The Florida Senate
BILL ANALYSIS AND FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
(This document is based on the provisions contained in the legislation as of the latest date listed below.)
Prepared By: The Professional Staff of the Committee on Education
BILL: CS/SB 1348
INTRODUCER: Education Committee and Senator Diaz
SUBJECT: Educational Choice Scholarships
DATE: January 25, 2022 REVISED:
ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR REFERENCE ACTION
1. Sagues Bouck ED Fav/CS
2. AED
3. AP
Please see Section IX. for Additional Information:
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE - Substantial Changes
I. Summary:
CS/SB 1348 modifies provisions related to funding for the Family Empowerment (FES), Florida
Tax Credit (FTC), and Hope scholarship programs. Specifically, the bill modifies the FES
program by:
 Maintaining the requirement that the Florida Department of Education (DOE) complete the
cross-check of the list of participating students against the public school enrollment list to
avoid duplication, however the bill removes the requirement that the cross-check be
completed before the distribution of each quarterly scholarship payment.
 Adding a requirement for the DOE to adjust scholarship payments to eligible nonprofit
scholarship-funding organizations (SFOs) and recalculate the Florida Education Finance
Program (FEFP) allocation for school districts upon completion of the cross-check.
 Requiring the DOE to transfer scholarship funds to the SFO for quarterly disbursement upon
receiving the necessary documentation from the SFO to verify the student’s participation.
The bill also modifies the FTC and Hope scholarship programs by requiring the DOE to
recalculate the FEFP allocation for school districts upon completion of the required cross-check.
There is no fiscal impact to the state. The fiscal impact of the bill to individuals is indeterminate.
See Section V.
The bill takes effect on July 1, 2022.
BILL: CS/SB 1348 Page 2
II. Present Situation:
Education Choice
Across the United States, an evolving school choice landscape reflects changes in the
accessibility and desirability of an array of education options, including traditional and
nontraditional public schools, private schools, and homeschooling.1 All 50 states and the District
of Columbia provide parents the ability to send their child to a school outside of their zoned
school.2 Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia have enacted policies designed to
broaden access to a private education.3 The three primary policies states have adopted that
expand private education choices include:4
 School vouchers;
 Scholarship tax credits; and
 Education savings accounts.
Education Choice in Florida
Approximately 45 percent of Florida’s prekindergarten through grade 12 students participate in
education choice programs in Florida.5 Students in all programs must meet school attendance
requirements through:6
 Enrolling in a public school;
 Enrolling in a private school;7
 Participating in a home education program directed by his or her parent;8 or
 Enrolling in a private tutoring program.9
To help students take advantage of educational choice options, Florida offers multiple student
scholarship programs for students who meet the eligibility requirements:
1
National Center for Education Statistics, School Choice in the United States 2019 (2019), available at
https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2019/2019106.pdf at ix.
2
National Conference of State Legislatures, Interactive Guide to School Choice Laws
https://www.ncsl.org/research/education/interactive-guide-to-school-choice.aspx (last visited Jan. 21, 2022).
3
National Conference of State Legislatures, Private School Choice https://www.ncsl.org/research/education/private-school-
choice635174504.aspx (last visited Jan. 21, 2022).
4
School vouchers are state-funded scholarships that pay for students to attend private school rather than public school.
Scholarship tax credits allow individuals and corporations to allocate a portion of their owed state taxes to SFOs that issue
public and private school scholarships to K-12 students. Education Savings Accounts are state-funded grants deposited into
special savings accounts from which parents can withdraw funds for certain educational expenses. Id.
5
ReimaginEd, Once Again, Charter Schools Dominate Florida’s Education Choice Landscape, Florida’s K-12 School
Choice Options, https://www.reimaginedonline.org/2021/01/once-again-charter-schools-dominate-floridas-education-choice-
landscape/ (last visited Jan. 21, 2022).
6
Section 1003.01(13), F.S.
7
A private school is defined as an individual, association, co-partnership, or corporation, or department, division, or section
of such organizations, that designates itself as an educational center that includes kindergarten or a higher grade and is below
college level. A private school may be a parochial, religious, denominational, for-profit, or nonprofit school. A home
education program is not considered a private school. Section 1002.01(2), F.S.
8
A home education program is defined as the sequentially progressive instruction of a student directed by his or her parent in
order to satisfy attendance requirements. Section 1002.01(1), F.S.
9
Section 1002.43, F.S.
BILL: CS/SB 1348 Page 3
 The Family Empowerment Scholarship Program (FES program),10 a school voucher program
for students of families with limited financial means and students of military families, and an
education savings account (ESA) program for students with disabilities.
 The Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program (FTC program),11 a tax-credit scholarship
program for families with limited financial resources.
 The Hope Scholarship Program (Hope program), a school voucher program serving students
who have reported an incident of battery, harassment, hazing, bullying or other encounter as
defined in law.12
 The John M. McKay Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program (McKay program),13
a school voucher program.
Family Empowerment Scholarship (FES) Program
The FES program was established in 201914 to provide educational options to eligible children of
Florida families with limited financial resources through a state funded school voucher
scholarship. In 2021, the FES was expanded to provide education options to eligible children of
Florida families in the military as well as disabled students.15 Funding for the FES program is
based on the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP) allocation formula.16
Student Eligibility
To be eligible for an award under the FES program, a student must meet the criteria in one of the
following scholarship options:17
 Educational Opportunity (EO option), the student is:
o On the direct certification list pursuant to law or the student’s household income level
does not exceed 375 percent of the federal poverty level18 with priority given to a
student whose household income level does not exceed 185 percent of the federal poverty
level;
o Currently placed, or during the previous fiscal year was placed, in foster care or in out-of-
home care as defined in law;
o A sibling of a student who is participating in the FES program if the student resides in the
same household as the sibling; or
o A dependent child of a member of the United States Armed Forces.
 Unique Ability Option for disabled students (UA option), the student:
o Is three or four years of age on or before September 1 of the year in which the student
applies for the program or is eligible to enroll in kindergarten through grade 12 in a
Florida public school;
10
Section 1002.394, F.S., and Rule 6A-6.0952, F.A.C.
11
Section 1002.395, F.S., and Rule 6A-6.0960, F.A.C.
12
Section 1002.40, F.S., and Rule 6A-60951, F.A.C.
13
Section 1002.39, F.S., and Rule 6A-6.0970, F.A.C. The McKay program will merge into the FES program beginning in the
2022-2023 school year. Section 1002.394(12), F.S.
14
Section 6, ch. 2019-21, L.O.F.
15
Section 4, ch. 2021-027, L.O.F.
16
See Section 1002.394(12), F.S.
17
Section 1002.394(3), F.S.
18
Section 1002.394(3), F.S. The qualifying household income level of 375 percent under the EO option may increase by 25
percentage points in any fiscal year in which more than 5 percent of the available scholarships authorized have not been
awarded.
BILL: CS/SB 1348 Page 4
o Has a defined disability;19 and
o Is the subject of an IEP written in accordance with the State Board of Education or has
received a diagnosis of a disability from a physician or psychologist.
An approved student who does not receive a scholarship must be placed on the wait list in the
order in which the student is approved. 20
Program Prohibitions
A student is not eligible for a scholarship while he or she is enrolled in a public school or
Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) program; receiving another state educational scholarship
pursuant to Florida law; enrolled in a home education or private tutoring program, a virtual
program that receives state funding pursuant to the student’s participation, enrolled in the Florida
School for the Deaf and the Blind, receiving any other educational scholarship as provided in
law,21 not having regular and direct contact with his or her private school teachers, or
participating in a private tutoring program unless determined eligible under the UA option.22
School District Obligations
School districts must provide information on the district’s website and inform all households
within the district receiving free or reduced priced meals under the National School Lunch Act23
of their eligibility to apply for the scholarship. School districts must also provide IEP meeting
and evaluation services, notify the student and parent about, and provide services for, statewide
assessment participation. The school district must also report students for funding purposes
through the FEFP.24
Department of Education Obligations
The DOE is required to:25
 Publish information on the DOE website about the FES program, including student eligibility
criteria, parental responsibilities, and relevant data.
 Before the distribution of funds and each scholarship payment, cross-check the list of
participating scholarship students with the public school enrollment lists to avoid duplication.
 Maintain and publish a list of nationally norm-referenced tests identified for purposes of
satisfying the FES program testing requirement.
 Establish and notify SFOs26 of specified deadlines.
19
Section 1002.394(2), F.S.
20
Section 1002.394(3)(c), F.S.
21
Section 1002.395(6), F.S.
22
Id.
23
42 U.S.C s. 1751, et seq. The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) is a federally assisted meal program operating in
public and nonprofit private schools and residential child care institutions. It provides nutritionally balanced, low-cost or free
lunches to children each school day. The program was established under the National School Lunch Act in 1946. USDA
Food and Nutrition Service, National School Lunch Program, https://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp (last visited Jan. 21, 2021).
24
Section 1002.394(7), F.S.
25
Section 1002.394(8), F.S.
26
A.A.A. Scholarship Foundation – FL, LLC and Step Up For Students are the approved SFOs to administer the FTC in
2021-2022. Florida Department of Education, Scholarship Funding Organizations, https://www.fldoe.org/schools/school-
choice/k-12-scholarship-programs/sfo/ (last visited Jan. 23, 2022).
BILL: CS/SB 1348 Page 5
 Notify each school district of a parent’s participation in the scholarship program.
 Deny or terminate program participation upon a parent’s failure to comply with program
requirements as provided for in law.27
 Notify the parent and SFO when a scholarship account is closed and program funds revert to
the state.
 Notify SFOs of other SFOs identified students who are receiving scholarship.
 Maintain a list of approved providers on its website.
 Require each SFO to verify eligible expenditures.
 Investigate written complaints of program violations.
 Require specified quarterly reports by SFOs.
 Notify eligible SFOs that a scholarship may not be awarded in a school district in which the
award will exceed 99 percent of the school district’s share of state funding.
Scholarship-funding Organization Obligations
An SFO awarding FES program scholarships to students:28
 Must receive applications, determine student eligibility, notify parents and provide the DOE
with specified information.
 Must award scholarships in priority order.
 May use up to 2.5 percent of the total amount of all FES program scholarships awarded for
administrative expenses. The funds used for administrative expenses must originate from
eligible tax credit contributions authorized under the FTC and Hope programs.29
 Must notify the DOE of any program requirement violation.
In addition, an eligible SFO awarding scholarships to students under the EO option must verify
the household income level of eligible students and submit the verified lists of students and
related documentation to the DOE.30
An SFO awarding scholarships to students under the UA option must also:
 Establish and maintain separate ESAs for each eligible student.
 Verify qualifying education expenditures.
 Return any remaining program funds to the DOE.
 Notify the parent about the availability of, and the requirements associated with requesting,
an initial IEP or IEP reevaluation.
 Document each scholarship student’s eligibility for a fiscal year before granting a scholarship
for that fiscal year.
Scholarship Funding and Payment
The scholarship funding amount is based on the student’s grade level and school district in which
the student was assigned plus a share of most categorical programs.31 Upon notification from the
27
See Section 1002.394(10), F.S.
28
Section 1002.394(11), F.S.
29
Section 1002.395(6)(j), F.S.
30
Section 1002.394(11), F.S.
31
In addition to the basic amount for current operations for the FEFP specified in law, the Legislature may appropriate
categorical funding for specified programs, activities, or purposes. Section 1011.62(6), F.S.
BILL: CS/SB 1348 Page 6
SFO on specified dates that an application has been approved for the program, the DOE must
verify that the student is not prohibited from receiving a scholarship pursuant to law.32 The SFO
must provide the DOE with the documentation necessary to verify the student’s initial and
continued participation. Upon verification, the DOE must transfer, from state funds only, the
amount calculated. The amount of the scholarship award is equal to 100 percent of the calculated
amount. The amount of the award is deposited quarterly in the student’s account once the
scholarship has been verified and approved.33
Beginning in the 2020-2021 school year, the number of students participating in the FES
program under the EO option annually increases by one percent of the state’s total public school
student enrollment.34 An eligible student who meets specified35 requirements is excluded from
the maximum number of students.36
Under the EO option, the amount of the scholarship must be the calculated amount or the amount
of the private school’s tuition and fees whichever is less.37 A transportation scholarship of $750
may be awarded to a student who is determined eligible and enrolled in a Florida public school
that is different from the school to which the student was assigned if the school district does not
provide the student with transportation to the school.38
Beginning in the 2021-2022 school year, up to 20,000 scholarships are established for students
determined eligible under the UA option. Beginning in the 2022-2023 school year, the maximum
number of students participating under this option annually increases by 1.0 percent of the