Over 150 Bills Become Law in Florida

Over 150 bills will go into law Friday, including the state’s $82 billion budget, a bill to allow parents to transfer their children to any public school that isn’t at capacity, and a bill to cut off funding to organizations associated with abortion clinics.

Lawmakers approved nearly 300 bills during this year’s legislative session. The House passed a slightly higher number of bills (129) over the Senate (116). There were 27 local bills passed during this year’s legislative session. Gov. Scott vetoed three bills, leaving the grand total of bills passed at 269.

Here’s a recap of some of Florida’s newest laws:

BUDGET
As Sunshine State News reported earlier this week, the 2016-2017 fiscal year budget will officially go into effect July 1. The bill, HB 5001, This year, the state budget will include over $23 billion in funding for K-12 public education, with increased student spending on public schools rising by one percent, according to estimates on Gov. Scott’s Florida First budget website. That’s about $1 in every $4 for education spending.  Education construction also received a significant chunk of the budget, with over $715 million for education construction projects. Some public universities will be receiving extra money for new renovations. The Agency for Healthcare Administration received $25 billion of the budget, while the state transportation agency received nearly $10 billion of this year’s budget. 

EDUCATION
HB 7019
College education would be more affordable for students. This new law requires the Board of Governors to brainstorm ways to make college affordable and to submit annual reports on its progress. The bill will mandate that costs of textbooks and other course materials are made publicly available to students before they register for a class so they can determine the overall cost of a class before registering.  Colleges will also have to adopt policies to make textbooks more affordable for their students.

“College affordability is one of our top priorities, where students can graduate with a quality education without being burdened with heavy debt,” said Sen. John Legg, R-Trinity. “It’s important that colleges and universities provide the resources students need to completely understand the costs of classes and materials.”

HB 7029
This bill would allow parents to transfer their children to any public school in the state as long as there was room and would also allow private schools to join the Florida High School Athletics Association on a per-sport basis. Supporters of the bill said private schools suffer by having to follow a specific set of FHSAA rules even if they are only involved in one sport.

DOZIER SCHOOL
SB 708
This law will set up a memorial and money to bury the missing boys whose bodies were found at the Marianna-based Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, will set up a fund to set up burials for the bodies exhumed by anthropologists at the school. The new law will also help pay to preserve artifacts uncovered by the team at the school.

PUBLIC CORRUPTION
HB 7071
This new law will crack down on ethics standards, making it easier to prosecute public officials and public contractors for bribery or other forms of misconduct. The bill also expands the law to include employees of companies and officers who make or offer rewards for a city, county or state official to give them government business.

ENVIRONMENT
HB 789
The “Legacy Florida” bill would set aside $200 million annually for the Everglades restoration as well as $50 million for springs and another $5 million in funds for Lake Apopka. This bill aims to preserve Florida waterways and fund the 

CRIME
SB 636 will require local law enforcement agencies to submit evidence from sexual assault crimes or “rape kits” to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement within 30 days of beginning their investigations. 

See the full list of bills signed by the governor and their descriptions here.