Florida Bills

HR 8061 designates February 2026 as "Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month" in Florida. This ceremonial resolution does not create new laws or programs but formally recognizes the issue to raise public awareness. It highlights statistics on teen dating violence, such as 28.1% of teens experiencing digital dating abuse, to emphasize the need for education and prevention. The designation aims to encourage existing community efforts focused on teens, though it has no direct impact on individuals or funding.

Florida designates November 2026 as "Epilepsy Awareness Month" through House Resolution 8065. The resolution serves as a ceremonial recognition of epilepsy, highlighting its prevalence (including over 500,000 Floridians affected) and associated challenges like healthcare access barriers. It does not create new policies, funding, or legal requirements. The bill’s purpose is solely to promote public awareness during November 2026, with no direct impact on legislation or affected individuals' rights. The resolution was adopted without debate on February 18, 2026.

Implementing the 2026-2027 General Appropriations Act; Revising the services required to be provided by regional consortium service organizations under certain circumstances; creating the Regional Consortia Service Organization Supplemental Services Program; establishing the Rural Incentive for Professional Educators (RIPE) Program within the Department of Education for a specified purpose; authorizing the Agency for Health Care Administration to submit a budget amendment requesting additional spending authority to implement specified programs and payments, etc.

State Employees; Providing for the resolution of collective bargaining issues at impasse between the state and certified bargaining units for state employees, etc.

Pre-K-12 Education; Revising conditions under which a specified scholarship account’s funds revert to the state; providing a supplement for districts that have a decline in enrollment; requiring that fiscally constrained districts receive a higher calculation than non-fiscally constrained districts, etc.

Health; Requiring the Social Services Estimating Conference to develop certain official information relating to the pilot program for individuals with developmental disabilities; authorizing the Department of Children and Families, as authorized by and consistent with appropriated funding, to contract with a specified organization to provide grief support services to help certain children and youth; revising the monthly room and board rates the department is required to pay to certain foster parents and caregivers; renaming the Step into Success Workforce Education and Internship Pilot Program as the Step into Success Workforce Education and Internship Program, etc.

This bill increases the number of judges in specific Florida judicial circuits and counties as outlined in amended statutes. It raises circuit judge counts (e.g., from 26 to 27 in the First Circuit, 34 to 35 in the Fifth Circuit) and county court judge positions (e.g., Duval County from 17 to 20, Hillsborough from 25 to 26). The changes apply to designated judicial circuits and counties listed in Sections 26.031 and 34.022 of Florida Statutes. The bill takes effect on July 1, 2026, with no additional policy mechanisms beyond staffing adjustments. This is a procedural change to judicial staffing levels, not a substantive policy shift.

Trust Funds of the State Courts System; Terminating the Mediation and Arbitration Trust Fund; providing for the disposition of balances in and revenues of the trust fund; prescribing procedures for the termination of the trust fund, etc.

State Agency Law Enforcement Radio System; Abrogating the scheduled expiration of provisions relating to the remission of surcharges for specified criminal offenses and noncriminal moving traffic violations to the Department of Revenue to fund the state agency law enforcement radio system and to provide technical assistance with respect to statewide systems of regional law enforcement communications, etc.

Higher Education; Establishing the Florida Center for Nursing within the University of South Florida; providing that a specified fee waiver applies to a student’s out-of-pocket expenses for tuition and fees after other aid is applied; providing that the LINE Fund was established for shortages in health science professions in addition to nursing; requiring institutions awarded grant funds to submit an annual report by a certain date to the center instead of the Board of Governors or the Department of Education; requiring the Office of Reimagining Education and Career Help to provide specified data to the department, etc.

Fuel Taxes; Revising the distribution of the proceeds of the fuel sales tax; revising the transfer of funds received and collected into the Fuel Tax Collection Trust Fund, etc.

Appropriations; Providing moneys for the annual period beginning July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2027, and supplemental appropriations for the period ending June 30, 2026, to pay salaries, and other expenses, capital outlay - buildings, and other improvements, and for other specified purposes of the various agencies of state government, etc. APPROPRIATION: $115,025,780,033