Florida Senate Bill 266 Wikipedia

Table Of Content

• Why Allowing Chaplains in Public Schools Harms Students
• HB 707 — State University Funds
• HB 999: Post-trial Counseling Services for Jurors
• Florida bill would bring bans on gender studies and critical race theory to colleges and universities
• Florida Gov. DeSantis signs 10 bills into law. Here’s what they do and when they go into effect

Under this law, the Florida Gaming Control Commission may deny, revoke or suspend a license of anyone who has been subjected to a provisional suspension by the federal Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority. In addition, the law increases the penalties for such violations to a third-degree felony. To receive the exemption, current and former personnel are required to submit a written request to the relevant agency, along with a statement that the applicant has made reasonable efforts to protect the information. Senate Bill 548 creates a public records exemption for certain military personnel and their families. These cards are intended to help law enforcement better respond to violations of such protection orders. Senate Bill 86 requires clerks of the court to create a “Hope Card” program for people who have been issued protection orders, such as domestic violence injunctions.

Why Allowing Chaplains in Public Schools Harms Students

But Chris Finan, executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship, said in an interview that Florida schools would wear a “badge of infamy” to employers and other universities if the legislation passed. Joe Cohn, legislative and policy director for the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), a ​​nonprofit that works to protect free speech on college campuses, called HB 999 unconstitutional because it bans both majors and ideas that legislators have deemed disfavorable. NCF Freedom – an organization which arose out of DeSantis’s conservative takeover of the New College of Florida – filed a lawsuit against the state of Florida on August 10. The complaint alleged that SB266 violated students’ and professors’ free speech in limiting what subjects could or could not be learned and taught. An injunction was filed weeks later in the hopes that enforcement of SB266 would be halted until a ruling on the complaint was made. However, on November 2, the judge presiding over the injunction denied the motion.

HB 707 — State University Funds

First, the law replaces the term “gender” with “sex” when discussing restrictions on where delinquent minors may be committed. Seventy-two other organizations have signed on to the AHA's statement, including the American Association of University Professors, the American Philosophical Association and the Tully Center for Free Speech at Syracuse University. The newest version of House Bill 999 may elicit a sigh of relief from UF’s department of gender, sexuality and women’s studies. Under the March 15 version, UF’s women’s studies major and minor seems to no longer be at risk of elimination, Provost Joe Glover said at a Faculty Senate meeting March 23. Her organization is currently in the process of investigating academic freedom and political interference in the state. “It’s going to be a gut punch to anyone who values academic freedom or higher education’s role in democracy,” she said.

HB 999: Post-trial Counseling Services for Jurors

While critics of legislation such as Florida’s HB 999 warn that it is dangerous, they are also optimistic that, if passed, it would ultimately be struck down in court as unconstitutional due to long-standing legal precedents that protect academic freedom in higher education. DeSantis endorsed Florida House Bill 7, better known as the Stop WOKE Act, to restrict educational discussions about race and gender at schools, but a federal judge blocked it late last year. “This bill is designed to do is to make sure the state university system is following through on its statutory mission of preparing students that are coming to state universities for in-demand jobs, developing the human resources and human capital of the state,” State Rep. Alex Andrade said.

It would not prohibit programs for Pell Grant recipients, first generation college students, nontraditional students, transfer students, students from low-income families or students with unique abilities. Programs required for compliance with federal regulations, or access programs for military veterans, PellGrant recipients, first-generation college students, nontraditional students, "2+2" transfer students from the Florida College System, students from low-income families, or students with unique abilities are not prohibited by the bill. "Of course he answered that it would be zero effect on operations of student activities, student programs, multicultural centers, Black student centers, Latino student centers or any activities related to students," she said. Here, Snopes explores each of the claims made of House Bill (HB) 999 in this viral post. While the bill does not explicitly ban Black and minority fraternities and sororities and other programs, the bill's vague language makes its downstream effects up to interpretation and hard to determine. The journals or printed bills of the respective chambers should be consulted as the official documents of the Legislature.

Historians express 'horror' at Florida's HB 999. They say it threatens academic freedom

Florida bill would end diversity programs, ban majors, shift power at universities - Tampa Bay Times

Florida bill would end diversity programs, ban majors, shift power at universities.

Posted: Thu, 23 Feb 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

The Adam Smith Center for Economic Freedom at Florida International University, funded by the Legislature in 2020, would function as a college — hiring faculty, enrolling students and awarding degrees. A bill filed this week in the Florida House would turn many of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ wide-ranging ideas on higher education into law by limiting diversity efforts, vastly expanding the powers of university boards and altering course offerings. Faculty committees shall, by July 1, 2024, and by July 1 every three years thereafter, review and submit recommendations to the Articulation Coordinating Committee, the commissioner, and the Chancellor of the StateUniversity System for the removal, alignment, realignment, or addition of general education core courses that satisfy the requirements of the law.

Florida bill would bring bans on gender studies and critical race theory to colleges and universities

However, the repeal is pending the passage of SJR 1114, which proposes a repeal of the constitutional requirement in the State Constitution that the state provide public financing for statewide campaigns. Under this law, people are prohibited from non-consensually placing tracking devices on someone else’s property or using a tracking device to find out their location. The exemption is also subject to an Open Government Sunset Review and stands repealed on Oct. 2, 2029 unless reenacted by the state Legislature. Under the law, anyone who becomes aware of someone’s death (as provided by state statutes) is required to report the death to either the district medical examiner or law enforcement.

House Bill 999, filed by Rep. Alex Andrade, R-Pensacola, proposes leaving all faculty hiring to boards of trustees, allowing a faculty member’s tenure to be reviewed “at any time,” and removing majors or minors in subjects like critical race theory and gender studies. It would also prohibit spending on activities that promote diversity, equity and inclusion and create new general education requirements. House Bill 999, introduced last week by Rep. Alex Andrade, R-Pensacola, tackles many of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposals for the state’s colleges and universities. It would expand the powers of university boards of trustees — largely appointed by the governor or Board of Governors — and crack down on curriculum and programs related to critical race theory, gender studies and diversity, equity and inclusion, among other things. Although three of them are private, they receive state funding for certain academic programs. Jones questions how HB 999 could affect the state’s HBCUs and the nine Black sororities and fraternities known nationally as the Divine Nine.

National organizations condemn Florida bill that would bring major higher ed changes - Tampa Bay Times

National organizations condemn Florida bill that would bring major higher ed changes.

Posted: Mon, 27 Feb 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Andrade added that DEI has been used as a tool for discrimination in many schools, which lawmakers hope to stop. Without any cause, without any shown need for such a review, which is going to hang like a hammer of the heads of teachers,” Finan said. “The people who are going to suffer the consequences of these bills are kids,” claimed Chris Finan, the executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship. The Board of Governors was established by the Legislature in 2003 to operate, regulate, control, and be fully responsible for the management of the public university system in Florida. Andrade, who has taken to Twitter to seemingly promote the bill, writing "DEI advocates HATE open debate" in a quote tweet response to former Florida Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith, who publicly denounced H.B. When Guillermo responded and accused Andrade's fellow Republicans of being "scared" of their consituents, Andrade replied, "This is your brain on DEI."

The board of trustees may delegate its hiring authority to the president but the president may not delegate hiring authority. HB999 — on page 22 out of the bill's 23 pages — said "courses with a curriculum based on unproven, theoretical, or exploratory content are best suited to fulfill elective or specific program prerequisite credit requirements, rather than general education credit requirements." The specific implications of the bill with respect to Greek life and student-run organizations remain to be seen, and the Florida Senate, which is also controlled by Republicans, must pass its version of the bill next before it reaches DeSantis' desk. One course … is described as "exploring the structures and institutions of social inequality along the intersectional axes of class, race, and gender/sexuality by focusing on how these categories are socially constructed, maintained, and experienced." Florida homeowners and those involved in Homeowners' Associations (HOAs) should take note of the recently passed HB 919, a significant piece of legislation that introduces several critical changes to Florida Statute 720, which governs HOAs. The law also creates new rules about “generated child pornography,” which makes it a crime to own or purposefully view generated child pornography.

A bill working its way through the Florida legislative process could outlaw certain programs and change how state colleges and universities hire employees. Andrade said if there are faculty advisory boards overseeing any such groups, those will be impacted by the bill. "Those student groups can continue to operate how they see fit currently, subject only to the policies and procedures that are content neutral that apply to all organizations, student organizations on campus," he said.

However, states were allowed to provide exemptions from SAFE Act registration requirements to nonprofit organizations and their employees based on specified criteria. Under this law, those exceptions would be expanded to include situations where a parent is wiretapping because they believe the recording will capture a statement by someone who has either sexually abused the parent’s child or intends to do so. While wiretapping is generally a third-degree felony in the state, there are some exceptions, such as when all parties consent or if a person is acting on behalf of law enforcement. The law reclassifies certain fraud cases that are committed against those 65 years old or above, minors, or people with a mental/physical disability. He said while he believes much of the bill is unconstitutional and will be challenged, the damage to the reputation of the schools will be severe. Increasingly, PEN America research has found, educational gag orders focus on higher education, indicating that these policies intend to do far more than expand parents’ rights over their minor children’s education but to broadly limit free thought.

It prohibits diversity, equity and inclusion spending, including through grants and contracts. It calls for the removal of majors and minors like critical race theory and gender studies, and calls for general education courses that “promote the philosophical underpinnings of Western civilization” whenever applicable. Florida’s HB 999 would destroy academic freedom, tenure, shared governance, and university independence in the state’s public higher education system.

At the time of publication, DeSantis has not made a public statement on House Bill 999. The bill is right in line with Governor Ron DeSantis’s higher education agenda, which calls for banning “discriminatory” DEI initiatives. Back in January, DeSantis appointed six conservatives to the board of the New College of Florida in Sarasota. Entire majors would also be banned, specifically, “any major or minor in Critical Race Theory, Gender Studies, or Intersectionality, or any derivative major or minor of these belief systems.” African-American studies departments could also be vulnerable at public institutions statewide.

College students are also concerned about legislation that imposes restrictions on courses of study. Last week, Florida students rallied against HB 999 in the capital city of Tallahassee. Maxx Fenning, a senior at the University of Florida and the founder and president of LGBTQ+ advocacy group PRISM, also finds the legislation unsettling.