HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: CS/HB 7039 PCB CIS 24-01 Education
SPONSOR(S): Education & Employment Committee, Choice & Innovation Subcommittee, Rizo and others
TIED BILLS: None. IDEN./SIM. BILLS: SB 7000 and SB 7002
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
Orig. Comm.: Choice & Innovation Subcommittee 16 Y, 0 N Wolff Sleap
1) Education Quality Subcommittee 18 Y, 0 N Wolff Sanchez
2) Education & Employment Committee 17 Y, 0 N, As CS Wolff Hassell
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
In 2023, the Florida Legislature passed House Bill 1 (Ch. 2023-16, L.O.F.), which included provisions regarding the
deregulation of public schools. In an effort to provide more flexibility and efficiency and reduce unnecessary regulation,
the bill required the State Board of Education (SBE) to develop and recommend to the Governor and Legislature for
adoption during the 2024 legislative session repeals and revisions to the Florida Early Learning-20 Education Code,
chapters 1000-1013, Florida Statutes.
The bill provides flexibility to district school boards in satisfying their statutory duties to provide public notices r elated to
meetings, levying millage, and the adoption of budgets by authorizing the publication of such notices to their websites.
The bill maintains the requirement for public notice to be provided at least 2 days prior to the noticed meeting.
The bill repeals several obsolete or overly-burdensome reporting requirements including the school district guidance
report, school district report of the reduction of relocatable use, school district educational plant survey, and the Florida
College System employment equity accountability report.
The bill supports school districts’ efforts to recruit and retain teachers by requiring the SBE to develop strategies to
address critical teacher shortages areas, requires the Commissioner of Education to make recommendat ions for the
retention of ESE teachers, and authorizes school districts to develop and adopt their own policies relating to mentors and
support for first-time teachers. The bill authorizes a newly-hired Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program instructor,
45 days after hire to complete required emergent literacy training. The bill authorizes a school district to use advanced
degrees when setting salary schedules for instructional personnel or school administrators if the advanced degree is in
the individual’s area of certification. The bill authorizes, subject to SBE rule, certified educators to request that their
certification be placed in inactive status and the use of a passing score on the SAT, ACT, or Classical Learning Test to
satisfy the mastery of general knowledge requirement for certification.
The bill provides additional clarity for school districts and teachers unions regarding topics that may not be precluded by
collective bargaining, including but not limited to, the provision of incentives to effective and highly effective teachers,
incentives to teachers assigned to low-performing schools, implementation of student intervention and support strategies,
and the implementation of school safety plans and requirements.
The bill clarifies the authority of a district school board to adopt exceptions to the State Requirements for Educational
Facilities and broadens the scope of properties a district can lease or lease-purchase to include educational plants,
ancillary plants, and auxiliary facilities instead of only educational facilities. The bill extends the exemption from cost p er
student station limitations for new construction projects until July 1, 2028.
The bill expands the role of the Florida Institute for Charter School Innovation (Institute) by authorizing the Institute to
develop a professional learning system and design an alternative teacher preparation program to enable certified teachers
at charter schools to add on coverages and endorsements to their certificates.
The bill does not appear to have a fiscal impact.
The bill has an effective date of July 1, 2024.
This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives .
STORAGE NAME: h7039b.EEC
DATE: 2/1/2024
FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Background
In 2023, the Florida Legislature passed House Bill 1 (HB1), which included provisions regarding the
deregulation of public schools. In an effort to provide more flexibility and efficiency and reduce
unnecessary regulation, the bill required the State Board of Education (SBE) to develop and
recommend to the Governor and Legislature for adoption during the 2024 legislative session repeals
and revisions to the Florida Early Learning-20 Education Code, chapters 1000-1013, Florida Statutes.1
Pursuant to HB1, the Department of Education (DOE) reviewed the entirety of the Code and
considered input from Florida teachers, superintendents, administrators, school boards, public and
private postsecondary institutions, home educators, and other stakeholders. Following that review, the
SBE developed recommendations for the deregulation of Florida public schools and provided them to
the Governor and Legislature on November 1, 2023.2
District School Board Communications
Present Situation
Meeting Notices
Each district school board is required to publicly notice regular and special board meetings in a county
newspaper of general circulation at least two days prior to the meeting, or on a radio station if no such
newspaper exists.3
Local governmental agencies, including district school boards, have the option to publish legal notices
on a publicly accessible website owned or designated by the county instead of in a print newspaper
under specified conditions.4 A governmental agency located in a county that has a population of fewer
than 160,000 must first hold a public hearing and determine that its residents have sufficient access to
the internet by broadband service before publishing legally required advertisements and public notices
on the county website.5
Before a district school board levies any millage, it must advertise its intent to adopt a tentative budget
in a newspaper of general circulation. Not less than 2 days or more than 5 days thereafter, the district
must hold a public hearing on the tentative budget.6 The purpose of the hearing is to hear requests and
complaints from the public regarding the budgets and the proposed tax levies and for explaining the
budget and any proposed or adopted amendments. 7 The final adopted budget must be posted on the
school district’s official website within 30 days after adoption, and the district school superintendent is
required to submit two copies of the adopted budget to the DOE. 8
The US Census Bureau and the Pew Research Center have reported that adults are more likely to
receive information through digital media than through print media. 9
1 Section 11, ch. 2023-16, L.O.F.
2 Florida Department of Education, Recommendations to Reduce Regulation in Public Schools (Nov. 1, 2023), at 2, available at
https://www.flsenate.gov/Committees/Show/ED/MeetingPacket/5953/10483_MeetingPacket_5953_2.pdf.
3 Section 1001.372, F.S.
4 Section 50.0311, F.S.
5 Section 50.0311(4), F.S.
6 Section 200.065(2)(f)1., F.S.
7 Section 1011.03(3), F.S.
8 Id.
9 Florida Department of Education, Recommendations to Reduce Regulation in Public Schools (Nov. 1, 2023), at 10, available at
https://www.flsenate.gov/Committees/Show/ED/MeetingPacket/5953/10483_MeetingPacket_5953_2.pdf.
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District School Board Notifications to Parents and Students
Dropout prevention and academic intervention programs are programs that may differ from traditional
educational programs and schools in scheduling, administrative structure, philosophy, curriculum, or
setting and employ alternative teaching methodologies, curricula, learning activities, and diagnostic and
assessment procedures in order to meet the needs, interests, abilities, and talents of eligible students. 10
A student is eligible to receive services through the dropout prevention and academic intervention
program if the student:11
Is academically unsuccessful.
Has a pattern of excessive absenteeism or has been identified as a habitual truant.
Has a history of disruptive behavior in school or has committed an offense that warrants out-of-
school suspension or expulsion from school.
Prior to placement in a dropout prevention and academic intervention program or the provision of an
academic service, the principal or the principal’s designee is required to notify the student’s parent by
certified mail.12 The parent of the student must then sign an acknowledgment of the notice of placement
or service and return the signed acknowledgment to the principal within 3 days after receipt of the
notice.13 The parents of a student assigned to such a dropout prevention and academic intervention
program are entitled to an administrative review by an informal hearing officer or an administrative law
judge for a formal hearing regarding any action by school personnel relating to such placement. 14
The principal or the principal’s designee may suspend a student only in accordance with the rules of the
district school board.15 The principal or the principal’s designee must make a good faith effort to
immediately inform a student’s parent by telephone of a student’s suspension and the reasons for the
suspension.16 Each suspension and the reasons for the suspension must be reported in writing within
24 hours to the student’s parent by United States mail.17
Each middle school and high school student or the student’s parent prior to registration is required to
be provided a two-page summary of the Department of Economic Opportunity’s (DEO’s) economic
security report of employment and earning outcomes and electronic access to the report. 18 The
information provided in the DEO report is now available to all parents through the DOE’s Xello web
portal, Florida’s official K-12 career planning and work-based learning coordination tool.19
Effect of Proposed Changes
The bill authorizes district school boards to satisfy open meeting notification requirements through
publication on the official district school board website or another publicly accessible website pursuant
to statutory requirements.20 The bill does not remove the option to publish such notices in a newspaper,
radio station, or posting at a courthouse. The bill maintains the requirement that such public notice
must occur at least 2 days prior to the noticed meeting.
10 Section 1003.53(1)(a), F.S.
11 Section 1003.53(1)(c), F.S.
12 Section 1003.53(5), F.S.
13 Id.
14 Id.
15 Section 1006.09(1)(b), F.S.
16 Section 1006.09(1)(b), F.S.
17 Id.
18 Section 1002.20(24), F.S.; see also Florida Commerce, Economic Security Reports, https://www.floridajobs.org/local-workforce-
development-board-resources/program-monitoring-and-reports/economic-security-reports (last visited Jan. 24, 2024).
19 Florida Department of Education, Recommendations to Reduce Regulation in Public Schools (Nov. 1, 2023), at 13, available at
https://www.flsenate.gov/Committees/Show/ED/MeetingPacket/5953/10483_MeetingPacket_5953_2.pdf; see also, The Future of
Work Florida, Xello, https://xello.world/en/florida-college-career-ready/ (last visited Jan. 24, 2024).
20 See s. 50.0311, F.S.
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Additionally, the bill authorizes a district school board to advertise its tentative budget and proposed
millage levies, by advertising its intent to adopt a tentative budget on the district school board website,
so long as the district school board complies with the requirements to ensure that the public has
reasonable access to the website, and that the website would provide reasonable notice.
The bill specifies that district school boards may advertise their tentative budgets on the official district
school board website instead of the newspaper. The bill also removes the requirement for the district
school superintendent to transmit two copies of the adopted budget to the DOE.
The bill authorizes a district school board to adopt a policy that allows a parent to agree to an
alternative method of notification regarding a student’s placement in a dropout prevention program or a
suspension. The bill authorizes the agreement to be made before the need for the notification arises or
at the time the notification is required.
The bill removes the requirement that each middle and high school student be provided with a two-
page summary of the DEO economic security report, as this information is available by other means.
Education Administration and Oversight
Present Situation
General Powers of District School Superintendent
Each school district must have a superintendent of schools who is elected at a general election for a
term of four years; or, when provided by resolution of the district school board, or by special law,
approved by vote of the electors, is employed by the district school board. 21 The district school
superintendent has the authority, and when necessary for the more efficient and adequate operation of
the district school system, the responsibility, to:22
Oversee the district school system.
Advise and counsel with the district school board on all educational matters.
Recommend to the district school board for adoption such policies pertaining to the district
school system as are necessary for its more efficient operation.
Submit to the district school board for adoption rules to contribute to the efficient operation of
any aspect of education in the district.
Submit to the district school board for adoption minimum standards relating to the operation of
any phase of the district school system.
Perform duties and exercise responsibilities as are assigned to the district school
superintendent by law and by rules of the SBE.
School Bus Infraction Detection Systems
District school boards are authorized to install and operate a school bus infraction detection system on
a school bus for the purpose of documenting a motor vehicle being used or operated in a manner that
allegedly violates school bus traffic laws.23 District school boards are required to post high-visibility
reflective signage on the rear of each school bus in which a school bus infraction detection system is
installed and operational.24 The signage must be in the form of one or more signs or stickers and must
contain, in the same form:
The words “STOP WHEN RED LIGHTS FLASH” or “DO NOT PASS WHEN RED LIGHTS
FLASH.”
The words “CAMERA ENFORCED.”
A graphic depiction of a camera.25
21 FLA. CONST . art. 9, s. 5.
22 Section 1001.49, F.S.
23 Sections 326.003(78) and 316.173, F.S.
24 Section 316.173(2)(a), F.S.
25 Id.
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Motor vehicle operators must stop when approaching a school bus that displays a stop signal. 26 The
civil penalties assessed and collected for violating this requirement as enforced by a school bus
infraction detection system must be remitted to the school district in which the violation occurred. 27
Such civil penalties must be used for the installation or maintenance of school bus infraction detection
systems on school buses, for any other technology that increases the safety of the transportation of
students, or for the administration and costs associated with the enforcement of violations of school bus
stop sign requirements.28
District Guidance Report
Each district school board is required to annually submit a district guidance report to the Commissioner
of Education (commissioner) by June 30.29 The guidance report must include:30
Examination of student access to certified school counselors.
Degree to which a district has adopted or implemented a guidance model program.
Evaluation of the information and training available to certified school counselors and career
specialists to advise students on areas of critical need, labor market trends, and technical
training requirements.
Progress toward incorporation of best practices for advisement as identified by the department.
Consideration of alternative guidance systems or ideas, including, but not limited to, a teacher-
advisor model, mentoring, partnerships with the business community, web-based delivery, and
parental involvement.
A guidance plan for the district.
Effect of Proposed Changes
The bill authorizes the district school board to delegate to the superintendent the authority to establish
a process for the review and approval of district-wide policies and procedures to improve efficiency.
This may allow the school boar