HB 253 Florida House · 2026 Regular Session

Veterans Dental Care Grant Program

HB 253 clarifies eligibility for Florida's Veterans Dental Care Grant Program, which provides dental care to veterans residing in the state. The bill specifies that veterans must have incomes at or below 400 percent of the federal poverty level to qualify for the program. Administered by the Department of Veterans' Affairs, the program ensures access to oral health care for eligible veterans. This clarification takes effect on July 1, 2026.

Issues: ✓ Healthcare ✓ Veterans

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Oct 2025

Committee Review

Feb 2026

House Passage

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Signed into Law

Jun 2026

Introduced Oct 23, 2025 Signed Jun 25, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

H 253 c1 → H 253 er · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill text was updated from a committee version to the enrolled version, which is the final form signed into law. The substantive policy content regarding the Veterans Dental Care Grant Program remains unchanged, as the text differences are purely formatting and metadata updates.

TECHNICAL

The header was updated from 'CS/HB 253' (Committee Substitute) to 'ENROLLED', indicating the bill has passed all legislative stages and is ready for the Governor's signature.

The year identifier was updated from '2026' to '2026 Legislature' to reflect the official session.

The footer identifier was changed from 'hb253-01-c1' to 'hb253 -01-er' to mark the document as the enrolled final version.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 6, 2026 · House Feb 25, 2026

How they voted

35–0

Passed · 5 other

Total votes 40

Mar 6, 2026

D Democratic11

8 Yea 3

72% Yea

I Independent1

1 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican28

26 Yea 2

92% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Jun 25, 2026

Signed into law

Approved by Governor

legislature

Mar 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

CS passed; YEAS 34 NAYS 0

upper

Feb 26, 2026

Committee

Referred to Rules

upper

Feb 25, 2026

Lower · Passed

CS passed; YEAS 116, NAYS 0

lower

Feb 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of State Affairs Committee

lower

Feb 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable by State Affairs Committee

lower

Feb 13, 2026

Lower · Passed

Added to State Affairs Committee agenda

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Lower · Passed

Now in State Affairs Committee

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Health Care Budget Subcommittee

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable by Health Care Budget Subcommittee

lower

Jan 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

Added to Health Care Budget Subcommittee agenda

lower

Jan 16, 2026

Lower · Passed

Now in Health Care Budget Subcommittee

lower

Jan 16, 2026

Committee

Referred to State Affairs Committee

lower

Jan 16, 2026

Committee

Referred to Health Care Budget Subcommittee

lower

Jan 14, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee

lower

Jan 14, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable with CS by Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee

lower

Jan 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

PCS added to Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee agenda

lower

Oct 28, 2025

Lower · Passed

Now in Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee

lower

Oct 28, 2025

Committee

Referred to State Affairs Committee

lower

Oct 28, 2025

Committee

Referred to Health Care Budget Subcommittee

lower

Oct 28, 2025

Committee

Referred to Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee

lower

2 primary · 13 co-sponsors