1. State Legislative Session
This is the most important time for the upcoming state legislative session. This is when all the backroom wheeling and dealing goes on and when legislation gets crafted before the public show hearings start and it’s too late to get anything changed. Here’s the calendar for the 2024 session:
November 17, 2023 – bills must be submitted
January 5, 2024 – bills approved to file in final form
January 9, 2024 – regular Session convenes; noon deadline for bill introduction
February 24, 2024 – motion to reconsider made and considered the same day; all bills are immediately certified
February 27, 2024 – last day for regularly scheduled committee meetings
March 8, 2024 – last day of Regular Session
https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Calendar/2024/Session%20Dates%202023-09-15%20112506.PDF
You should be on the lookout for legislative delegation meetings in your area. If your local paper doesn’t list it, contact your state representative’s office and ask about it. The meeting is where your county and city commissions and other agencies come begging for money or policy preferences from the legislators for that district. There should be time for public comment at these meetings. It’s easier than going to Tallahassee to annoy them in person.
We need some volunteers for a legislative watch team, preferably people who will proactively watch what’s going on, even if just for your favored topic. We need to know what’s happening BEFORE the legislation gets crafted so we have time to rally other like-minded groups to apply pressure to make these bills as good as possible.
2. Porn in School Libraries
HB1069 (https://legiscan.com/FL/bill/H1069/2023) was signed into law on May 17 and is now part of Florida Statutes as Chapter 2023-105 (https://laws.flrules.org/2023/105). It’s a big change that empowers parents to remove porn and LGBT grooming materials in school libraries and it’s already incorporated into Florida Statute 1006.28 (http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=1000-1099/1006/Sections/1006.28.html).
Material is not allowed if it:
(I) Is pornographic or prohibited under s. 847.012;
(II) Depicts or describes sexual conduct as defined in s. 847.001(19), unless such material is for a course required by s. 1003.46, s. 1003.42(2)(n)1.g., or s. 1003.42(2)(n)3., or identified by State Board of Education rule;
(III) Is not suited to student needs and their ability to comprehend the material presented; or
(IV) Is inappropriate for the grade level and age group for which the material is used.
The BIG new addition is in the paragraph just below this list in 1006.28: “Parents shall have the right to read passages from any material that is subject to an objection. If the school board denies a parent the right to read passages due to content that meets the requirements under sub-sub-subparagraph b.(I), the school district shall discontinue the use of the material.”
We had a parent take advantage of this in Alachua County. She read from Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe and they cut her off.
https://alachuachronicle.com/no-decision-yet-on-pronouns-school-board-directs-staff-to-move-forward-with-lgbtq-support-guide/
Do you know what your local school board is up to?
3. DEI at UF
SB266 (https://legiscan.com/FL/bill/S0266/2023) is the anti-DEI bill signed into law on May 15. It prevents state universities from spending money on or advocating for DEI. Of course, entrenched leftists at the schools are ignoring or bypassing the law. Here’s a story from Epoch times exposing how the University of Florida continues to push DEI on campus:
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/exclusive-insiders-allege-florida-university-spies-to-root-out-conservatives-disqualify-white-male-job-applicants-5487875
This might be behind a paywall, but you can sign up and read some articles for free. If you can’t get access, let me know and I’ll send you a PDF version of the article. (I can’t attach PDFs to these emails.)
The big problem here is that SB266 has a couple gaping holes (usually required to get squishes to vote for the bills).
1. It says schools can’t spend any funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or activities that… “Advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, or promote or engage in political or social activism, as defined by rules of the State Board of Education and regulations of the Board of Governors.”
There’s no timeline for the State BOE to write those definitions and no penalties if they don’t.
2. There are effectively no penalties for schools that violate the law. We need to push for a civil cause of action so that students and/or parents can have standing to file lawsuits against schools that violate the anti-DEI law. There needs to be specific consequences listed in the law (e.g., $2,000 fine per incident or per student affected; maybe even dismissal of any professor or administrator caught violating the law more than once).
This is just one of several bills that passed last term that need to be patched up to really have an impact.
4. Maternity and Family Leave for State Employees
New policy announced earlier this week: Full-time state employees who have worked at least six continuous months can receive paid maternity leave for up to seven weeks and parental leave for two weeks. (Previously, they used sick leave of unpaid leave.)
https://alachuachronicle.com/governor-ron-desantis-expands-maternity-and-family-leave-for-state-employees/