Florida Senate - 2025 SB 884
By Senator Martin
33-01178-25 2025884__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Florida State Guard; amending
3 s. 115.07, F.S.; authorizing leaves of absence for
4 members of the Florida State Guard when they are
5 engaged in certain ordered training; revising
6 legislative intent; amending s. 258.0145, F.S.;
7 providing a discount on annual entrance passes to
8 state parks for current members of the Florida State
9 Guard; amending s. 379.354, F.S.; creating and
10 specifying the annual fee for the Florida State Guard
11 gold sportsman’s license for hunting and fishing;
12 specifying application requirements for the license;
13 providing construction; creating s. 1009.8959, F.S.;
14 creating the Florida State Guard Scholarship Program
15 for a specified purpose; requiring the Department of
16 Education to administer the program according to rules
17 and procedures established by the State Board of
18 Education; specifying eligibility requirements for
19 initial and recurring funding under the program;
20 providing for the issuance of awards under the
21 program; requiring the Department of Education to
22 issue the awards annually, subject to legislative
23 appropriation; specifying requirements if appropriated
24 funds are not sufficient to fully fund awards;
25 requiring the State Board of Education and the Board
26 of Governors to adopt rules and regulations,
27 respectively; providing an effective date.
28
29 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
30
31 Section 1. Subsections (1) and (4) of section 115.07,
32 Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
33 115.07 Officers and employees’ leaves of absence for
34 reserve or guard training.—
35 (1) All officers or employees of the state, of the several
36 counties of the state, and of the municipalities or political
37 subdivisions of the state who are commissioned reserve officers
38 or reserve enlisted personnel in the United States military or
39 naval service, or members of the National Guard, or members of
40 the Florida State Guard are entitled to leaves of absence from
41 their respective duties, without loss of vacation leave, pay,
42 time, or efficiency rating, on all days during which they are
43 engaged in training ordered under the provisions of the United
44 States military or naval training regulations for such personnel
45 when assigned to active or inactive duty or training ordered by
46 the Florida State Guard, as applicable.
47 (4) It is the intent of the Legislature that the state, its
48 several counties, and its municipalities and political
49 subdivisions shall grant leaves of absence for active or
50 inactive training to all employees who are members of the United
51 States Reserve Forces or the National Guard or members of the
52 Florida State Guard, to ensure the state and national security
53 at all times through a strong armed force of qualified and
54 mobilization-ready personnel.
55 Section 2. Section 258.0145, Florida Statutes, is amended
56 to read:
57 258.0145 Military, Florida State Guard, law enforcement,
58 and firefighter state park fee discounts.—The Division of
59 Recreation and Parks shall provide the following discounts on
60 park fees to persons who present written documentation
61 satisfactory to the division which evidences their eligibility
62 for the discounts:
63 (1) Active duty members and honorably discharged veterans
64 of the United States Armed Forces, National Guard, or reserve
65 components thereof shall receive a 25-percent discount on annual
66 entrance passes.
67 (2) Current members of the Florida State Guard shall
68 receive a 15-percent discount on annual entrance passes.
69 (3) Honorably discharged veterans who have service
70 connected disabilities shall receive lifetime family annual
71 entrance passes at no charge.
72 (4)(3) Surviving spouses and parents of deceased members of
73 the United States Armed Forces, National Guard, or reserve
74 components thereof who have fallen in combat shall receive
75 lifetime family annual entrance passes at no charge.
76 (5)(4) The surviving spouse and parents of a law
77 enforcement officer, as defined in s. 943.10(1), or a
78 firefighter, as defined in s. 633.102, who has died in the line
79 of duty shall receive lifetime family annual entrance passes at
80 no charge.
81 Section 3. Present paragraph (k) of subsection (4) of
82 section 379.354, Florida Statutes, is redesignated as paragraph
83 (l), and a new paragraph (k) is added to that subsection, to
84 read:
85 379.354 Recreational licenses, permits, and authorization
86 numbers; fees established.—
87 (4) RESIDENT HUNTING AND FISHING LICENSES.—The licenses and
88 fees for residents participating in hunting and fishing
89 activities in this state are as follows:
90 (k) Annual Florida State Guard gold sportsman’s license,
91 $34.48. A resident who is a current member of the Florida State
92 Guard may purchase the Florida State Guard gold sportsman’s
93 license upon presenting a current Florida State Guard
94 identification card. The annual Florida State Guard gold
95 sportsman’s license authorizes the same activities as the annual
96 gold sportsman’s license.
97 Section 4. Section 1009.8959, Florida Statutes, is created
98 to read:
99 1009.8959 The Florida State Guard Scholarship Program.—
100 (1) The Florida State Guard Scholarship Program is created
101 to reward members of the Florida State Guard enrolled in
102 eligible Florida public or independent postsecondary educational
103 institutions who meet the eligibility criteria established in
104 subsection (2). The Department of Education shall administer the
105 program according to rules and procedures established by the
106 State Board of Education.
107 (2) To be eligible to receive a scholarship under the
108 program, an individual must meet all of the following criteria:
109 (a) Have completed 4 years of active service with the
110 Florida State Guard.
111 (b) Have graduated with a standard high school diploma or
112 its equivalent.
113 (c) Be a current or former member the Florida State Guard
114 in good standing as determined by rules adopted by the director
115 of the Florida State Guard.
116 (d) Have not yet earned a baccalaureate degree.
117 (e) Be enrolled in a career certificate or an associate or
118 a baccalaureate degree program at a state university, a Florida
119 College System institution, or an independent Florida college or
120 university that is eligible to participate in the William L.
121 Boyd, IV, Effective Access to Student Education Grant Program
122 under s. 1009.89.
123 (3) To be eligible for continued scholarship funding under
124 the program, an individual must:
125 (a) Enroll in at least 6 credit hours per semester; and
126 (b) Earn at least 24 semester credit hours in the last
127 academic year or the academic year in which the student earned
128 the scholarship, if the student was enrolled full time; or a
129 prorated number of credit hours as determined by the Department
130 of Education if the student was enrolled for less than full time
131 for any part of the academic year.
132 (4) The Department of Education shall issue awards as
133 follows:
134 (a) Students enrolled in a state university or a Florida
135 College System institution are eligible for an award equal to
136 100 percent of tuition and fees.
137 (b) Students enrolled in an eligible independent Florida
138 college or university are eligible for a fixed award calculated
139 by using the average tuition and fee calculation as prescribed
140 by the Department of Education for full-time attendance at a
141 public postsecondary education institution at the comparable
142 level.
143 (c) A stipend for textbooks may be granted if the
144 Legislature appropriates sufficient funding to cover the cost of
145 such stipends.
146 (d) Students may receive an award for a maximum of 100
147 percent of the number of credits required to complete a
148 baccalaureate degree program.
149 (5) The Department of Education shall issue awards from the
150 scholarship program annually, subject to the appropriation of
151 funds by the Legislature. If funds appropriated are not adequate
152 to provide the maximum allowable award to each eligible
153 applicant, awards in all components of the program must be
154 prorated using the same percentage reduction.
155 (6) The State Board of Education and the Board of Governors
156 shall adopt rules and regulations, respectively, to implement
157 this program.
158 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.