Florida Senate - 2025 CS for SB 1702 By the Committee on Education Pre-K - 12; and Senator Burgess 581-03087-25 20251702c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to education; amending s. 810.097, 3 F.S.; defining the term “school bus”; specifying 4 sufficient notice and prior warning for immediate 5 arrest and prosecution for school bus trespassing; 6 amending s. 901.15, F.S.; providing that a law 7 enforcement officer may arrest a person without a 8 warrant when there is probable cause to believe that 9 the person has trespassed upon school grounds or 10 facilities; amending s. 1002.42, F.S.; authorizing a 11 private school in a county that meets certain criteria 12 to construct new facilities on certain property; 13 specifying that such construction is not subject to 14 certain zoning or land use conditions; requiring such 15 construction to meet certain health and safety 16 requirements; amending s. 1002.33, F.S.; requiring a 17 charter school sponsor to use a standard monitoring 18 tool to monitor and review a charter school; amending 19 s. 1002.84, F.S.; authorizing the Redlands Christian 20 Migrant Association to use certain school readiness 21 reimbursement rates; amending s. 1003.4282, F.S.; 22 specifying that certain participation in marching band 23 satisfies the physical education or performing arts 24 credit requirement for a standard high school diploma; 25 amending s. 1011.71, F.S.; authorizing the use of 26 certain school district tax revenue for liability 27 insurance; providing an effective date. 28 29 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 30 31 Section 1. Subsection (5) of section 810.097, Florida 32 Statutes, is amended, and subsection (6) is added to that 33 section, to read: 34 810.097 Trespass upon grounds or facilities of a school; 35 penalties; arrest.— 36 (5) As used in this section, the term: 37 (a) “School” means the grounds or any facility, including 38 school buses, of any kindergarten, elementary school, middle 39 school, junior high school, or secondary school, whether public 40 or nonpublic. 41 (b) “School bus” means any vehicle operated, owned, or 42 contracted by a school district for student transportation. 43 (6) For purposes of this section, a clearly posted sign or 44 a verbal warning provided by the school bus operator, the 45 principal, a school district employee, or law enforcement 46 personnel, indicating that unauthorized boarding or remaining on 47 a school bus is prohibited and violators will be prosecuted, 48 constitutes sufficient notice and satisfies the prior warning 49 requirement necessary for immediate arrest and prosecution of 50 any person who boards, enters, or remains upon a school bus 51 without authorization. 52 Section 2. Paragraph (g) is added to subsection (9) of 53 section 901.15, Florida Statutes, to read: 54 901.15 When arrest by officer without warrant is lawful.—A 55 law enforcement officer may arrest a person without a warrant 56 when: 57 (9) There is probable cause to believe that the person has 58 committed: 59 (g) Trespass upon school grounds or facilities, including 60 school buses as defined in s. 810.097(5)(b), in violation of 61 that section. 62 Section 3. Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (19) of 63 section 1002.42, Florida Statutes, to read: 64 1002.42 Private schools.— 65 (19) FACILITIES.— 66 (c) A private school located in a county with four 67 incorporated municipalities may construct new facilities, which 68 may be temporary or permanent, on property purchased from or 69 owned or leased by a library, community service organization, 70 museum, performing arts venue, theater, cinema, or church under 71 s. 170.201, which is or was actively used as such within 5 years 72 of any executed agreement with a private school; any land owned 73 by a Florida College System institution or university; and any 74 land recently used to house a school or child care facility 75 licensed under s. 402.305, under its preexisting zoning and land 76 use designations without rezoning or obtaining a special 77 exception or a land use change, and without complying with any 78 mitigation requirements or conditions. Any new facility must be 79 located on property used solely for purposes described in this 80 paragraph, and must meet applicable state and local health, 81 safety, and welfare laws, codes, and rules, including firesafety 82 and building safety. 83 Section 4. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section 84 1002.33, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 85 1002.33 Charter schools.— 86 (5) SPONSOR; DUTIES.— 87 (b) Sponsor duties.— 88 1.a. The sponsor shall monitor and review the charter 89 school, using the standard monitoring tool, in its progress 90 toward the goals established in the charter. 91 b. The sponsor shall monitor the revenues and expenditures 92 of the charter school and perform the duties provided in s. 93 1002.345. 94 c. The sponsor may approve a charter for a charter school 95 before the applicant has identified space, equipment, or 96 personnel, if the applicant indicates approval is necessary for 97 it to raise working funds. 98 d. The sponsor may not apply its policies to a charter 99 school unless mutually agreed to by both the sponsor and the 100 charter school. If the sponsor subsequently amends any agreed 101 upon sponsor policy, the version of the policy in effect at the 102 time of the execution of the charter, or any subsequent 103 modification thereof, shall remain in effect and the sponsor may 104 not hold the charter school responsible for any provision of a 105 newly revised policy until the revised policy is mutually agreed 106 upon. 107 e. The sponsor shall ensure that the charter is innovative 108 and consistent with the state education goals established by s. 109 1000.03(5). 110 f. The sponsor shall ensure that the charter school 111 participates in the state’s education accountability system. If 112 a charter school falls short of performance measures included in 113 the approved charter, the sponsor shall report such shortcomings 114 to the Department of Education. 115 g. The sponsor is not liable for civil damages under state 116 law for personal injury, property damage, or death resulting 117 from an act or omission of an officer, employee, agent, or 118 governing body of the charter school. 119 h. The sponsor is not liable for civil damages under state 120 law for any employment actions taken by an officer, employee, 121 agent, or governing body of the charter school. 122 i. The sponsor’s duties to monitor the charter school do 123 not constitute the basis for a private cause of action. 124 j. The sponsor may not impose additional reporting 125 requirements on a charter school as long as the charter school 126 has not been identified as having a deteriorating financial 127 condition or financial emergency pursuant to s. 1002.345. 128 k. The sponsor shall submit an annual report to the 129 Department of Education in a web-based format to be determined 130 by the department. 131 (I) The report shall include the following information: 132 (A) The number of applications received during the school 133 year and up to August 1 and each applicant’s contact 134 information. 135 (B) The date each application was approved, denied, or 136 withdrawn. 137 (C) The date each final contract was executed. 138 (II) Annually, by November 1, the sponsor shall submit to 139 the department the information for the applications submitted 140 the previous year. 141 (III) The department shall compile an annual report, by 142 sponsor, and post the report on its website by January 15 of 143 each year. 144 2. Immunity for the sponsor of a charter school under 145 subparagraph 1. applies only with respect to acts or omissions 146 not under the sponsor’s direct authority as described in this 147 section. 148 3. This paragraph does not waive a sponsor’s sovereign 149 immunity. 150 4. A Florida College System institution may work with the 151 school district or school districts in its designated service 152 area to develop charter schools that offer secondary education. 153 These charter schools must include an option for students to 154 receive an associate degree upon high school graduation. If a 155 Florida College System institution operates an approved teacher 156 preparation program under s. 1004.04 or s. 1004.85, the 157 institution may operate charter schools that serve students in 158 kindergarten through grade 12 in any school district within the 159 service area of the institution. District school boards shall 160 cooperate with and assist the Florida College System institution 161 on the charter application. Florida College System institution 162 applications for charter schools are not subject to the time 163 deadlines outlined in subsection (6) and may be approved by the 164 district school board at any time during the year. Florida 165 College System institutions may not report FTE for any students 166 participating under this subparagraph who receive FTE funding 167 through the Florida Education Finance Program. 168 5. For purposes of assisting the development of a charter 169 school, a school district may enter into nonexclusive interlocal 170 agreements with federal and state agencies, counties, 171 municipalities, and other governmental entities that operate 172 within the geographical borders of the school district to act on 173 behalf of such governmental entities in the inspection, 174 issuance, and other necessary activities for all necessary 175 permits, licenses, and other permissions that a charter school 176 needs in order for development, construction, or operation. A 177 charter school may use, but may not be required to use, a school 178 district for these services. The interlocal agreement must 179 include, but need not be limited to, the identification of fees 180 that charter schools will be charged for such services. The fees 181 must consist of the governmental entity’s fees plus a fee for 182 the school district to recover no more than actual costs for 183 providing such services. These services and fees are not 184 included within the services to be provided pursuant to 185 subsection (20). Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an 186 interlocal agreement or ordinance that imposes a greater 187 regulatory burden on charter schools than school districts or 188 that prohibits or limits the creation of a charter school is 189 void and unenforceable. An interlocal agreement entered into by 190 a school district for the development of only its own schools, 191 including provisions relating to the extension of 192 infrastructure, may be used by charter schools. 193 6. The board of trustees of a sponsoring state university 194 or Florida College System institution under paragraph (a) is the 195 local educational agency for all charter schools it sponsors for 196 purposes of receiving federal funds and accepts full 197 responsibility for all local educational agency requirements and 198 the schools for which it will perform local educational agency 199 responsibilities. A student enrolled in a charter school that is 200 sponsored by a state university or Florida College System 201 institution may not be included in the calculation of the school 202 district’s grade under s. 1008.34(5) for the school district in 203 which he or she resides. 204 Section 5. Subsection (17) of section 1002.84, Florida 205 Statutes, is amended to read: 206 1002.84 Early learning coalitions; school readiness powers 207 and duties.—Each early learning coalition shall: 208 (17)(a) Distribute the school readiness program funds as 209 allocated in the General Appropriations Act to each eligible 210 provider based upon the reimbursement rate by county, by 211 provider type, and by care level. All instructions to early 212 learning coalitions for distributing the school readiness 213 program funds to eligible providers shall emanate from the 214 department in accordance with the policies of the Legislature. 215 (b) All provider reimbursement rates shall be charged as 216 direct services pursuant to s. 1002.89. 217 218 Each early learning coalition and the Redlands Christian Migrant 219 Association with approved prior year provider reimbursement 220 rates for the infant to age 5 care levels that are higher than 221 the provider reimbursement rates established in this subsection 222 may continue to implement theiritsapproved prior year provider 223 reimbursement rates until the rates established in this 224 subsection exceed its prior year rates. 225 Section 6. Paragraph (f) of subsection (3) of section 226 1003.4282, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 227 1003.4282 Requirements for a standard high school diploma.— 228 (3) STANDARD HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA; COURSE AND ASSESSMENT 229 REQUIREMENTS.— 230 (f) One credit in physical education.—Physical education 231 must include the integration of health. Participation in an 232 interscholastic sport at the junior varsity or varsity level for 233 two full seasons shall satisfy the one-credit requirement in 234 physical education. A district school board may not require that 235 the one credit in physical education be taken during the 9th 236 grade year. Completion of 2 years of marching band shall satisfy 237 the one-credit requirement in physical education or the one 238 credit requirement in performing arts. This credit may not be 239 used to satisfy the personal fitness requirement or the 240 requirement for adaptive physical education under an individual 241 education plan (IEP) or 504 plan. Completion of one semester 242 with a grade of “C” or better in a marching band class, in a 243 physical activity class that requires participation in marching 244 band activities as an extracurricular activity, or in a dance 245 class shall satisfy one-half credit in physical education or 246 one-half credit in performing arts. This credit may not be used 247 to satisfy the personal fitness requirement or the requirement 248 for adaptive physical education under an IEPindividual249education plan (IEP)or 504 plan. Completion of 2 years in a 250 Reserve Officer Training Corps (R.O.T.C.) class, a significant 251 component of which is drills, shall satisfy the one-credit 252 requirement in physical education and the one-credit requirement 253 in performing arts. This credit may not be used to satisfy the 254 personal fitness requirement or the requirement for adaptive 255 physical education under an IEP or 504 plan. 256 Section 7. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section 257 1011.71, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 258 1011.71 District school tax.— 259 (5) A school district may expend, subject to s. 200.065, up 260 to $200 per unweighted full-time equivalent student from the 261 revenue generated by the millage levy authorized by subsection 262 (2) to fund, in addition to expenditures authorized in 263 paragraphs (2)(a)-(j), expenses for the following: 264 (b) Payment of the cost of premiums, as defined in s. 265 627.403, for property and casualty insurance necessary to insure 266 school district educational and ancillary plants. As used in 267 this paragraph, casualty insurance has the same meaning as in s. 268 624.605(1)(b), (d), (f), (g), (h), and (m). Operating revenues 269 that are made available through the payment of property and 270 casualty insurance premiums from revenues generated under this 271 subsection may be expended only for nonrecurring operational 272 expenditures of the school district. 273 Section 8. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.