabilities with most of the provisions of HB 7099 relating to the Tax Credit Scholarship Program. Several amendments were considered yesterday on 2nd Reading, but the only one that passed removed the provision for an additional increase – in addition to the automatic increase — in the cap on tax credits that can be applied toward scholarships under the Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship Program. Only one amendment was offered today — and effort to prohibit Scholarship Funding Organizations from charging students an application fee — but that effort failed. The Senate versions of this bill are SB 1512 relating to students with disabilities and SB 1620 relating to the Tax Credit Scholarship Program (which was withdrawn from further consideration in the Senate due to the lack of sufficient academic accountability measures). FSBA is opposed to all of these bills. We will be urging the Senate to maintain their position of requiring sufficient accountability in voucher programs and to oppose HB 7167.]
SB 188 – Education Data Privacy by Hukill – READ 3RD TIME; PASSED THE HOUSE; PASSED THE LEGISLATURE
Providing for annual notice to K-12 students and parents of rights relating to education records; providing limitations on the collection of information and the disclosure of confidential and exempt student records; revising provisions relating to the submission of student social security numbers and the assignment of student identification numbers; requiring the Department of Education to establish a process for assigning student identification numbers, etc. [NOTE: This bill includes a one year exemption for an existing palm-scan program in one Florida school district.]
HB 377 – Educational Facilities Financing by Moraitis – READ 3RD TIME; PASSED THE HOUSE
Revises provisions relating to financing of independent nonprofit higher educational facilities to include financing for private schools meeting certain criteria; revises provisions to conform.
HB 23 – Food Distributed Free of Charge by Rogers – READ 3RD TIME; PASSED THE HOUSE
Limits liability of public schools with respect to donation of canned or perishable food to charitable or nonprofit organizations.
HB 85 – Literacy Jump Start Pilot Project by L. Lee – READ 3RD TIME; PASSED THE HOUSE
Requires Office of Early Learning (OEL) to establish pilot project in St. Lucie County to assist low-income, at-risk children in developing emergent literacy skills; requires OEL to select organization to implement pilot project; provides eligibility requirements for participation; requires background screening for personnel & emergent literacy training for instructors; requires OEL to allocate funds for pilot project.
COMING UP NEXT WEEK
As we reported to you yesterday, in observance of Passover and Easter, the House and Senate will not be holding any meetings next week. We do not plan to send out a DAILY Update next week, but we will send Updates, as needed, to notify you of any breaking news and Calls to Action. In the absence of Daily Updates next week, please do not hesitate to contact the FSBA office if you have questions about any legislation.
IN THE NEWS
Sunshine State News – 4/11/14
Floridians opposed to voucher program
http://www.sunshinestatenews.
Tampa Bay Times – 4/11/14
Pension reform has a good day for Weatherford but is it a last gasp?
http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/
