CS/HB 1557 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to parental rights in education; 2
amending s. 1001.42, F.S.; requiring district school 3
boards to adopt procedures that comport with certain 4
provisions of law for notifying a student's parent of 5
specified information; requiring such procedure s to 6
reinforce the fundamental right of parents to make 7
decisions regarding the upbringing and control of 8
their children in a specified manner; prohibiting the 9
procedures from prohibiting a parent from accessing 10
certain records; providing construction; pro hibiting a 11
school district from adopting procedures or student 12
support forms that prohibit school district personnel 13
from notifying a parent about specified information or 14
that encourage or have the effect of encouraging a 15
student to withhold from a parent such information; 16
prohibiting school district personnel from 17
discouraging or prohibiting parental notification and 18
involvement in critical decisions affecting a 19
student's mental, emotional, or physical well -being; 20
providing construction; prohibiting a sch ool district 21
from encouraging classroom discussion about sexual 22
orientation or gender identity in primary grade levels 23
or in a specified manner; authorizing a parent to 24
bring an action against a school district to obtain a 25
CS/HB 1557 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
declaratory judgment that a schoo l district procedure 26
or practice violates certain provisions of law; 27
providing for the additional award of injunctive 28
relief, damages, and reasonable attorney fees and 29
court costs to certain parents; requiring certain 30
training developed or provided by a sc hool district to 31
adhere to standards established by the Department of 32
Education; requiring the department to review and 33
update, as necessary, specified materials by a certain 34
date; providing an effective date. 35
36
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 37
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Section 1. Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (8) of 39
section 1001.42, Florida Statutes, to read: 40
1001.42 Powers and duties of district school board. —The 41
district school board, acting as a board, shall exercise all 42
powers and perform all duties listed below: 43
(8) STUDENT WELFARE. — 44
(c)1. In accordance with the rights of parents enumerated 45
in ss. 1002.20 and 1014.04, adopt procedures for notifying a 46
student's parent if there is a change in the student's services 47
or monitoring related to the student's mental, emotional, or 48
physical health or well -being and the school's ability to 49
provide a safe and supportive learning environment for the 50
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
student. The procedures must reinforce the fundamental right of 51
parents to make decisions regar ding the upbringing and control 52
of their children by requiring school district personnel to 53
encourage a student to discuss issues relating to his or her 54
well-being with his or her parent or to seek permission to 55
discuss or facilitate discussion of the issu e with the parent. 56
The procedures must comply with s. 1002.22(2) and may not 57
prohibit a parent from accessing any of his or her minor child's 58
education records created, maintained, or used by the school 59
district. This paragraph does not limit or alter any obligation 60
of school district personnel to report suspected abuse, 61
abandonment, or neglect, as those terms are defined in s. 39.01. 62
2. A school district may not adopt procedures or student 63
support forms that prohibit school district personnel from 64
notifying a parent about his or her student's mental, emotional, 65
or physical health or well -being, or a change in related 66
services or monitoring, or that encourage or have the effect of 67
encouraging a student to withhold from a parent such 68
information. School dis trict personnel may not discourage or 69
prohibit parental notification of and involvement in critical 70
decisions affecting a student's mental, emotional, or physical 71
health or well-being. This subparagraph does not prohibit a 72
school district from adopting pro cedures that permit school 73
personnel to withhold such information from a parent if a 74
reasonably prudent person would believe that disclosure would 75
CS/HB 1557 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
result in abuse, abandonment, or neglect, as those terms are 76
defined in s. 39.01. 77
3. A school district may not encourage classroom 78
discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in 79
primary grade levels or in a manner that is not age -appropriate 80
or developmentally appropriate for students. 81
4. A parent of a student may bring an action against a 82
school district to obtain a declaratory judgment that a school 83
district procedure or practice violates this paragraph and seek 84
injunctive relief. A court may award damages and shall award 85
reasonable attorney fees and court costs to a parent who 86
receives declaratory or injunctive relief. 87
5. Student support services training developed or provided 88
by a school district to school district personnel must adhere to 89
student services guidelines, standards, and frameworks 90
established by the Department of Education. 91
Section 2. By June 30, 2023, the Department of Education 92
shall review and update, as necessary, school counseling 93
frameworks and standards; educator practices and professional 94
conduct principles; and any other student services personnel 95
guidelines, standards, or frameworks in accordance with the 96
requirements of this act. 97
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2022. 98