Sen. Alexis Calatayud

Child Care and Early Learning Services; Revising the information on child care required to be disseminated electronically to the community; deleting the requirement that family child care homes and large family child care homes, respectively, provide specified information to parents each year; requiring that certain child care facilities exempt from licensure requirements meet certain minimum requirements; prohibiting residential property insurance policies from providing coverage for liability for claims arising out of, or in connection with, the operations of large family child care homes, etc.

Infill Redevelopment; Creating the “Infill Redevelopment Act”; requiring that a local government permit qualifying parcels to be developed with residential uses; prohibiting a local government from using the subdivision process to restrict development in a certain manner; requiring developers of such parcels to pay double the parks and recreation facilities impact fees for a certain purpose and provide certain written notice to property owners; prohibiting a local government from adopting or enforcing certain local laws, ordinances, or regulations, etc.

Private Schools; Requiring a private school that enrolls a certain number of students to be considered a permitted use for zoning purposes; providing that certain private schools may not be subject to additional building codes; requiring a fire official to use specified firesafety evaluation systems for existing private school facilities; providing that certain private schools are subject to specified fire code requirements, etc.

School Safety Equipment; Revising the purpose of specified grants awarded by the Office of Safe Schools; requiring private schools and public schools, including charter schools, respectively, to have specified safety equipment on each campus of the school; requiring the Department of Education, in coordination with the Department of Law Enforcement, to establish minimum specifications for such equipment; authorizing schools to use specified funds to meet the requirements of such safety equipment, etc.

Detection of Developmental Delays and Autism Spectrum Disorder; Requiring the Department of Health, in collaboration with school districts throughout this state, to develop informational materials for the detection of developmental delays and autism spectrum disorder for parents and guardians of certain students; requiring early learning coalitions to notify parents and guardians of the availability of such informational materials, etc.

Research and Development Tax Credit; Increasing the combined total amount of tax credits which may be granted to business enterprises under the research and development tax credit, etc.

Public Employee Housing Benefits; Authorizing specified public employers to provide a one-time payout of sick leave and annual leave to certain employees for a specified purpose; requiring the employer to remit payment and disburse funds in a specified manner; requiring an escrow agent to return funds under certain circumstances, etc.

Dental Screenings for K-12 Students; Defining the term “dental screening”; authorizing dental screenings provided under the school health services program to be conducted after written notice and an opportunity for a parent or guardian to opt out; clarifying district school board parent notification requirements for dental screenings; providing that the parental consent requirement does not apply to dental screenings, etc.

Maddy summarySB 1348 revises definitions used by Florida's Housing Finance Corporation to clarify terminology related to affordable housing programs. It adds specific requirements for "demonstrated capacity," requiring housing providers to have completed at least three affordable housing projects (including one in Florida) within the past five years. The bill also defines key terms like "qualifying principal" (owners with 25%+ stake in housing entities) and updates definitions for "elderly" housing and "eligible housing providers." These changes directly affect for-profit developers, non-profits, and community housing organizations seeking to construct or rehabilitate affordable housing projects under Florida's housing finance programs. The bill does not create new programs but refines existing eligibility and operational definitions.

Newborn Screenings; Citing this act as “Mattie’s Law”; requiring that newborns, beginning on a specified date, be screened for biliary atresia; requiring the Department of Health to consult with the Genetics and Newborn Screening Advisory Council before adopting certain rules; requiring hospitals that provide birthing services to screen for biliary atresia in a specified manner, etc.