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Politics

Senate Signs Off on 'Unique Abilities' Bill

January 13, 2016 - 5:30pm

Sen. Don Gaetz said no lobbyists were outside the Senate chamber Wednesday "casting lots" about a bill to help children with disabilities. There were no rallies and no protests.

"There are just thousands and thousands of Florida families who are waiting quietly, even prayerfully, by their televisions and their computers waiting to see what we will do today,'' he said.

Moments later, the Senate unanimously approved a measure that seeks to expand educational opportunities for children with developmental disabilities or, as Senate President Andy Gardiner calls them, "unique abilities."

The proposal (SB 672), the first bill approved by the Senate during the 2016 legislative session, is near and dear to Gardiner, an Orlando Republican whose son has Down syndrome. The president, one of the most-powerful figures in Florida politics, has made a priority of trying to provide educational and job opportunities to people with disabilities.

The bill still needs approval from the House before it can go to Gov. Rick Scott. But House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, has made clear that the proposal will pass the House, which likely will take up the issue Thursday. In a bit of political bridge-building, the Senate on Wednesday also passed a water-policy bill that is a top priority of Crisafulli.

The developmental-disabilities bill, in part, would make permanent an expansion of a program known as the Florida Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts Program, which was created in 2014. The program provides money to parents of children with disabilities to help meet educational needs, such as buying instructional materials and receiving specialized services.

Lawmakers last year approved expanding the program to include students, for example, who are on the autism spectrum or have muscular dystrophy. But that expansion was done through the budget, meaning it only lasts for a year. The bill approved Wednesday is designed to make the expansion permanent.

The bill also includes another initiative aimed at increasing access to college and university programs for students with disabilities.

Republican and Democratic senators praised those proposals, but some Democrats took issue with part of the bill unrelated to children with disabilities. That part would put in law a program that provides financial incentives for school districts to adopt student-uniform policies.

The student-uniform issue has been pushed by the House. Gaetz, a Niceville Republican who sponsored the bill, said it includes setting aside $14 million for the uniform incentives.

But Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, said that money could go for other educational needs that are more important than school uniforms.

"I think there are so many fantastic things in this bill, I'm somewhat flummoxed by the idea that we would want to include school uniforms in the bill,'' Clemens said.

Nevertheless, Democrats joined Republicans in voting for the bill. Also, they approved a Gaetz amendment that renamed the Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts program as the "Gardiner Scholarship Program."

Gardiner initially said he did not want to go forward with the amendment because he and Crisafulli had agreed not to make changes to the bill. But a short time later, a Senate staff member informed Gardiner that Crisafulli had called and said the House would go along with the naming amendment.

"We do a lot of things in Tallahassee that you find out in a mail piece later that maybe you regret," said Gardiner, appearing on the verge of tears. "But I can tell you, each of us, Republican, Democrat, things like this is why you come up here."

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