Senate Bill sb0464e1

    CS for SB 464                                  First Engrossed



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to Three Kings Day; creating s.

  3         683.33, F.S.; designating January 6 as "Three

  4         Kings Day" and authorizing local governments to

  5         issue proclamations commemorating the occasion;

  6         providing an effective date.

  7  

  8         WHEREAS, the Hispanic history of this state began in

  9  1513 when Ponce de Leon arrived in the land he called La

10  Pascua Florida, and

11         WHEREAS, this Hispanic history of the state was

12  strengthened when, in 1565, Pedro Menendez de Aviles founded

13  San Augustin, or St. Augustine, the first permanent European

14  settlement in what is now the United States, and

15         WHEREAS, Florida was a Spanish colony for almost 300

16  years, except for a 20-year period between 1763 and 1783,

17  until the Adams-Onis Treaty ceded Florida to the United States

18  in 1821, and

19         WHEREAS, Hispanic people have remained in Florida since

20  it was a Spanish colony, and

21         WHEREAS, Hispanic food, traditions, and culture have

22  contributed greatly to the state in the past, and

23         WHEREAS, the Hispanic population of Florida has grown

24  substantially in recent history by immigration and, as a

25  result, the Hispanic population continues to influence the

26  food, traditions, and culture of Florida, and

27         WHEREAS, El Dia de los Reyes Magos, or "Three Kings

28  Day," is a day that has not only religious meaning for many

29  Hispanics but is also a day that has deep cultural roots that

30  encourage extended families and friends to visit each other

31  


                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    CS for SB 464                                  First Engrossed



 1  and enjoy each other's company, to celebrate, and to exchange

 2  gifts, NOW, THEREFORE,

 3  

 4  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

 5  

 6         Section 1.  Section 683.33, Florida Statutes, is

 7  created to read:

 8         683.33  Three Kings Day.--

 9         (1)  January 6 of each year is designated as "Three

10  Kings Day."

11         (2)  Local governments may annually issue a

12  proclamation commemorating January 6 as "Three Kings Day" and

13  recognize that many residents of the state celebrate the

14  occasion as a time to be with their family and friends, attend

15  services, exchange gifts, and celebrate their cultural

16  heritage.

17         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.

18  

19  

20  

21  

22  

23  

24  

25  

26  

27  

28  

29  

30  

31  


                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.