Bill > S0318

Introduced Session

An act relating to educational scholarship programs; creating s. 1011.687, F.S.; creating a categorical fund for implementing the Family Empowerment Scholarship Program; providing requirements for the use and disbursement of funds; defining the term “full-time equivalent student”; requiring the Department of Education to release funds if certain criteria are met; providing requirements for the release of each payment; providing requirements for excess funds; providing that the department has access to certain records; creating s. 1011.689, F.S.; creating the educational enrollment stabilization program to provide supplemental state funds to address changes in full-time equivalent student enrollment; authorizing the department to distribute funds to school districts under specified conditions; authorizing the department to provide supplemental payments to school districts; requiring the department to ensure funding is available for certain scholarship programs; requiring the department to appropriate funds from the General Appropriations Act to keep the educational enrollment stabilization program at a minimum balance; amending s. 1002.40, F.S.; renaming the Hope Scholarship Program as the Hope Program; amending s. 1002.421, F.S.; defining terms; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to provide a parent with certain information on scholarship programs; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to create a single application for all educational scholarship programs; providing requirements for such application; prohibiting an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization from charging a fee for the application; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to establish two application approval windows; providing an exception; providing deadlines for such application approval windows; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to review applications and award scholarships in a specified order of priority; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to award scholarships to newly eligible students on a first come, first-served basis; requiring a parent to notify the eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization within a specified timeframe if a scholarship offer is accepted or declined; specifying fund distribution for the scholarship terms; prohibiting a parent from applying for multiple scholarships for an individual student at the same time; authorizing specified students to apply for a scholarship at any time but only receive payments prospectively; prohibiting an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization from restricting or reserving scholarships for use at a particular school; requiring such organization to notify each parent of a scholarship applicant that participation in the program does not guarantee enrollment at a private school; providing that a parent who submitted an application by a specified date need not submit a new application; authorizing a parent to withdraw his or her application and reapply; prohibiting an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization from requiring documentation beyond the requirements of the scholarship program; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to verify a student’s eligibility upon receipt of an application; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to send a list of verified eligible students to the department by specified dates; requiring the department to assign each verified eligible student a Florida student identification number; requiring the organization to use such number for tracking and reporting scholarship data; requiring the department to cross-check each list of verified eligible students with certain other lists; requiring the department to send the cross-checked list to the applicable school district; requiring the department to require the organization to suspend payments for any period of time the student is found to be ineligible; requiring the department to notify an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization of specified information; requiring the department to provide certain lists of students to certain parties; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to verify a student’s continued eligibility before disbursing each payment; providing criteria for verifying continued eligibility; requiring parents of students receiving scholarship payments to verify specified information; providing criteria for verifying continued eligibility; requiring parents of students receiving scholarship payments to verify specified information; providing that the scholarship program award amounts are the amounts provided in the General Appropriations Act; providing parameters for the calculation of the scholarship amounts for certain students; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to establish and maintain a scholarship account for each student; providing requirements for such accounts; providing that accrued interest is in addition to and not part of a student’s account; providing that program funds include awarded funds and accrued interest and are available only for authorized expenditures; requiring eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organizations to make payments by funds transfer; providing requirements for such funds transfer; prohibiting a student’s scholarship award from being reduced to cover certain fees; requiring that commodities or services related to the funds transfer system be procured by a specified method; providing an exception; prohibiting an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization from transferring funds to an account that has a balance in excess of a specified amount; specifying certain qualifications for educational expenditures; providing that a parent who fails to comply with such qualifications forfeits the scholarship; authorizing certain students in a scholarship program to take specified tests and certain assessments; providing an exception; requiring a participating private school to administer or provide for students to take specified tests and assessments; requiring a participating private school to submit a certain written request to the department by a specified date; requiring a school district to administer tests and assessments at a participating private school; requiring an owner or operator or individual providing services to undergo a background screening; providing requirements for the submission of fingerprints; requiring the Department of Law Enforcement to retain such fingerprints in a specified manner; providing screening requirements for specified individuals; prohibiting such owner or operator from transferring ownership or management authority to a relative; defining the term “relative”; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to report the annual audit of background screening results to the Department of Education; providing that a participating private school may be sectarian or nonsectarian; revising information required to be provided to the department by a private school; deleting obsolete language; providing construction; requiring the department to publish and update information on its website relating to scholarship programs; requiring the department to investigate complaints; requiring the department to maintain and annually publish a list of tests that satisfy a specified requirement; requiring the department to develop a standard withdrawal form for parents withdrawing a student from public school; providing requirements for such form; requiring the department to produce a specified annual report; authorizing the department to suspend or revoke program participation or the use of program funds for specified entities; requiring the department to develop a uniform reimbursement process; requiring an organization, by a specified date, to approve, deny, or request more information relating to a reimbursement request; requiring the department to annually report to the state its accountability actions; deleting the definition of the term “owner or operator”; requiring a school district, by a specified date, to inform certain households of eligibility to apply for a scholarship program; requiring the school district to coordinate with the department to provide a participating private school with statewide assessments; requiring a school district to publish information about a scholarship program on its website; requiring a school district to provide a parent with the withdrawal form upon request; deleting obsolete language; amending s. 1002.394, F.S.; deleting obsolete language; providing a title for a scholarship granted to a student who meets specified eligibility requirements; providing that authorized uses of program funds include digital devices; providing that authorized uses of program funds include membership dues and activity fees for career and technical student organizations; providing that tuition and fees that meet certain requirements are eligible for program funds; revising conditions under which a student is no longer eligible for scholarship funding; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship funding organization to notify a parent before closing a student’s account; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to report certain information to the Department of Education regarding scholarship accounts closed under certain circumstances; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to notify a parent if, upon a student reaching a specified age, a balance exists in the student’s account, the amount of the balance, and how the funds may be used; requiring an organization to annually report to the department the number of scholarship accounts closed under specified circumstances; requiring an organization to notify the department when a student withdraws from a scholarship program; deleting a provision allowing a public school student to receive a scholarship for transportation; revising the time frame for a school district to notify a parent of certain information; revising the percentage of funds that can be used for certain purposes; deleting obsolete language; amending s. 1002.395, F.S.; deleting obsolete language; deleting provisions related to scholarship priority; deleting a provision allowing a public school student to receive a scholarship for transportation; revising a provision requiring eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organizations to verify that scholarship funds are used for specified purposes; requiring an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization to report to the department the total number of scholarship accounts closed due to certain reasons; amending s. 1003.485, F.S.; conforming a cross-reference; amending s. 1008.25, F.S.; making a conforming change; amending s. 1010.305, F.S.; requiring the Auditor General to annually, rather than periodically, examine the records of eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organizations; providing for appropriate adjustments to be made and excess funds to be deducted if criteria and procedures have not been followed by an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization; amending s. 1011.61, F.S.; conforming a cross-reference; amending s. 1011.62, F.S.; deleting a requirement with respect to full-time equivalent student survey data; deleting obsolete language relating to the state funded discretionary supplement; amending s. 11.45, F.S.; conforming a cross-reference; requiring the Auditor General to annually conduct an audit of specified records; amending ss. 212.099, 402.22, 1002.45, 1003.4935, and 1010.20, F.S.; conforming cross-references; providing legislative findings; requiring the Department of Education to provide a specified report regarding recommendations for implementing the educational scholarship programs; providing requirements for the recommendations; authorizing the department to make recommendations to specified entities; requiring certain contracts to be awarded through a competitive procurement process; requiring the department to include an outline of requirements for each program component; providing requirements for the outline; requiring the department to include recommendations for eligibility requirements of scholarship-funding organizations under specified circumstances; requiring the department to include a specified plan in its report; requiring the department to provide, by a specified date, the report to the Governor and the Legislature; providing for expiration; providing an effective date.

AI Summary

Don Gaetz (R)*,  Danny Burgess (R),  Rosalind Osgood (D),  Jason Pizzo (I),  Darryl Rouson (D),  Corey Simon (R), 

Other Sponsors (1)

Died in Messages (on 03/13/2026)

Bill Topics

Official Document