Florida Senate - 2025 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 1172 Ì198256EÎ198256 LEGISLATIVE ACTION Senate . House Comm: RCS . 03/17/2025 . . . . ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— The Committee on Commerce and Tourism (Jones) recommended the following: 1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 2 3 Before line 27 4 insert: 5 Section 1. Paragraphs (c), (f), and (g) of subsection (1) 6 of section 295.07, Florida Statutes, are amended, and paragraph 7 (h) is added to that subsection, to read: 8 295.07 Preference in appointment and retention.— 9 (1) The state and its political subdivisions shall give 10 preference in appointment and retention in positions of 11 employment to: 12 (c) A wartime veteran as defined in s. 1.01(14), who has 13 served at least 1 day during a wartime period, and his or her 14 spouse. Active duty for training may not be allowed for 15 eligibility under this paragraph. 16 (f) A veteran as defined in s. 1.01(14) and his or her 17 spouse. Active duty for training may not be allowed for 18 eligibility under this paragraph. 19 (g) A current member of any reserve component of the United 20 States Armed Forces or the Florida National Guard and his or her 21 spouse. 22 (h) The spouse of an active duty servicemember serving in 23 the United States Armed Forces. Active duty training may not be 24 allowed for eligibility under this paragraph. 25 Section 2. Section 295.188, Florida Statutes, is amended to 26 read: 27 295.188 Preference in hiring veterans and their spouses for 28 private employers.— 29 (1) The Legislature intends to establish a permissive 30 preference in private employment for certain veterans and their 31 spouses. 32 (2) A private employer may adopt an employment policy that 33 gives preference in hiring to an honorably discharged veteran, 34 as defined in s. 1.01(14); the spouse of a veteran with a 35 service-connected disability, as described in s. 295.07(1)(b); 36 the unremarried widow or widower of a veteran who died of a 37 service-connected disability, as described in s. 295.07(1)(d); 38orthe unremarried widow or widower of a member of the United 39 States Armed Forces who died in the line of duty under combat 40 related conditions; a current member of any reserve component of 41 the United States Armed Forces or the Florida National Guard or 42 his or her spouse; or the spouse of an active duty servicemember 43 serving in the United States Armed Forces. Active duty training 44 may not be allowed for eligibility under this subsection. Such 45 policy shall be applied uniformly to employment decisions 46 regarding hiring and promotion. 47 (3) These preferences are not considered violations of any 48 state or local equal employment opportunity law. 49 50 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================ 51 And the title is amended as follows: 52 Delete lines 2 - 7 53 and insert: 54 An act relating to preferences for veterans and 55 military spouses; amending s. 295.07, F.S.; requiring 56 the state and its political subdivisions to give 57 preference in appointment and retention in positions 58 of employment to the spouses of wartime veterans, 59 veterans, members of any reserve component of the 60 United States Armed Forces or the Florida National 61 Guard, and certain active duty servicemembers; 62 amending s. 295.188, F.S.; authorizing private 63 employers to adopt employment policies that give 64 preference in hiring to current members of any reserve 65 component of the United States Armed Forces or the 66 Florida National Guard and their spouses and the 67 spouses of active duty servicemembers serving in the 68 United States Armed Forces; prohibiting members on 69 active duty training from being eligible for such 70 preference; amending s. 295.187, F.S.; defining the 71 term “veteran-owned or military spouse-owned 72 business”; providing for contracting preferences for 73 such businesses; creating s. 295.189, F.S.; providing 74 a short title; providing