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A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to school choice; amending ss. 11.45, 2
212.099, and 327.371, F.S.; conforming cross -3
references; amending s. 1002.01, F.S.; defining the 4
term "personalized education program"; amending s. 5
1002.394, F.S.; providing and revising definitions; 6
revising student eligibility and ineligibility 7
requirements for the Family Empowerment Scholarship 8
Program; revising the approved uses of scholarship 9
funds; providing that certain scholarships remain in 10
force until certain criteria are met; requiring the 11
closure of a scholarship account and the reversion of 12
funds to the state under certain circumstances; 13
authorizing reimbursements for certain expenditures 14
until certain criteria are met; revising obligations 15
of school districts, the Department of Education, 16
private schools, and eligible nonprofit scholarship -17
funding organizations; revising responsibilities of 18
parents; requiring scholarship funds to be deposited 19
by funds transfers rather than through warrant 20
endorsement; requiring certain criteria to be met 21
before the funding of certain scholarships; revising 22
provisions for the calculation of an award amount for 23
certain students; prohibiting the transfer of funds to 24
an eligible student's account under certain 25
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conditions; deleting obsolete language; conforming 26
provisions and cross-references to changes made by the 27
act; amending s. 1002.395, F.S.; providing and 28
revising definitions; revising student eligibility and 29
ineligibility requirements for the Florida Tax Credit 30
Scholarship Program; revising obligations of eli gible 31
nonprofit scholarship -funding organizations and the 32
department; establishing certain limitations on the 33
number of scholarships funded through the program; 34
revising the approved uses of scholarship funds; 35
revising requirements for the use of certain 36
contributions for administrative expenses; revising 37
the amount of funds that must be awarded through 38
scholarships; requiring the development of specified 39
guidelines; authorizing organizations to require the 40
use of an online platform for specified purchases so 41
long as such use does not limit specified choices; 42
requiring an organization to provide reimbursement in 43
specified circumstances; requiring organizations to 44
submit specified quarterly reports; revising 45
responsibilities of parents; requiring scholarship 46
funds to be deposited by funds transfers rather than 47
through warrant endorsement; requiring the department 48
to annually publish a list of specified tests; 49
revising the requirements of a specified annual 50
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report; requiring the department to notify school 51
districts of specified estimates; prohibiting the 52
transfer of funds to an eligible student's account 53
under certain conditions; providing that certain 54
scholarships remain in force until certain criteria 55
are met; authorizing reimbursements for certain 56
expenditures until certain criteria are met; requiring 57
the closure of a scholarship account and the reversion 58
of funds to the state under certain circumstances; 59
requiring the Office of Independent Education and 60
Parental Choice to provide a specified number of 61
application periods for specified purposes; deleting 62
obsolete language; conforming provisions and cross -63
references to changes made by the act; amending s. 64
1002.40, F.S.; conforming cross -references; amending 65
s. 1002.421, F.S.; revising the eligibility criteria 66
and obligations of private schools participating in 67
certain educational scholarship programs; revising the 68
criteria for the Commissioner of Education to 69
permanently deny or revoke the authority of certain 70
individuals to establish or operate a private schoo l 71
in the state; authorizing the commissioner to include 72
specified individuals on a specified disqualification 73
list; authorizing such individuals to be removed from 74
such list if they provide specified reimbursements; 75
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conforming cross-references; creating s. 1002.44, 76
F.S.; authorizing public schools, including charter 77
schools, to enroll certain students on a part -time 78
basis; providing funding for such students; 79
prohibiting certain students from being reported for 80
funding; providing that such students are not 81
considered to be in regular attendance at such 82
schools; amending ss. 1003.01, 1003.27, 1003.485, and 83
1009.30, F.S.; conforming provisions and cross -84
references to changes made by the act; providing an 85
effective date. 86
87
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 88
89
Section 1. Paragraph (l) of subsection (2) of section 90
11.45, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 91
11.45 Definitions; duties; authorities; reports; rules. — 92
(2) DUTIES.—The Auditor General shall: 93
(l) At least once every 3 y ears, conduct operational 94
audits of the accounts and records of eligible nonprofit 95
scholarship-funding organizations receiving eligible 96
contributions under s. 1002.395, including any contracts for 97
services with related entities, to determine compliance wit h the 98
provisions of that section. Such audits shall include, but not 99
be limited to, a determination of the eligible nonprofit 100
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scholarship-funding organization's compliance with s. 101
1002.395(6)(l) s. 1002.395(6)(j). The Auditor General shall 102
provide its report on the results of the audits to the Governor, 103
the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of 104
Representatives, the Chief Financial Officer, and the 105
Legislative Auditing Committee, within 30 days of completion of 106
the audit. 107
108
The Auditor General shall perform his or her duties 109
independently but under the general policies established by the 110
Legislative Auditing Committee. This subsection does not limit 111
the Auditor General's discretionary authority to conduct other 112
audits or engagements of governmen tal entities as authorized in 113
subsection (3). 114
Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) and paragraph 115
(c) of subsection (7) of section 212.099, Florida Statutes, are 116
amended to read: 117
212.099 Credit for contributions to eligible nonprofit 118
scholarship-funding organizations. — 119
(1) As used in this section, the term: 120
(c) "Eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization" 121
or "organization" has the same meaning as provided in s. 122
1002.395(2) s. 1002.395(2)(f). 123
(7) 124
(c) The organization may, subject to the limitations of s. 125
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1002.395(6)(l)1. s. 1002.395(6)(j)1., use eligible contributions 126
received during the state fiscal year in which such 127
contributions are collected for administrative expenses. 128
Section 3. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section 129
327.371, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 130
327.371 Human-powered vessels regulated. — 131
(1) A person may operate a human -powered vessel within the 132
boundaries of the marked channel of the Florida Intracoastal 133
Waterway as defined in s. 327.02: 134
(c) When participating in practices or competitions for 135
interscholastic, intercollegiate, intramural, or club rowing 136
teams affiliated with an educational institution identified in 137
s. 1000.21, s. 1002.01(3) s. 1002.01(2), s. 1003.01(2), s. 138
1005.02(4), or s. 1005.03(1)(d), if the adjacent area outside of 139
the marked channel is not suitable for such practice or 140
competition. The teams must use their best efforts to make use 141
of the adjacent area outside of the marked channel. The 142
commission must be notified in writing of the details of any 143
such competition, and the notification must include, but need 144
not be limited to, the date, time, and location of the 145
competition. 146
Section 4. Section 1002.01, Florida Statutes, is amended 147
to read: 148
1002.01 Definitions. — 149
(1) A "home education program" means the sequentially 150
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progressive instruction of a student directed by his or her 151
parent in order to satisfy the attendance requirements of ss. 152
1002.41, 1003.01(13), and 1003.21(1). 153
(2) A "personalized education program" means the 154
sequentially progressive instruction of a student directed by 155
his or her parent to satisfy the attendance requirements of ss. 156
1003.01(13) and 1003.21(1) while registered with an eligible 157
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization pursuant to s. 158
1002.395. A personalized education student shall be provided the 159
same flexibility and opportunities as provided in s. 1002.41(3) -160
(12). 161
(3)(2) A "private school" is a nonpublic school defined as 162
an individual, association, copartn ership, or corporation, or 163
department, division, or section of such organizations, that 164
designates itself as an educational center that includes 165
kindergarten or a higher grade or as an elementary, secondary, 166
business, technical, or trade school below colle ge level or any 167
organization that provides instructional services that meet the 168
intent of s. 1003.01(13) or that gives preemployment or 169
supplementary training in technology or in fields of trade or 170
industry or that offers academic, literary, or career trai ning 171
below college level, or any combination of the above, including 172
an institution that performs the functions of the above schools 173
through correspondence or extension, except those licensed under 174
the provisions of chapter 1005. A private school may be a 175
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parochial, religious, denominational, for -profit, or nonprofit 176
school. This definition does not include home education programs 177
conducted in accordance with s. 1002.41. 178
Section 5. Paragraphs (b) through (m) of subsection (2) of 179
section 1002.394, Florid a Statutes, are redesignated as 180
paragraphs (c) through (n), respectively, present paragraphs 181
(e), (f), and (g) of subsection (2), paragraph (a) of subsection 182
(3), subsection (4), paragraph (a) of subsection (5), paragraph 183
(f) of subsection (6), paragraphs (b), (d), (f), and (g) of 184
subsection (7), paragraph (a) of subsection (8), paragraphs (a) 185
and (b) of subsection (10), paragraph (a) of subsection (11), 186
and subsection (12) are amended, and a new paragraph (b) is 187
added to subsection (2), paragraph (c) is ad ded to subsection 188
(8), and paragraph (d) is added to subsection (9) of that 189
section, to read: 190
1002.394 The Family Empowerment Scholarship Program. — 191
(2) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 192
(b) "Choice navigator" has the same meaning as in s. 193
1002.395(2). 194
(f)(e) "Eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 195
organization" or "organization" has the same meaning as provided 196
in s. 1002.395(2) s. 1002.395(2)(f). 197
(g)(f) "Eligible postsecondary educational institution" 198
means a Florida College System institution; a state university; 199
a school district technical center; a school district adult 200
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general education center; an independent college or university 201
that is eligible to participate in the William L. Boyd, IV, 202
Effective Access to Student Education Gr ant Program under s. 203
1009.89; or an accredited independent postsecondary educational 204
institution, as defined in s. 1005.02, which is licensed to 205
operate in this state under part III of chapter 1005 or is 206
approved to participate in a reciprocity agreement a s defined in 207
s. 1000.35(2). 208
(h)(g) "Eligible private school" has the same meaning as 209
provided in s. 1002.395(2) s. 1002.395(2)(g). 210
(3) SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY. — 211
(a)1. A parent of a student may request and receive from 212
the state a scholarship for the purposes specified in paragraph 213
(4)(a) if the student is a resident of this state and is 214
eligible to enroll in kindergarten through grade 12 in a public 215
school in this state. : 216
1. The student is on the direct certification list 217
pursuant to s. 1002.395(2)( c) or the student's household income 218
level does not exceed 185 percent of the federal poverty level; 219
2. The student is currently placed, or during the previous 220
state fiscal year was placed, in foster care or in out -of-home 221
care as defined in s. 39.01; 222
3. The student's household income level does not exceed 223
375 percent of the federal poverty level or an adjusted maximum 224
percent of the federal poverty level that is increased by 25 225
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percentage points in the fiscal year following any fiscal year 226
in which more than 5 percent of the available scholarships 227
authorized under paragraph (12)(a) have not been funded; 228
4. The student is a sibling of a student who is 229
participating in the scholarship program under this subsection 230
and such siblings reside in the same ho usehold; 231
5. The student is a dependent child of a member of the 232
United States Armed Forces; or 233
6. The student is a dependent child of a law enforcement 234
officer. 235
2. Priority must be given in the following order: to 236
a. A student whose household income level does not exceed 237
185 percent of the federal poverty level or who is in foster 238
care or out-of-home care. 239
b. A student whose household income level exceeds 185 240
percent of the federal poverty level, but does not excee d 400 241
percent of the federal poverty level. 242
(4) AUTHORIZED USES OF PROGRAM FUNDS. — 243
(a) Program funds awarded to a student determined eligible 244
pursuant to paragraph (3)(a) may be used for: 245
1. Tuition and fees at an eligible private school .; or 246
2. Transportation to a Florida public school in which a 247
student is enrolled and that is different from the school to 248
which the student was assigned or to a lab school as defined in 249
s. 1002.32. 250
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3. Instructional materials, including digital materials 251
and Internet resources. 252
4. Curriculum as defined in subsection (2). 253
5. Tuition and fees associated with full -time or part-time 254
enrollment in an eligible postsecondary educational institution 255
or a program offered by the postsecondary educational 256
institution, unless the program is subject to s. 1009.25 or 257
reimbursed pursuant to s. 1009.30; an approved preapprenticeship 258
program as defined in s. 446.021(5) which is not subject to s. 259
1009.25 and complies with all applicable requirements of the 260
department pursuant to chapter 1005; a private tutoring program 261
authorized under s. 1002.43; a virtual program offered by a 262
department-approved private online provider that meets the 263
provider qualifications specified in s. 1002.45(2)(a); the 264
Florida Virtual School as a private paying student; or an 265
approved online course offered pursuant to s. 1003.499 or s. 266
1004.0961. 267
6. Fees for nationally standardized, norm -referenced 268
achievement tests, Advanced Placement Examinations, industry 269
certification examinations, assessments relate d to postsecondary 270
education, or other assessments. 271
7. Contracted services provided by a public school or 272
school district, including classes. A student who receives 273
contracted services under this subparagraph is not considered 274
enrolled in a public school for eligibility purposes as 275
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specified in subsection (6) but rather attending a public school 276
on a part-time basis as authorized under s. 1002.44. 277
8. Tuition and fees for part -time tutoring services or 278
fees for services provided by a choice navigator. Su ch services 279
must be provided by a person who holds a valid Florida 280
educator's certificate pursuant to s. 1012.56, a person who 281
holds an adjunct teaching certificate pursuant to s. 1012.57, a 282
person who has a bachelor's degree or a graduate degree in the 283
subject area in which instruction is given, a person who has 284
demonstrated a mastery of subject area knowledge pursuant to s. 285
1012.56(5), or a person certified by a nationally or 286
internationally recognized research -based training program as 287
approved by the department. As used in this subparagraph, the 288
term "part-time tutoring services" does not qualify as regular 289
school attendance as defined in s. 1003.01(13)(e) if the student 290
is determined eligible pursuant to subparagraph (3)(a)1. or 291
subparagraph (3)(a)2 . 292
(b) Program funds awarded to a student with a disability 293
determined eligible pursuant to paragraph (3)(b) may be used for 294
the following purposes: 295
1. Instructional materials, including digital devices, 296
digital periphery devices, and assistive technology d evices that 297
allow a student to access instruction or instructional content 298
and training on the use of and maintenance agreements for these 299
devices. 300
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2. Curriculum as defined in subsection (2). 301
3. Specialized services by approved providers or by a 302
hospital in this state which are selected by the parent. These 303
specialized services may include, but are not limited to: 304
a. Applied behavior analysis services as provided in ss. 305
627.6686 and 641.31098. 306
b. Services provided by speech -language pathologists as 307
defined in s. 468.1125(8). 308
c. Occupational therapy as defined in s. 468.203. 309
d. Services provided by physical therapists as defined in 310
s. 486.021(8). 311
e. Services provided by listening and spoken language 312
specialists and an appropriate acoustical envi ronment for a 313
child who has a hearing impairment, including deafness, and who 314
has received an implant or assistive hearing device. 315
4. Tuition and or fees associated with full -time or part-316
time enrollment in a home education program ;, an eligible 317
private school;, an eligible postsecondary educational 318
institution or a program offered by the postsecondary 319
educational institution, unless the program is subject to s. 320
1009.25 or reimbursed pursuant to s. 1009.30; an approved 321
preapprenticeship program as defined in s. 446.021(5) which is 322
not subject to s. 1009.25 and complies with all applicable 323
requirements of the department pursuant to chapter 1005; a 324
private tutoring program authorized under s. 1002.43 ;, a virtual 325
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program offered by a department -approved private online provider 326
that meets the provider qualifications specified in s. 327
1002.45(2)(a);, the Florida Virtual School as a private paying 328
student;, or an approved online course offered pursuant to s. 329
1003.499 or s. 1004.0961. 330
5. Fees for nationally standa rdized, norm-referenced 331
achievement tests, Advanced Placement Examinations, industry 332
certification examinations, assessments related to postsecondary 333
education, or other assessments. 334
6. Contributions to the Stanley G. Tate Florida Prepaid 335
College Program pursuant to s. 1009.98 or the Florida College 336
Savings Program pursuant to s. 1009.981 for the benefit of the 337
eligible student. 338
7. Contracted services provided by a public school or 339
school district, including classes. A student who receives 340
services under a contract under this paragraph is not considered 341
enrolled in a public school for eligibility purposes as 342
specified in subsection (6) but rather attending a public school 343
on a part-time basis as authorized under s. 1002.44 . 344
8. Tuition and fees for part -time tutoring services or 345
fees for services provided by a choice navigator. Such services 346
must be provided by a person who holds a valid Florida 347
educator's certificate pursuant to s. 1012.56, a person who 348
holds an adjunct teaching certificate pursuant to s. 1012.57, a 349
person who has a bachelor's degree or a graduate degree in the 350
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subject area in which instruction is given, a person who has 351
demonstrated a mastery of subject area knowledge pursuant to s. 352
1012.56(5), or a person certified by a nationally or 353
internationally recognized research -based training program as 354
approved by the department. As used in this subparagraph 355
paragraph, the term "part-time tutoring services" does not 356
qualify as regular school attendance as defined in s. 357
1003.01(13)(e). 358
9. Fees for specialized summer education programs. 359
10. Fees for specialized after -school education programs. 360
11. Transition services provided by job coaches. 361
12. Fees for an annual evaluation of educational progress 362
by a state-certified teacher under s. 100 2.41(1)(f), if this 363
option is chosen for a home education student. 364
13. Tuition and fees associated with programs offered by 365
Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program providers approved 366
pursuant to s. 1002.55 and school readiness providers approved 367
pursuant to s. 1002.88. 368
14. Fees for services provided at a center that is a 369
member of the Professional Association of Therapeutic 370
Horsemanship International. 371
15. Fees for services provided by a therapist who is 372
certified by the Certification Board for Music Therapists or 373
credentialed by the Art Therapy Credentials Board, Inc. 374
(5) TERM OF SCHOLARSHIP. —For purposes of continuity of 375
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educational choice: 376
(a)1. A scholarship awarded to an eligible student 377
pursuant to paragraph (3)(a) shall remain in force until: 378
a. The organization determines that the student is not 379
eligible for program renewal; 380
b. The Commissioner of Education suspends or revokes 381
program participation or use of funds; 382
c. The student's parent has forfeited participation in the 383
program for failure to comply with subsection (10); 384
d. The student enrolls in a public school. However, if a 385
student enters a Department of Juvenile Justice detention center 386
for a period of no more than 21 days, the student is not 387
considered to have returned t o a public school on a full -time 388
basis for that purpose; or 389
e. The student graduates from high school or attains 21 390
years of age, whichever occurs first. 391
2.a. The student's scholarship account must be closed and 392
any remaining funds shall revert to the state after: 393
(I) Denial or revocation of program eligibility by the 394
commissioner for fraud or abuse, including, but not limited to, 395
the student or student's parent accepting any payment, refund, 396
or rebate, in any manner, from a provider of any services 397
received pursuant to paragraph (4)(a); or 398
(II) Two consecutive fiscal years in which an account has 399
been inactive. 400
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b. Reimbursements for program expenditures may continue 401
until the account balance is expended or remaining funds have 402
reverted to the stat e student returns to a public school, 403
graduates from high school, or reaches the age of 21, whichever 404
occurs first. A scholarship student who enrolls in a public 405
school or public school program is considered to have returned 406
to a public school for the purp ose of determining the end of the 407
scholarship's term. However, if a student enters a Department of 408
Juvenile Justice detention center for a period of no more than 409
21 days, the student is not considered to have returned to a 410
public school for that purpose. 411
(6) SCHOLARSHIP PROHIBITIONS. —A student is not eligible 412
for a Family Empowerment Scholarship while he or she is: 413
(f) Participating in virtual instruction pursuant to s. 414
1002.455 that receives state funding pursuant to the student's 415
participation. 416
(7) SCHOOL DISTRICT OBLIGATIONS. — 417
(b)1. The parent of a student with a disability who does 418
not have an IEP in accordance with subparagraph (3)(b)4. or who 419
seeks a reevaluation of an existing IEP may request an IEP 420
meeting and evaluation from the school distr ict in order to 421
obtain or revise a matrix of services. The school district shall 422
notify a parent who has made a request for an IEP that the 423
district is required to complete the IEP and matrix of services 424
within 30 days after receiving notice of the parent' s request. 425
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The school district shall conduct a meeting and develop an IEP 426
and a matrix of services within 30 days after receipt of the 427
parent's request in accordance with State Board of Education 428
rules. The district must accept the diagnosis and consider t he 429
service plan of the licensed professional providing the 430
diagnosis pursuant to subparagraph (3)(b)4. The school district 431
must complete a matrix that assigns the student to one of the 432
levels of service as they existed before the 2000 -2001 school 433
year. For a nonpublic school student without an IEP, the school 434
district is authorized to use evaluation reports and plans of 435
care developed by the licensed professionals under subparagraph 436
(4)(b)3. to complete the matrix of services. 437
2.a. The school district mus t provide the student's parent 438
and the department with the student's matrix level within 10 439
calendar days after its completion. 440
b. The department shall notify the parent and the 441
organization of the amount of the funds awarded within 10 days 442
after receiving the school district's notification of the 443
student's matrix level. 444
c. A school district may change a matrix of services only 445
if the change is a result of an IEP reevaluation or to correct a 446
technical, typographical, or calculation error. 447
(d) The school district in which a participating student 448
resides must notify the student and his or her parent about the 449
locations and times to take all statewide assessments under s. 450
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1008.22 if the student chooses to participate in such 451
assessments. Upon the request of the department, a school 452
district shall coordinate with the department to provide to a 453
participating private school the statewide assessments 454
administered under s. 1008.22 and any related materials for 455
administering the assessments. For a student who pa rticipates in 456
the Family Empowerment Scholarship Program whose parent requests 457
that the student take the statewide assessments under s. 458
1008.22, the district in which the student attends a private 459
school shall provide locations and times to take all statew ide 460
assessments. A school district is responsible for implementing 461
test administrations at a participating private school, 462
including the: 463
1. Provision of training for private school staff on test 464
security and assessment administration procedures; 465
2. Distribution of testing materials to a private school; 466
3. Retrieval of testing materials from a private school; 467
4. Provision of the required format for a private school 468
to submit information to the district for test administration 469
and enrollment purposes ; and 470
5. Provision of any required assistance, monitoring, or 471
investigation at a private school. 472
(f) A school district shall report all students who are 473
receiving a scholarship under this program. Students receiving a 474
scholarship shall be reported sepa rately from other students 475
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reported for purposes of the Florida Education Finance Program. 476
(g) A school district shall be held harmless for students 477
who are receiving a scholarship under this program from the 478
weighted enrollment ceiling for group 2 progr ams in s. 479
1011.62(1)(d)3.b. during the first school year in which the 480
students are reported. 481
(8) DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OBLIGATIONS. — 482
(a) The department shall: 483
1. Publish and update, as necessary, information on the 484
department website about the Family Empowerment Scholarship 485
Program, including, but not limited to, student eligibility 486
criteria, parental responsibilities, and relevant data. 487
2. Report, as part of the determination of full -time 488
equivalent membership pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(a), al l students 489
who are receiving a scholarship under the program and are funded 490
through the Florida Education Finance Program, and cross-check 491
the list of participating scholarship students with the public 492
school enrollment lists to avoid duplication. 493
3. Maintain and annually publish a list of nationally 494
norm-referenced tests identified for purposes of satisfying the 495
testing requirement in subparagraph (9)(c)1. The tests must meet 496
industry standards of quality in accordance with state board 497
rule. 498
4. Notify eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 499
organizations of the deadlines for submitting the verified list 500
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of students determined to be eligible for a scholarship. An 501
eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization may not 502
submit a student for funding afte r February 1. 503
5. Notify each school district of a parent's participation 504
in the scholarship program for purposes of paragraph (7)(f). 505
5.6. Deny or terminate program participation upon a 506
parent's failure to comply with subsection (10). 507
6.7. Notify the parent and the organization when a 508
scholarship account is closed and program funds revert to the 509
state. 510
7.8. Notify an eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 511
organization of any of the organization's or other 512
organization's identified students who are r eceiving 513
scholarships under this chapter. 514
8.9. Maintain on its website a list of approved providers 515
as required by s. 1002.66, eligible postsecondary educational 516
institutions, eligible private schools, and eligible 517
organizations and may identify or provi de links to lists of 518
other approved providers. 519
9.10. Require each organization to verify eligible 520
expenditures before the distribution of funds for any 521
expenditures made pursuant to subparagraphs (4)(b)1. and 2. 522
Review of expenditures made for services s pecified in 523
subparagraphs (4)(b)3. -15. may be completed after the purchase 524
is made. 525
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10.11. Investigate any written complaint of a violation of 526
this section by a parent, a student, a private school, a public 527
school, a school district, an organization, a p rovider, or 528
another appropriate party in accordance with the process 529
established under s. 1002.421. 530
11.12. Require quarterly reports by an organization, which 531
must include, at a minimum, the number of students participating 532
in the program; the demographi cs of program participants; the 533
disability category of program participants; the matrix level of 534
services, if known; the program award amount per student; the 535
total expenditures for the purposes specified in paragraph 536
(4)(b); the types of providers of serv ices to students; and any 537
other information deemed necessary by the department. 538
12.13. Notify eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 539
organizations that scholarships may not be awarded in a school 540
district in which the award will exceed 99 percent of the school 541
district's share of state funding through the Florida Education 542
Finance Program as calculated by the department. 543
13.14. Adjust payments to eligible nonprofit scholarship -544
funding organizations and, when the Florida Education Finance 545
Program is recalculated, adjust the amount of state funds 546
allocated to school districts through the Florida Education 547
Finance Program based upon the results of the cross -check 548
completed pursuant to subparagraph 2. 549
(c) The department shall notify each school district of 550
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the full-time equivalent student consensus estimate of students 551
participating in the program developed pursuant to s. 552
216.136(4)(a). 553
(9) PRIVATE SCHOOL ELIGIBILITY AND OBLIGATIONS. —To be 554
eligible to participate in the Family Empowerment Scholarship 555
Program, a private school may be sectarian or nonsectarian and 556
must: 557
(d) For a student determined eligible pursuant to 558
paragraph (3)(b), discuss the school's academic programs and 559
policies, specialized services, code of conduct, and attendance 560
policies before enrollment with the parent to determine which 561
programs and services may meet the student's individual needs. 562
563
If a private school fails to meet the requirements of this 564
subsection or s. 1002.421, the commissioner may determine that 565
the private school is ineligible to participate in the 566
scholarship program. 567
(10) PARENT AND STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES FOR PROGRAM 568
PARTICIPATION.— 569
(a) A parent who applies for program participation under 570
paragraph (3)(a) whose student will be enrolled full time is 571
exercising his or her parental option to place his or her child 572
in a private school and must: 573
1. Select the private school and apply for the admission 574
of his or her student. 575
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2. Request the scholarship by a date established by the 576
organization, in a manner that cr eates a written or electronic 577
record of the request and the date of receipt of the request. 578
3. Inform the applicable school district when the parent 579
withdraws his or her student from a public school to attend an 580
eligible private school. 581
4. Require his or her student participating in the program 582
to remain in attendance throughout the school year unless 583
excused by the school for illness or other good cause. 584
5. Meet with the private school's principal or the 585
principal's designee to review the school's ac ademic programs 586
and policies, specialized services customized educational 587
programs, code of student conduct, and attendance policies 588
before prior to enrollment. 589
6. Require that the student participating in the 590
scholarship program takes the norm -referenced assessment offered 591
by the private school. The parent may also choose to have the 592
student participate in the statewide assessments pursuant to 593
paragraph (7)(d). If the parent requests that the student 594
participating in the program take all statewide assess ments 595
required pursuant to s. 1008.22, the parent is responsible for 596
transporting the student to the assessment site designated by 597
the school district. 598
7. Approve each payment before the scholarship funds may 599
be deposited by funds transfer Restrictively endorse the 600
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warrant, issued in the name of the parent pursuant to 601
subparagraph (12)(a)4. (12)(a)6., to the private school for 602
deposit into the private school's account. The parent may not 603
designate any entity or individual associated with the 604
participating private school as the parent's attorney in fact to 605
approve a funds transfer. A participant who fails to comply with 606
this paragraph forfeits the endorse a scholarship warrant. 607
8. Agree to have the organization commit scholarship funds 608
on behalf of his or her student for tuition and fees for which 609
the parent is responsible for payment at the private school 610
before using empowerment account funds for additional authorized 611
uses under paragraph (4)(a). A parent is responsible for all 612
eligible expenses in exces s of the amount of the scholarship. 613
(b) A parent who applies for program participation under 614
paragraph (3)(b) is exercising his or her parental option to 615
determine the appropriate placement or the services that best 616
meet the needs of his or her child and must: 617
1. Apply to an eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 618
organization to participate in the program by a date set by the 619
organization. The request must be communicated directly to the 620
organization in a manner that creates a written or electronic 621
record of the request and the date of receipt of the request. 622
2. Sign an agreement with the organization and annually 623
submit a sworn compliance statement to the organization to 624
satisfy or maintain program eligibility, including eligibility 625
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to receive and spend program payments by: 626
a. Affirming that the student is enrolled in a program 627
that meets regular school attendance requirements as provided in 628
s. 1003.01(13)(b), (c), or (d). 629
b. Affirming that the program funds are used only for 630
authorized purposes se rving the student's educational needs, as 631
described in paragraph (4)(b); that any prepaid college plan or 632
college savings plan funds contributed pursuant to subparagraph 633
(4)(b)6. will not be transferred to another beneficiary while 634
the plan contains funds contributed pursuant to this section; 635
and that they will not receive a payment, refund, or rebate of 636
any funds provided under this section. 637
c. Affirming that the parent is responsible for all 638
eligible expenses in excess of the amount of the scholarship a nd 639
for the education of his or her student by, as applicable: 640
(I) Requiring the student to take an assessment in 641
accordance with paragraph (9)(c); 642
(II) Providing an annual evaluation in accordance with s. 643
1002.41(1)(f); or 644
(III) Requiring the child t o take any preassessments and 645
postassessments selected by the provider if the child is 4 years 646
of age and is enrolled in a program provided by an eligible 647
Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program provider. A student 648
with disabilities for whom the physic ian or psychologist who 649
issued the diagnosis or the IEP team determines that a 650
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preassessment and postassessment is not appropriate is exempt 651
from this requirement. A participating provider shall report a 652
student's scores to the parent. 653
d. Affirming that the student remains in good standing 654
with the provider or school if those options are selected by the 655
parent. 656
e. Enrolling his or her child in a program from a 657
Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program provider authorized 658
under s. 1002.55, a school rea diness provider authorized under 659
s. 1002.88, or an eligible private school if either option is 660
selected by the parent. 661
f. Renewing participation in the program each year. A 662
student whose participation in the program is not renewed may 663
continue to spend scholarship funds that are in his or her 664
account from prior years unless the account must be closed 665
pursuant to subparagraph (5)(b)3. Notwithstanding any changes to 666
the student's IEP, a student who was previously eligible for 667
participation in the program sh all remain eligible to apply for 668
renewal. However, for a high -risk child to continue to 669
participate in the program in the school year after he or she 670
reaches 6 years of age, the child's application for renewal of 671
program participation must contain document ation that the child 672
has a disability defined in paragraph (2)(e) paragraph (2)(d) 673
other than high-risk status. 674
g. Procuring the services necessary to educate the 675
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student. If such services include enrollment in an eligible 676
private school, the parent must meet with the private school's 677
principal or the principal's designee to review the school's 678
academic programs and policies, specialized services, code of 679
student conduct, and attendance policies before his or her 680
student is enrolled If a parent does not p rocure the necessary 681
educational services for the student and the student's account 682
has been inactive for 2 consecutive fiscal years, the student is 683
ineligible for additional scholarship payments until the 684
scholarship-funding organization verifies that exp enditures from 685
the account have occurred . When the student receives a 686
scholarship, the district school board is not obligated to 687
provide the student with a free appropriate public education. 688
For purposes of s. 1003.57 and the Individuals with Disabilities 689
in Education Act, a participating student has only those rights 690
that apply to all other unilaterally parentally placed students, 691
except that, when requested by the parent, school district 692
personnel must develop an IEP or matrix level of services. 693
(11) OBLIGATIONS OF ELIGIBLE SCHOLARSHIP -FUNDING 694
ORGANIZATIONS.— 695
(a) An eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization 696
awarding scholarships to eligible students pursuant to paragraph 697
(3)(a): 698
1. Must receive applications, determine student 699
eligibility, notify parents in accordance with the requirements 700
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of this section, and provide the department with information on 701
the student to enable the department to determine student 702
funding in accordance with paragraph (12)(a). 703
2. Shall verify the household income level of students 704
pursuant to subparagraph (3)(a)1. and submit the verified list 705
of students and related documentation to the department when 706
necessary. 707
3. Shall award scholarships in priority order pursuant to 708
paragraph (3)(a). 709
4. Shall establish and maintain separate empowerment 710
accounts for each eligible student. For each account, the 711
organization must maintain a record of accrued interest that is 712
retained in the student's account and available only for 713
authorized program expenditures. 714
5. May permit eligible students to use program funds for 715
the purposes specified in paragraph (4)(a) by paying for the 716
authorized use directly, then submitting a reimbursement request 717
to the eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization. 718
However, an eligible non profit scholarship-funding organization 719
may require the use of an online platform for direct purchases 720
of products so long as such use does not limit a parent's choice 721
of curriculum or academic programs. If a parent purchases a 722
product identical to one off ered by an organization's online 723
platform for a lower price, the organization shall reimburse the 724
parent the difference in the prices. 725
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6. May, from eligible contributions received pursuant to 726
s. 1002.395(6)(l)1. s. 1002.395(6)(j)1., use an amount not to 727
exceed 2.5 percent of the total amount of all scholarships 728
funded under this section for administrative expenses associated 729
with performing functions under this section. An eligible 730
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization that has, for the 731
prior fiscal year, complied with the expenditure requirements of 732
s. 1002.395(6)(l)2., may use an amount not to exceed 3 percent. 733
Such administrative expense amount is considered within the 3 734
percent limit on the total amount an organization may use to 735
administer scholarships under this chapter. 736
7.5. Must, in a timely manner, submit any information 737
requested by the department relating to the scholarship under 738
this section. 739
8.6. Must notify the department about any violation of 740
this section by a parent or a private s chool. 741
9. Must document each student's eligibility for a fiscal 742
year before granting a scholarship for that fiscal year. A 743
student is ineligible for a scholarship if the student's account 744
has been inactive for 2 consecutive fiscal years. 745
10. Must notify each parent that participation in the 746
scholarship program does not guarantee enrollment. 747
11. Shall commit scholarship funds on behalf of the 748
student for tuition and fees for which the parent is responsible 749
for payment at the private school before using empowerment 750
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account funds for additional authorized uses under paragraph (4) 751
(a). 752
(12) SCHOLARSHIP FUNDING AND PAYMENT. — 753
(a)1. Scholarships for students determined eligible 754
pursuant to paragraph (3)(a) may be funded once all scholarships 755
have been funded in accordance with s. 1002.395(6)(l)2. are 756
established for up to 18,000 students annually beginning in the 757
2019-2020 school year. Beginning in the 2020 -2021 school year, 758
the maximum number of students participating in the scholarship 759
program under this section shall annually increase by 1.0 760
percent of the state's total full -time equivalent student 761
membership. An eligible student who meets any of the following 762
requirements shall be excluded from the maximum number of 763
students if the student: 764
a. Is a dependent child of a law enforcement officer or a 765
member of the United States Armed Forces, a foster child, or an 766
adopted child; or 767
b. Is determined eligible pursuant to subparagraph 768
(3)(a)1. or subparagraph (3)(a)2. and either spent the prior 769
school year in attendance at a Florida public school ; or, 770
beginning in the 2022 -2023 school year, is eligible to enroll in 771
kindergarten. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term "prior 772
school year in attendance" means that the student was enrolled 773
and reported by a school district for funding during either the 774
preceding October or February full -time equivalent student 775
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membership surveys in kindergarten through grade 12, which 776
includes time spent in a Department of Juvenile Justice 777
commitment program if funded under the Florida Education Finance 778
Program. 779
2. The scholarship amount provided to a student for any 780
single school year shall be for tuition and fees for an eligible 781
private school, not to exceed annual limits, which shall be 782
determined in accordance with this subparagraph. The calculated 783
scholarship amount for a participating student determined 784
eligible pursuant to paragraph (3)(a) shall be based upon the 785
grade level and school district in which the student was 786
assigned as 100 percent of the funds per unweight ed full-time 787
equivalent in the Florida Education Finance Program for a 788
student in the basic program established pursuant to s. 789
1011.62(1)(c)1., plus a per -full-time equivalent share of funds 790
for all categorical programs, except for the exceptional student 791
education guaranteed allocation established pursuant to s. 792
1011.62(1)(e). 793
3. The amount of the scholarship shall be the calculated 794
amount or the amount of the private school's tuition and fees, 795
whichever is less. The amount of any assessment fee required by 796
the participating private school and any costs to provide a 797
digital device, including Internet access, if necessary, to the 798
student may be paid from the total amount of the scholarship. 799
2.4. A scholarship of $750 or an amount equal to the 800
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school district expenditure per student riding a school bus, as 801
determined by the department, whichever is greater, may be 802
awarded to an eligible a student who is determined eligible 803
pursuant to subparagraph (3)(a)1. or subparagraph (3)(a)2. and 804
enrolled in a Florida public school that is different from the 805
school to which the student was assigned or in a lab school as 806
defined in s. 1002.32 if the school district does not provide 807
the student with transportation to the school. 808
3.5. The organization must provide the d epartment with the 809
documentation necessary to verify the student's participation. 810
Upon receiving the documentation, the department shall transfer, 811
beginning August 1, from state funds only, the amount calculated 812
pursuant to subparagraph 2. to the organizat ion for quarterly 813
disbursement to parents of participating students each school 814
year in which the scholarship is in force. For a student exiting 815
a Department of Juvenile Justice commitment program who chooses 816
to participate in the scholarship program, the amount of the 817
Family Empowerment Scholarship calculated pursuant to 818
subparagraph 2. must be transferred from the school district in 819
which the student last attended a public school before 820
commitment to the Department of Juvenile Justice. When a student 821
enters the scholarship program, the organization must receive 822
all documentation required for the student's participation, 823
including the private school's and the student's fee schedules, 824
at least 30 days before the first quarterly scholarship payment 825
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is made for the student. 826
4.6. The initial payment shall be made after the 827
organization's verification of admission acceptance, and 828
subsequent payments shall be made upon verification of continued 829
enrollment and attendance at the private school. Payment must be 830
by individual warrant made payable to the student's parent or by 831
funds transfer or any other means of payment that the department 832
deems to be commercially viable or cost -effective. If the 833
payment is made by warrant, the warrant must be delivered by the 834
organization to the private school of the parent's choice, and 835
the parent shall restrictively endorse the warrant to the 836
private school. An organization shall ensure that the parent to 837
whom the warrant is made has restrictively endorsed the warrant 838
to the private school for deposit into the account of the 839
private school or that the parent has approved a funds transfer 840
before any scholarship funds are deposited. 841
5. An organization may not transfer any funds to an 842
account of a student determined eligible pursuant to paragraph 843
(3)(a) which has a balance in excess of $24,000. 844
(b)1. Scholarships for students determined eligible 845
pursuant to paragraph (3)(b) are established for up to 26,500 846
students annually beginning in the 2022 -2023 school year. 847
Beginning in the 2023-2024 school year, the maximum number of 848
students participating in the scholarship program under this 849
section shall annually increase by 3.0 1.0 percent of the 850
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state's total exceptional student education full -time equivalent 851
student membership, not inclu ding gifted students. An eligible 852
student who meets any of the following requirements shall be 853
excluded from the maximum number of students if the student: 854
a. Received specialized instructional services under the 855
Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Progr am pursuant to s. 856
1002.66 during the previous school year and the student has a 857
current IEP developed by the district school board in accordance 858
with rules of the State Board of Education; 859
b. Is a dependent child of a law enforcement officer or a 860
member of the United States Armed Forces, a foster child, or an 861
adopted child; or 862
c. Spent the prior school year in attendance at a Florida 863
public school or the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind. 864
For purposes of this subparagraph, the term "prior school year 865
in attendance" means that the student was enrolled and reported 866
by: 867
(I) A school district for funding during either the 868
preceding October or February full -time equivalent student 869
membership surveys in kindergarten through grade 12, which 870
includes time spent in a Department of Juvenile Justice 871
commitment program if funded under the Florida Education Finance 872
Program; 873
(II) The Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind during 874
the preceding October or February full -time equivalent student 875
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membership surveys in kindergarten through grade 12; 876
(III) A school district for funding during the preceding 877
October or February full -time equivalent student membership 878
surveys, was at least 4 years of age when enrolled and reported, 879
and was eligible for services un der s. 1003.21(1)(e); or 880
(IV) Received a John M. McKay Scholarship for Students 881
with Disabilities in the 2021 -2022 school year. 882
2. For a student who has a Level I to Level III matrix of 883
services or a diagnosis by a physician or psychologist, the 884
calculated scholarship amount for a student participating in the 885
program must be based upon the grade level and school district 886
in which the student would have been enrolled as the total funds 887
per unweighted full-time equivalent in the Florida Education 888
Finance Program for a student in the basic exceptional student 889
education program pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(c)1. and (e)1.c., 890
plus a per full-time equivalent share of funds for all 891
categorical programs, as funded in the General Appropriations 892
Act, except that for t he exceptional student education 893
guaranteed allocation, as provided in s. 1011.62(1)(e)1.c. and 894
2., the funds must be allocated based on the school district's 895
average exceptional student education guaranteed allocation 896
funds per exceptional student educati on full-time equivalent 897
student. 898
3. For a student with a Level IV or Level V matrix of 899
services, the calculated scholarship amount must be based upon 900
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the school district to which the student would have been 901
assigned as the total funds per full -time equivalent for the 902
Level IV or Level V exceptional student education program 903
pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(c)2.a. or b., plus a per -full time 904
equivalent share of funds for all categorical programs, as 905
funded in the General Appropriations Act. 906
4. For a student who received a Gardiner Scholarship 907
pursuant to s. 1002.385 in the 2020 -2021 school year, the amount 908
shall be the greater of the amount calculated pursuant to 909
subparagraph 2. or the amount the student received for the 2020 -910
2021 school year. 911
5. For a student who received a John M. McKay Scholarship 912
pursuant to s. 1002.39 in the 2020 -2021 school year, the amount 913
shall be the greater of the amount calculated pursuant to 914
subparagraph 2. or the amount the student received for the 2020 -915
2021 school year. 916
6. The organization must provide the department with the 917
documentation necessary to verify the student's participation. 918
7. Upon receiving the documentation, the department shall 919
release, from state funds only, the student's scholarship funds 920
to the organization, to be deposited into the student's account 921
in four equal amounts no later than September 1, November 1, 922
February 1, and April 1 of each school year in which the 923
scholarship is in force. 924
8. Accrued interest in the student's account is in 925
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addition to, and not part of, the awarded funds. Program funds 926
include both the awarded funds and accrued interest. 927
9. The organization may develop a system for payment of 928
benefits by funds transfer, including, but not limited to, debit 929
cards, electronic payment cards, or any other means of payment 930
which the department deems to be commercially viable or cost -931
effective. A student's scholarship award may not be reduced for 932
debit card or electronic payment fees. Commodities or services 933
related to the development of such a s ystem must be procured by 934
competitive solicitation unless they are purchased from a state 935
term contract pursuant to s. 287.056. 936
10. An organization may not transfer any funds to an 937
account of a student determined to be eligible pursuant to 938
paragraph (3)(b) which has a balance in excess of $50,000. 939
11.10. Moneys received pursuant to this section do not 940
constitute taxable income to the qualified student or the parent 941
of the qualified student. 942
Section 6. Paragraphs (b) through (f), (g) through (i), 943
and (j) and (k) of subsection (2) of section 1002.395, Florida 944
Statutes, are redesignated as paragraphs (c) through (g), (i) 945
through (k), and (o) and (p), respectively, paragraphs (e) 946
through (f) and (g) through (q) of subsection (6) are 947
redesignated as parag raphs (f) through (g) and (i) through (s), 948
respectively, present paragraphs (e) and (g) of subsection (2), 949
paragraph (b) of subsection (3), subsection (4), present 950
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paragraphs (b), (d), (f), (j), and (o) of subsection (6), 951
subsection (7), paragraphs (a), (b ), (c), (e), (f), and (j) of 952
subsection (9), paragraph (b) of subsection (11), and subsection 953
(15) are amended, and new paragraphs (b), (h), (l), (m), and (n) 954
are added to subsection (2), paragraphs (e), (h), (t), (u), (v), 955
(w), and (x) are added to subsec tion (6), paragraph (k) is added 956
to subsection (9), and paragraphs (e) through (h) are added to 957
subsection (11) of that section, to read: 958
1002.395 Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program. — 959
(2) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 960
(b) "Choice navigator" means an individual who meets the 961
requirements of sub-subparagraph (6)(d)2.h. and who provides 962
consultations, at a mutually agreed upon location, on the 963
selection of, application for, and enrollment in educational 964
options addressing the academic needs of a student; curriculum 965
selection; and advice on career and postsecondary education 966
opportunities. However, nothing in this section authorizes a 967
choice navigator to oversee or exercise control over the 968
curricula or academic programs of a pe rsonalized education 969
program. 970
(f)(e) "Eligible contribution" means a monetary 971
contribution from a taxpayer, subject to the restrictions 972
provided in this section, to an eligible nonprofit scholarship -973
funding organization pursuant to ss. 212.099, 212.1832, 974
1002.395, and 1002.40 . The taxpayer making the contribution may 975
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not designate a specific child as the beneficiary of the 976
contribution. 977
(h) "Eligible postsecondary educational institution" means 978
a Florida College System institution; a state university; a 979
school district technical center; a school district adult 980
general education center; an independent college or university 981
eligible to participate in the William L. Boyd, IV, Effective 982
Access to Student Education Grant Program under s. 1009.89; or 983
an accredited independent postsecondary educational institution, 984
as defined in s. 1005.02, which is licensed to operate in this 985
state under part III of chapter 1005 or is approved to 986
participate in a reciprocity agreement as defined in s. 987
1000.35(2). 988
(i)(g) "Eligible private school" means a private school, 989
as defined in s. 1002.01 s. 1002.01(2), located in Florida which 990
offers an education to students in any grades K -12 and that 991
meets the requirements in subsection (8). 992
(l) "Personalized education program" has the same meaning 993
as in s. 1002.01. 994
(m) "Personalized education student" means a student whose 995
parent applies to an eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 996
organization for participation in a personalized education 997
program. 998
(n) "Student learning plan" me ans a customized learning 999
plan developed by a parent, at least annually, to guide 1000
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instruction for his or her student and to identify the goods and 1001
services needed to address the academic needs of his or her 1002
student. 1003
(3) PROGRAM; INITIAL SCHOLARSHIP ELIGI BILITY.— 1004
(b)1. A student is eligible for a Florida tax credit 1005
scholarship under this section if the student is a resident of 1006
this state and is eligible to enroll in kindergarten through 1007
grade 12 in a public school in this state meets one or more of 1008
the following criteria: 1009
1. The student is on the direct certification list or the 1010
student's household income level does not exceed 375 percent of 1011
the federal poverty level or an adjusted maximum percent of the 1012
federal poverty level authorized under s. 1002.39 4(3)(a)3.; or 1013
2. The student is currently placed, or during the previous 1014
state fiscal year was placed, in foster care or in out -of-home 1015
care as defined in s. 39.01 . 1016
2. Priority must be given in the following order: to 1017
a. A student whose household in come level does not exceed 1018
185 percent of the federal poverty level or who is in foster 1019
care or out-of-home care. 1020
b. A student whose household income level exceeds 185 1021
percent of the federal poverty level, but does not exceed 400 1022
percent of the federal poverty level. who initially receives a 1023
scholarship based on eligibility under this paragraph remains 1024
eligible to participate until he or she graduates from high 1025
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school or attains the age of 21 years, whichever occurs first, 1026
regardless of the student's hou sehold income level. A sibling of 1027
a student who is participating in the scholarship program under 1028
this subsection is eligible for a scholarship if the student 1029
resides in the same household as the sibling. 1030
(4) SCHOLARSHIP PROHIBITIONS. —A student is not eligible 1031
for a scholarship while he or she is: 1032
(a) Enrolled in a public school, including, but not 1033
limited to, the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind, the 1034
College-Preparatory Boarding Academy, a developmental research 1035
school authorized under s. 1002 .32, or a charter school 1036
authorized under this chapter. For purposes of this paragraph, a 1037
3- or 4-year-old child who receives services funded through the 1038
Florida Education Finance Program is considered a student 1039
enrolled in a public school; 1040
(b)(a) Enrolled in a school operating for the purpose of 1041
providing educational services to youth in a Department of 1042
Juvenile Justice commitment program programs; 1043
(b) Receiving a scholarship from another eligible 1044
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization under this s ection; 1045
(c) Receiving any other an educational scholarship 1046
pursuant to this chapter; 1047
(d) Not having regular and direct contact with his or her 1048
private school teachers pursuant to s. 1002.421(1)(i) unless he 1049
or she is enrolled in a personalized educatio n program; 1050
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(e)(d) Participating in a home education program as 1051
defined in s. 1002.01(1); 1052
(f)(e) Participating in a private tutoring program 1053
pursuant to s. 1002.43 unless he or she is enrolled in a 1054
personalized education program ; or 1055
(g)(f) Participating in a virtual instruction pursuant to 1056
s. 1002.455 school, correspondence school, or distance learning 1057
program that receives state funding pursuant to the student's 1058
participation unless the participation is limited to no more 1059
than two courses per school y ear; or 1060
(g) Enrolled in the Florida School for the Deaf and the 1061
Blind. 1062
(6) OBLIGATIONS OF ELIGIBLE NONPROFIT SCHOLARSHIP -FUNDING 1063
ORGANIZATIONS.—An eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 1064
organization: 1065
(b) Must comply with the following background chec k 1066
requirements: 1067
1. All owners and operators as defined in subparagraph 1068
(2)(k)1. (2)(i)1. are, before employment or engagement to 1069
provide services, subject to level 2 background screening as 1070
provided under chapter 435. The fingerprints for the background 1071
screening must be electronically submitted to the Department of 1072
Law Enforcement and can be taken by an authorized law 1073
enforcement agency or by an employee of the eligible nonprofit 1074
scholarship-funding organization or a private company who is 1075
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trained to take fingerprints. However, the complete set of 1076
fingerprints of an owner or operator may not be taken by the 1077
owner or operator. The results of the state and national 1078
criminal history check shall be provided to the Department of 1079
Education for screening under c hapter 435. The cost of the 1080
background screening may be borne by the eligible nonprofit 1081
scholarship-funding organization or the owner or operator. 1082
2. Every 5 years following employment or engagement to 1083
provide services or association with an eligible non profit 1084
scholarship-funding organization, each owner or operator must 1085
meet level 2 screening standards as described in s. 435.04, at 1086
which time the nonprofit scholarship -funding organization shall 1087
request the Department of Law Enforcement to forward the 1088
fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for level 2 1089
screening. If the fingerprints of an owner or operator are not 1090
retained by the Department of Law Enforcement under subparagraph 1091
3., the owner or operator must electronically file a complete 1092
set of fingerprints with the Department of Law Enforcement. Upon 1093
submission of fingerprints for this purpose, the eligible 1094
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization shall request that 1095
the Department of Law Enforcement forward the fingerprints to 1096
the Federal Bureau of Investigation for level 2 screening, and 1097
the fingerprints shall be retained by the Department of Law 1098
Enforcement under subparagraph 3. 1099
3. Fingerprints submitted to the Department of Law 1100
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Enforcement as required by this paragraph must be retained b y 1101
the Department of Law Enforcement in a manner approved by rule 1102
and entered in the statewide automated biometric identification 1103
system authorized by s. 943.05(2)(b). The fingerprints must 1104
thereafter be available for all purposes and uses authorized for 1105
arrest fingerprints entered in the statewide automated biometric 1106
identification system pursuant to s. 943.051. 1107
4. The Department of Law Enforcement shall search all 1108
arrest fingerprints received under s. 943.051 against the 1109
fingerprints retained in the statewide automated biometric 1110
identification system under subparagraph 3. Any arrest record 1111
that is identified with an owner's or operator's fingerprints 1112
must be reported to the Department of Education. The Department 1113
of Education shall participate in this search process by paying 1114
an annual fee to the Department of Law Enforcement and by 1115
informing the Department of Law Enforcement of any change in the 1116
employment, engagement, or association status of the owners or 1117
operators whose fingerprints are retained un der subparagraph 3. 1118
The Department of Law Enforcement shall adopt a rule setting the 1119
amount of the annual fee to be imposed upon the Department of 1120
Education for performing these services and establishing the 1121
procedures for the retention of owner and operat or fingerprints 1122
and the dissemination of search results. The fee may be borne by 1123
the owner or operator of the nonprofit scholarship -funding 1124
organization. 1125
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5. A nonprofit scholarship -funding organization whose 1126
owner or operator fails the level 2 background screening is not 1127
eligible to provide scholarships under this section. 1128
6. A nonprofit scholarship -funding organization whose 1129
owner or operator in the last 7 years has filed for personal 1130
bankruptcy or corporate bankruptcy in a corporation of which he 1131
or she owned more than 20 percent shall not be eligible to 1132
provide scholarships under this section. 1133
7. In addition to the offenses listed in s. 435.04, a 1134
person required to undergo background screening pursuant to this 1135
part or authorizing statutes must not h ave an arrest awaiting 1136
final disposition for, must not have been found guilty of, or 1137
entered a plea of nolo contendere to, regardless of 1138
adjudication, and must not have been adjudicated delinquent, and 1139
the record must not have been sealed or expunged for, any of the 1140
following offenses or any similar offense of another 1141
jurisdiction: 1142
a. Any authorizing statutes, if the offense was a felony. 1143
b. This chapter, if the offense was a felony. 1144
c. Section 409.920, relating to Medicaid provider fraud. 1145
d. Section 409.9201, relating to Medicaid fraud. 1146
e. Section 741.28, relating to domestic violence. 1147
f. Section 817.034, relating to fraudulent acts through 1148
mail, wire, radio, electromagnetic, photoelectronic, or 1149
photooptical systems. 1150
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g. Section 817.234, relati ng to false and fraudulent 1151
insurance claims. 1152
h. Section 817.505, relating to patient brokering. 1153
i. Section 817.568, relating to criminal use of personal 1154
identification information. 1155
j. Section 817.60, relating to obtaining a credit card 1156
through fraudulent means. 1157
k. Section 817.61, relating to fraudulent use of credit 1158
cards, if the offense was a felony. 1159
l. Section 831.01, relating to forgery. 1160
m. Section 831.02, relating to uttering forged 1161
instruments. 1162
n. Section 831.07, relating to forging bank bills, checks, 1163
drafts, or promissory notes. 1164
o. Section 831.09, relating to uttering forged bank bills, 1165
checks, drafts, or promissory notes. 1166
p. Section 831.30, relating to fraud in obtaining 1167
medicinal drugs. 1168
q. Section 831.31, relating to the sale, ma nufacture, 1169
delivery, or possession with the intent to sell, manufacture, or 1170
deliver any counterfeit controlled substance, if the offense was 1171
a felony. 1172
(d)1. For the 2023-2024 school year, may fund no more than 1173
20,000 scholarships for students who are enr olled pursuant to 1174
paragraph (7)(b). The number of scholarships funded for such 1175
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students may increase by 40,000 in each subsequent school year. 1176
This subparagraph is repealed July 1, 2027. 1177
2. Must establish and maintain separate empowerment 1178
accounts from eligible contributions for each eligible student. 1179
For each account, the organization must maintain a record of 1180
accrued interest retained in the student's account. The 1181
organization must verify that scholarship funds are used for 1182
provide scholarships, from el igible contributions, to eligible 1183
students for the cost of : 1184
a.1. Tuition and fees for full-time or part-time 1185
enrollment in an eligible private school .; or 1186
b.2. Transportation to a Florida public school in which a 1187
student is enrolled and that is different from the school to 1188
which the student was assigned or to a lab school as defined in 1189
s. 1002.32. 1190
c. Instructional materials, including digital materials 1191
and Internet resources. 1192
d. Curriculum as defined in s. 1002.394(2). 1193
e. Tuition and fees associated with full -time or part-time 1194
enrollment in a home education instructional program; an 1195
eligible postsecondary educational institution or a program 1196
offered by the postsecondary educational institution, unless the 1197
program is subject to s. 1009.25 or reimbursed pursuant to s. 1198
1009.30; an approved preapprenticeship program as defined in s. 1199
446.021(5) which is not subject to s. 1009.25 and complies with 1200
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all applicable requirements of the Department of Education 1201
pursuant to chapter 1005; a private tutoring program authorized 1202
under s. 1002.43; a virtual program offered by a department -1203
approved private online provider that meets the provider 1204
qualifications specified in s. 1002.45(2)(a); the Florida 1205
Virtual School as a private paying student; or an approved 1206
online course offered pursuant to s. 1003.499 or s. 1004.0961. 1207
f. Fees for nationally standardized, norm -referenced 1208
achievement tests, Advanced Placement Examinations, industry 1209
certification examinations, assessments related to postsecondary 1210
education, or other assessments. 1211
g. Contracted services provided by a public school or 1212
school district, including classes. A student who receives 1213
contracted services under this sub-subparagraph is not 1214
considered enrolled in a public school for eligibility purposes 1215
as specified in subsection (11) but rather attending a public 1216
school on a part-time basis as authorized under s. 1002.44. 1217
h. Tuition and fees for part -time tutoring services or 1218
fees for services provided by a choice navigator. Such services 1219
must be provided by a person who holds a valid Florida 1220
educator's certificate pursuant to s. 1012.56, a person who 1221
holds an adjunct teaching certificate pursuant to s. 1012.57, a 1222
person who has a bachelor's degree or a graduate degree in the 1223
subject area in which instruction is given, a person who has 1224
demonstrated a mastery of subject area knowledge pursuant to s. 1225
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1012.56(5), or a person certified by a nationally or 1226
internationally recognized research-based training program as 1227
approved by the Department of Education. As used in this 1228
paragraph, the term "part -time tutoring services" does not 1229
qualify as regular school attendance as defined in s. 1230
1003.01(13)(e). 1231
(e) For students determ ined eligible pursuant to paragraph 1232
(7)(b), must: 1233
1. Maintain a signed agreement from the parent which 1234
constitutes compliance with the attendance requirements under 1235
ss. 1003.01(13) and 1003.21(1). 1236
2. Receive eligible student test scores and, beginning 1237
with the 2027-2028 school year, by August 15, annually report 1238
test scores for students pursuant to paragraph (7)(b) to a state 1239
university pursuant to paragraph (9)(f). 1240
3. Provide parents with information, guidance, and support 1241
to create and annually upda te a student learning plan for their 1242
student. The organization must maintain the plan and allow 1243
parents to electronically submit, access, and revise the plan 1244
continuously. 1245
4. Upon submission by the parent of an annual student 1246
learning plan, fund a schola rship for a student determined 1247
eligible. 1248
(g)(f) Must provide a renewal or initial scholarship to an 1249
eligible student on a first -come, first-served basis unless the 1250
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student qualifies for priority pursuant to paragraph (f) (e). 1251
(h) Each eligible nonprofi t scholarship-funding 1252
organization must refer any student eligible for a scholarship 1253
pursuant to this section who did not receive a renewal or 1254
initial scholarship based solely on the lack of available funds 1255
under this section and s. 1002.40(11)(i) to anoth er eligible 1256
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization that may have funds 1257
available. 1258
(l)(j)1. May use eligible contributions received pursuant 1259
to this section and ss. 212.099, 212.1832, and 1002.40 during 1260
the state fiscal year in which such contribution s are collected 1261
for administrative expenses if the organization has operated as 1262
an eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization for at 1263
least the preceding 3 fiscal years and did not have any findings 1264
of material weakness or material noncompliance in its most 1265
recent audit under paragraph (o) or is in good standing in each 1266
state in which it administers a scholarship program and the 1267
audited financial statements for the preceding 3 fiscal years 1268
are free of material misstatements and going concern issues (m). 1269
Administrative expenses from eligible contributions may not 1270
exceed 3 percent of the total amount of all scholarships funded 1271
by an eligible scholarship -funding organization under this 1272
chapter. Such administrative expenses must be reasonable and 1273
necessary for the organization's management and distribution of 1274
scholarships funded under this chapter. Administrative expenses 1275
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may include developing or contracting with rideshare programs or 1276
facilitating carpool strategies for recipients of a 1277
transportation scholarship. No funds authorized under this 1278
subparagraph shall be used for lobbying or political activity or 1279
expenses related to lobbying or political activity. Up to one -1280
third of the funds authorized for administrative expenses under 1281
this subparagraph may be used for expenses related to the 1282
recruitment of contributions from taxpayers. An eligible 1283
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization may not charge an 1284
application fee. 1285
2. Must award expend for annual or partial -year 1286
scholarships an amount equal to or gr eater than 75 percent of 1287
all estimated the net eligible contributions , as defined in 1288
subsection (2), and all funds carried forward from the prior 1289
state fiscal year remaining after administrative expenses before 1290
funding any scholarships to students determin ed eligible 1291
pursuant to s. 1002.394(3)(a) during the state fiscal year in 1292
which such contributions are collected . No more than 25 percent 1293
of such net eligible contributions may be carried forward to the 1294
following state fiscal year. All amounts carried forw ard, for 1295
audit purposes, must be specifically identified for particular 1296
students, by student name and the name of the school to which 1297
the student is admitted, subject to the requirements of ss. 1298
1002.22 and 1002.221 and 20 U.S.C. s. 1232g, and the applicabl e 1299
rules and regulations issued pursuant thereto. Any amounts 1300
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carried forward shall be expended for annual or partial -year 1301
scholarships in the following state fiscal year. No later than 1302
September 30 of each year, net eligible contributions remaining 1303
on June 30 of each year that are in excess of the 25 percent 1304
that may be carried forward shall be used to provide 1305
scholarships to eligible students or transferred to other 1306
eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organizations to provide 1307
scholarships for eligible s tudents. All transferred funds must 1308
be deposited by each eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 1309
organization receiving such funds into its scholarship account. 1310
All transferred amounts received by any eligible nonprofit 1311
scholarship-funding organization must be separately disclosed in 1312
the annual financial audit required under paragraph (o) (m). 1313
3. Must, before granting a scholarship for an academic 1314
year, document each scholarship student's eligibility for that 1315
academic year. A scholarship -funding organization may not grant 1316
multiyear scholarships in one approval process. 1317
(q)(o)1.a. Must participate in the joint development of 1318
agreed-upon procedures during the 2009 -2010 state fiscal year. 1319
The agreed-upon procedures must uniformly apply to all private 1320
schools and must determine, at a minimum, whether the private 1321
school has been verified as eligible by the Department of 1322
Education under s. 1002.421; has an adequate accounting system, 1323
system of financial controls, and process for deposit and 1324
classification of sch olarship funds; and has properly expended 1325
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scholarship funds for education -related expenses. During the 1326
development of the procedures, the participating scholarship -1327
funding organizations shall specify guidelines governing the 1328
materiality of exceptions that may be found during the 1329
accountant's performance of the procedures. The procedures and 1330
guidelines shall be provided to private schools and the 1331
Commissioner of Education by March 15, 2011. 1332
b. Must participate in a joint review of the agreed -upon 1333
procedures and guidelines developed under sub -subparagraph a., 1334
by February of each biennium, if the scholarship -funding 1335
organization provided more than $250,000 in scholarship funds to 1336
an eligible private school under this chapter during the state 1337
fiscal year preceding the biennial review. If the procedures and 1338
guidelines are revised, the revisions must be provided to 1339
private schools and the Commissioner of Education by March 15 of 1340
the year in which the revisions were completed. The revised 1341
agreed-upon procedures and guidelines shall take effect the 1342
subsequent school year. For the 2018-2019 school year only, the 1343
joint review of the agreed -upon procedures must be completed and 1344
the revisions submitted to the commissioner no later than 1345
September 15, 2018. The revised pr ocedures are applicable to the 1346
2018-2019 school year. 1347
c. Must monitor the compliance of a private school with s. 1348
1002.421(1)(q) if the scholarship -funding organization provided 1349
the majority of the scholarship funding to the school. For each 1350
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private school subject to s. 1002.421(1)(q), the appropriate 1351
scholarship-funding organization shall annually notify the 1352
Commissioner of Education by October 30 of: 1353
(I) A private school's failure to submit a report required 1354
under s. 1002.421(1)(q); or 1355
(II) Any material exceptions set forth in the report 1356
required under s. 1002.421(1)(q). 1357
2. Must seek input from the accrediting associations that 1358
are members of the Florida Association of Academic Nonpublic 1359
Schools and the Department of Education when jointly developin g 1360
the agreed-upon procedures and guidelines under sub -subparagraph 1361
1.a. and conducting a review of those procedures and guidelines 1362
under sub-subparagraph 1.b. 1363
(t) Must participate in the joint development of agreed -1364
upon purchasing guidelines for authoriz ed uses of scholarship 1365
funds under this chapter. By December 31, 2023, and by each 1366
December 31 thereafter, the purchasing guidelines must be 1367
provided to the Commissioner of Education and published on the 1368
eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization' s website. 1369
Published purchasing guidelines shall remain in effect until 1370
there is unanimous agreement to revise the guidelines and the 1371
revisions must be provided to the commissioner and published on 1372
the organization's website within 30 days after such revis ions. 1373
(u) May permit eligible students to use program funds for 1374
the purposes specified in paragraph (d) by paying for the 1375
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authorized use directly, then submitting a reimbursement request 1376
to the eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization. 1377
However, an eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization 1378
may require the use of an online platform for direct purchases 1379
of products so long as such use does not limit a parent's choice 1380
of curriculum or academic programs. If a parent purchases a 1381
product identical to one offered by an organization's online 1382
platform for a lower price, the organization shall reimburse the 1383
parent the difference in the prices. 1384
(v) Must notify each parent that participation in the 1385
scholarship program does not guarantee enrollme nt. 1386
(w) Shall commit scholarship funds on behalf of the 1387
student for tuition and fees for which the parent is responsible 1388
for payment at the private school before using empowerment 1389
account funds for additional authorized uses under paragraph 1390
(d). 1391
(x) Beginning September 30, 2023, must submit to the 1392
department quarterly reports that provide the estimated and 1393
actual amounts of the net eligible contributions, as defined in 1394
subsection (2), and all funds carried forward from the prior 1395
state fiscal year. 1396
1397
Information and documentation provided to the Department of 1398
Education and the Auditor General relating to the identity of a 1399
taxpayer that provides an eligible contribution under this 1400
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section shall remain confidential at all times in accordance 1401
with s. 213.053. 1402
(7) PARENT AND STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES FOR PROGRAM 1403
PARTICIPATION.— 1404
(a) A parent whose student will be enrolled full time in a 1405
private school must: 1406
1. The parent must Select an eligible private school and 1407
apply for the admission of his or her chi ld. 1408
2.(b) The parent must Inform the child's school district 1409
when the parent withdraws his or her child to attend an eligible 1410
private school. 1411
3.(c) Require his or her any student participating in the 1412
scholarship program to must remain in attendance throughout the 1413
school year unless excused by the school for illness or other 1414
good cause and. 1415
(d) Each parent and each student has an obligation to the 1416
private school to comply with the private school's published 1417
policies. 1418
4. Meet with the private school's principal or the 1419
principal's designee to review the school's academic programs 1420
and policies, specialized services, code of student conduct, and 1421
attendance policies before enrollment in the private school. 1422
5.(e) Require his or her The parent shall ensure that the 1423
student participating in the scholarship program to take takes 1424
the norm-referenced assessment offered by the private school. 1425
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The parent may also choose to have the student participate in 1426
the statewide assessments pursuant to s. 1008.22. If the parent 1427
requests that the student participating in the scholarship 1428
program take statewide assessments pursuant to s. 1008.22 and 1429
the private school has not chosen to offer and administer the 1430
statewide assessments, the parent is respon sible for 1431
transporting the student to the assessment site designated by 1432
the school district. 1433
6.(f) Upon receipt of a scholarship warrant from the 1434
eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization, the parent 1435
to whom the warrant is made must restrictive ly endorse the 1436
warrant to the private school for deposit into the account of 1437
the private school. If payments are made by funds transfer, the 1438
parent must Approve each payment before the scholarship funds 1439
may be deposited by funds transfer. The parent may not designate 1440
any entity or individual associated with the participating 1441
private school as the parent's attorney in fact to endorse a 1442
scholarship warrant or approve a funds transfer. A participant 1443
who fails to comply with this paragraph forfeits the 1444
scholarship. 1445
7.(g) The parent shall Authorize the nonprofit 1446
scholarship-funding organization to access information needed 1447
for income eligibility determination and verification held by 1448
other state or federal agencies, including the Department of 1449
Revenue, the Department of Children and Families, the Department 1450
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of Education, the Department of Economic Opportunity, and the 1451
Agency for Health Care Administration. 1452
8. Agree to have the organization commit scholarship funds 1453
on behalf of his or her student for tuition an d fees for which 1454
the parent is responsible for payment at the private school 1455
before using empowerment account funds for additional authorized 1456
uses under paragraph (6)(d). A parent is responsible for all 1457
eligible expenses in excess of the amount of the scho larship. 1458
(b) A parent whose student will not be enrolled full time 1459
in a public or private school must: 1460
1. Apply to an eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 1461
organization to participate in the program as a personalized 1462
education student by a date set by the organization. The request 1463
must be communicated directly to the organization in a manner 1464
that creates a written or electronic record of the request and 1465
the date of receipt of the request. 1466
2. Sign an agreement with the organization and annually 1467
submit a sworn compliance statement to the organization to 1468
satisfy or maintain program eligibility, including eligibility 1469
to receive and spend program payments, by: 1470
a. Affirming that the program funds are used only for 1471
authorized purposes serving the student's educational needs, as 1472
described in paragraph (6)(d), and that they will not receive a 1473
payment, refund, or rebate of any funds provided under this 1474
section. 1475
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b. Affirming that the parent is responsible for all 1476
eligible expenses in excess of the amount of t he scholarship and 1477
for the education of his or her student. 1478
c. Submitting a student learning plan to the organization 1479
and revising the plan at least annually before program renewal. 1480
d. Requiring his or her student to take a nationally norm -1481
referenced test identified by the Department of Education, or a 1482
statewide assessment under s. 1008.22, and provide assessment 1483
results to the organization before the student's program 1484
renewal. 1485
e. Renewing participation in the program each year. A 1486
student whose partic ipation in the program is not renewed may 1487
continue to spend scholarship funds that are in his or her 1488
account from prior years unless the account must be closed 1489
pursuant to s. 1002.394(5)(a)2. 1490
f. Procuring the services necessary to educate the 1491
student. When the student receives a scholarship, the district 1492
school board is not obligated to provide the student with a free 1493
appropriate public education. 1494
1495
An eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization may not 1496
further regulate, exercise control over, or r equire 1497
documentation beyond the requirements of this subsection unless 1498
the regulation, control, or documentation is necessary for 1499
participation in the program. 1500
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(9) DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OBLIGATIONS. —The Department of 1501
Education shall: 1502
(a) Annually submit to the department and division, by 1503
March 15, a list of eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 1504
organizations that meet the requirements of paragraph (2)(g) 1505
(2)(f). 1506
(b) Annually verify the eligibility of nonprofit 1507
scholarship-funding organizations that meet the requirements of 1508
paragraph (2)(g) (2)(f). 1509
(c) Annually verify the eligibility of expenditures as 1510
provided in paragraph (6)(d) using the audit required by 1511
paragraph (6)(o) (6)(m). 1512
(e) Maintain and annually publish a list of nationally 1513
norm-referenced tests identified for purposes of satisfying the 1514
testing requirement in subparagraph (8)(b)1. The tests must meet 1515
industry standards of quality in accordance with State Board of 1516
Education rule. 1517
(f) Issue a project grant award to a state university, to 1518
which participating private schools and eligible nonprofit 1519
scholarship-funding organizations must report the scores of 1520
participating students on the nationally norm -referenced tests 1521
or the statewide assessments administered by the private school 1522
in grades 3 through 10. The project term is 2 years, and the 1523
amount of the project is up to $250,000 per year. The project 1524
grant award must be reissued in 2 -year intervals in accordance 1525
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with this paragraph. 1526
1. The state university must annually report to the 1527
Department of Education on the student performance of 1528
participating students and, beginning with the 2027 -2028 school 1529
year, on the performance of personalized education students : 1530
a. On a statewide basis. The report shall also include, to 1531
the extent possible, a comparison of scholarship students' 1532
performance to the statewide student performance of public 1533
school students with socioeconomic backgrounds similar to those 1534
of students participating in the scholarship program. To 1535
minimize costs and reduce time req uired for the state 1536
university's analysis and evaluation, the Department of 1537
Education shall coordinate with the state university to provide 1538
data to the state university in order to conduct analyses of 1539
matched students from public school assessment data and 1540
calculate control group student performance using an agreed -upon 1541
methodology with the state university; and 1542
b. On an individual school basis for students enrolled 1543
full time in a private school . The annual report must include 1544
student performance for each participating private school in 1545
which at least 51 percent of the total enrolled students in the 1546
private school participated in a scholarship program under this 1547
section, s. 1002.394(12)(a), or s. 1002.40 the Florida Tax 1548
Credit Scholarship Program in the prior school year. The report 1549
shall be according to each participating private school, and for 1550
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participating students, in which there are at least 30 1551
participating students who have scores for tests administered. 1552
If the state university determines that the 30-participating-1553
student cell size may be reduced without disclosing personally 1554
identifiable information, as described in 34 C.F.R. s. 99.12, of 1555
a participating student, the state university may reduce the 1556
participating-student cell size, but the cell size must not be 1557
reduced to less than 10 participating students. The department 1558
shall provide each private school's prior school year's student 1559
enrollment information to the state university no later than 1560
June 15 of each year, or as requested by the s tate university. 1561
2. The sharing and reporting of student performance data 1562
under this paragraph must be in accordance with requirements of 1563
ss. 1002.22 and 1002.221 and 20 U.S.C. s. 1232g, the Family 1564
Educational Rights and Privacy Act, and the applicable r ules and 1565
regulations issued pursuant thereto, and shall be for the sole 1566
purpose of creating the annual report required by subparagraph 1567
1. All parties must preserve the confidentiality of such 1568
information as required by law. The annual report must not 1569
disaggregate data to a level that will identify individual 1570
participating schools, except as required under sub -subparagraph 1571
1.b., or disclose the academic level of individual students. 1572
3. The annual report required by subparagraph 1. shall be 1573
published by the Department of Education on its website. 1574
(j) Provide a process to match the direct certification 1575
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list with the scholarship application data submitted by any 1576
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization eligible to receive 1577
the 3-percent administrative allowance under paragraph (6)(l) 1578
(6)(j). 1579
(k) Notify each school district of the full -time 1580
equivalent student consensus estimate of scholarship students 1581
developed pursuant to s. 216.136(4)(a). 1582
(11) SCHOLARSHIP AMOUNT AND PAYMENT. — 1583
(b) Payment of the scholarship by the eligible nonprofit 1584
scholarship-funding organization shall be by individual warrant 1585
made payable to the student's parent or by funds transfer, 1586
including, but not limited to, debit cards, electronic payment 1587
cards, or any other means of payment that the department deems 1588
to be commercially viable or cost -effective. If the payment is 1589
made by warrant, the warrant must be delivered by the eligible 1590
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization to the private school 1591
of the parent's choice, and the parent shall restrictively 1592
endorse the warrant to the private school. An eligible nonprofit 1593
scholarship-funding organization shall ensure that the parent to 1594
whom the warrant is made restrictively endorsed the warrant to 1595
the private school for deposit into the account of the private 1596
school or that the parent has approved a funds transfer before 1597
any scholarship funds are deposited. 1598
(e) An eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization 1599
may not transfer any funds to an account of a student determined 1600
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eligible under this section which has a balance in excess of 1601
$24,000. 1602
(f) A scholarship awarded to an eligib le student shall 1603
remain in force until: 1604
1. The organization determines that the student is not 1605
eligible for program renewal; 1606
2. The Commissioner of Education suspends or revokes 1607
program participation or use of funds; 1608
3. The student's parent has forfe ited participation in the 1609
program for failure to comply with subsection (7); 1610
4. The student enrolls in a public school. However, if a 1611
student enters a Department of Juvenile Justice detention center 1612
for a period of no more than 21 days, the student is no t 1613
considered to have returned to a public school on a full -time 1614
basis for that purpose; or 1615
5. The student graduates from high school or attains 21 1616
years of age, whichever occurs first. 1617
(g) Reimbursements for program expenditures may continue 1618
until the account balance is expended or remaining funds have 1619
reverted to the state. 1620
(h) A student's scholarship account must be closed and any 1621
remaining funds shall revert to the state after: 1622
1. Denial or revocation of program eligibility by the 1623
commissioner for fraud or abuse, including, but not limited to, 1624
the student or student's parent accepting any payment, refund, 1625
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or rebate, in any manner, from a provider of any services 1626
received pursuant to paragraph (6)(d); or 1627
2. Two consecutive fiscal years in which a n account has 1628
been inactive. 1629
(15) NONPROFIT SCHOLARSHIP -FUNDING ORGANIZATIONS; 1630
APPLICATION.—In order to participate in the scholarship program 1631
created under this section, a charitable organization that seeks 1632
to be a nonprofit scholarship -funding organization must submit 1633
an application for initial approval or renewal to the Office of 1634
Independent Education and Parental Choice . The office shall 1635
provide at least two application periods in which charitable 1636
organizations may apply to participate in the program no later 1637
than September 1 of each year before the school year for which 1638
the organization intends to offer scholarships . 1639
(a) An application for initial approval must include: 1640
1. A copy of the organization's incorporation documents 1641
and registration with the Division of Corporations of the 1642
Department of State. 1643
2. A copy of the organization's Internal Revenue Service 1644
determination letter as a s. 501(c)(3) not -for-profit 1645
organization. 1646
3. A description of the organization's financial plan that 1647
demonstrates sufficient funds to operate throughout the school 1648
year. 1649
4. A description of the geographic region that the 1650
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organization intends to serve and an analysis of the demand and 1651
unmet need for eligible students in that area. 1652
5. The organization's organizati onal chart. 1653
6. A description of the criteria and methodology that the 1654
organization will use to evaluate scholarship eligibility. 1655
7. A description of the application process, including 1656
deadlines and any associated fees. 1657
8. A description of the deadlin es for attendance 1658
verification and scholarship payments. 1659
9. A copy of the organization's policies on conflict of 1660
interest and whistleblowers. 1661
10. A copy of a surety bond or letter of credit to secure 1662
the faithful performance of the obligations of the e ligible 1663
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization in accordance with 1664
this section in an amount equal to 25 percent of the scholarship 1665
funds anticipated for each school year or $100,000, whichever is 1666
greater. The surety bond or letter of credit must specif y that 1667
any claim against the bond or letter of credit may be made only 1668
by an eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization to 1669
provide scholarships to and on behalf of students who would have 1670
had scholarships funded if it were not for the diversion of 1671
funds giving rise to the claim against the bond or letter of 1672
credit. 1673
(b) In addition to the information required by 1674
subparagraphs (a)1.-9., an application for renewal must include: 1675
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1. A surety bond or letter of credit to secure the 1676
faithful performance of the obligations of the eligible 1677
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization in accordance with 1678
this section equal to the amount of undisbursed donations held 1679
by the organization based on the annual report submitted 1680
pursuant to paragraph (6)(o) (6)(m). The amount of the surety 1681
bond or letter of credit must be at least $100,000, but not more 1682
than $25 million. The surety bond or letter of credit must 1683
specify that any claim against the bond or letter of credit may 1684
be made only by an eligible nonprofit schol arship-funding 1685
organization to provide scholarships to and on behalf of 1686
students who would have had scholarships funded if it were not 1687
for the diversion of funds giving rise to the claim against the 1688
bond or letter of credit. 1689
2. The organization's completed Internal Revenue Service 1690
Form 990 submitted no later than November 30 of the year before 1691
the school year that the organization intends to offer the 1692
scholarships, notwithstanding the department's September 1 1693
application deadline. 1694
3. A copy of the statutorily required audit to the 1695
Department of Education and Auditor General. 1696
4. An annual report that includes: 1697
a. The number of students who completed applications, by 1698
county and by grade. 1699
b. The number of students who wer e approved for 1700
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scholarships, by county and by grade. 1701
c. The number of students who received funding for 1702
scholarships within each funding category, by county and by 1703
grade. 1704
d. The amount of funds received, the amount of funds 1705
distributed in scholarships, and an accounting of remaining 1706
funds and the obligation of those funds. 1707
e. A detailed accounting of how the organization spent the 1708
administrative funds allowable under paragraph (6)(l) (6)(j). 1709
(c) In consultation with the Department of Revenue and the 1710
Chief Financial Officer, the Office of Independent Education and 1711
Parental Choice shall review the application. The Department of 1712
Education shall notify the organization in writing of any 1713
deficiencies within 30 days after receipt of the application and 1714
allow the organization 30 days to correct any deficiencies. 1715
(d) Within 30 days after receipt of the finalized 1716
application by the Office of Independent Education and Parental 1717
Choice, the Commissioner of Education shall recommend approval 1718
or disapproval of th e application to the State Board of 1719
Education. The State Board of Education shall consider the 1720
application and recommendation at the next scheduled meeting, 1721
adhering to appropriate meeting notice requirements. If the 1722
State Board of Education disapproves th e organization's 1723
application, it shall provide the organization with a written 1724
explanation of that determination. The State Board of 1725
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Education's action is not subject to chapter 120. 1726
(e) If the State Board of Education disapproves the 1727
renewal of a nonprofit scholarship-funding organization, the 1728
organization must notify the affected eligible students and 1729
parents of the decision within 15 days after disapproval. An 1730
eligible student affected by the disapproval of an 1731
organization's participation remains eligi ble under this section 1732
until the end of the school year in which the organization was 1733
disapproved. The student must apply and be accepted by another 1734
eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization for the 1735
upcoming school year. The student shall be give n priority in 1736
accordance with paragraph (6)(g) (6)(f). 1737
(f) All remaining funds held by a nonprofit scholarship -1738
funding organization that is disapproved for participation must 1739
be transferred to other eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 1740
organizations to provide scholarships for eligible students. All 1741
transferred funds must be deposited by each eligible nonprofit 1742
scholarship-funding organization receiving such funds into its 1743
scholarship account. All transferred amounts received by any 1744
eligible nonprofit s cholarship-funding organization must be 1745
separately disclosed in the annual financial audit required 1746
under subsection (6). 1747
(g) A nonprofit scholarship -funding organization is a 1748
renewing organization if it maintains continuous approval and 1749
participation in the program. An organization that chooses not 1750
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to participate for 1 year or more or is disapproved to 1751
participate for 1 year or more must submit an application for 1752
initial approval in order to participate in the program again. 1753
(h) The State Board of Educ ation shall adopt rules 1754
providing guidelines for receiving, reviewing, and approving 1755
applications for new and renewing nonprofit scholarship -funding 1756
organizations. The rules must include a process for compiling 1757
input and recommendations from the Chief Fina ncial Officer, the 1758
Department of Revenue, and the Department of Education. The 1759
rules must also require that the nonprofit scholarship -funding 1760
organization make a brief presentation to assist the State Board 1761
of Education in its decision. 1762
(i) A state university; or an independent college or 1763
university which is eligible to participate in the William L. 1764
Boyd, IV, Effective Access to Student Education Grant Program, 1765
located and chartered in this state, is not for profit, and is 1766
accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern 1767
Association of Colleges and Schools, is exempt from the initial 1768
or renewal application process, but must file a registration 1769
notice with the Department of Education to be an eligible 1770
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization. The State Board of 1771
Education shall adopt rules that identify the procedure for 1772
filing the registration notice with the department. The rules 1773
must identify appropriate reporting requirements for fiscal, 1774
programmatic, and performance accountability purposes cons istent 1775
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with this section, but shall not exceed the requirements for 1776
eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organizations for 1777
charitable organizations. 1778
Section 7. Paragraphs (e) and (f) of subsection (2) and 1779
paragraphs (g) and (i) of subsection (11) of section 1002.40, 1780
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 1781
1002.40 The Hope Scholarship Program. — 1782
(2) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 1783
(e) "Eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization" 1784
or "organization" has the same meaning as pro vided in s. 1785
1002.395(2) s. 1002.395(2)(f). 1786
(f) "Eligible private school" has the same meaning as 1787
provided in s. 1002.395(2) s. 1002.395(2)(g). 1788
(11) FUNDING AND PAYMENT. — 1789
(g) An eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 1790
organization, subject to the limit ations of s. 1002.395(6)(l)1. 1791
s. 1002.395(6)(j)1., may use eligible contributions received 1792
during the state fiscal year in which such contributions are 1793
collected for administrative expenses. 1794
(i) Notwithstanding s. 1002.395(6)(l)2. s. 1002.395(6) 1795
(j)2., no more than 5 percent of net eligible contributions may 1796
be carried forward to the following state fiscal year by an 1797
eligible scholarship -funding organization. For audit purposes, 1798
all amounts carried forward must be specifically identified for 1799
individual students by student name and by the name of the 1800
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school to which the student is admitted, subject to the 1801
requirements of ss. 1002.21 and 1002.22 and 20 U.S.C. s. 1232g, 1802
and the applicable rules and regulations issued pursuant to such 1803
requirements. Any amounts carried forward shall be expended for 1804
annual scholarships or partial -year scholarships in the 1805
following state fiscal year. Net eligible contributions 1806
remaining on June 30 of each year which are in excess of the 5 1807
percent that may be carried forward shall be transferred to 1808
other eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organizations 1809
participating in the Hope Scholarship Program to provide 1810
scholarships for eligible students. All transferred funds must 1811
be deposited by each eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding 1812
organization receiving such funds into the scholarship account 1813
of eligible students. All transferred amounts received by an 1814
eligible nonprofit scholarship -funding organization must be 1815
separately disclosed in the annual financial audit requirement 1816
under s. 1002.395(6)(o) s. 1002.395(6)(m). If no other eligible 1817
nonprofit scholarship -funding organization participates in the 1818
Hope Scholarship Program, net eligible contributions in excess 1819
of the 5 percent may be used to fund scholarships for students 1820
eligible under s. 1002.395 only after fully exhausting all 1821
contributions made in support of scholarships under that section 1822
in accordance with the priority established in s. 1002.395(6)(f) 1823
before s. 1002.395(6)(e) prior to awarding any initial 1824
scholarships. 1825
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Section 8. Subsection (1) and paragraph (c) of subsection 1826
(3) of section 1002.421, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 1827
1002.421 State school choice scholarship program 1828
accountability and oversight. — 1829
(1) PRIVATE SCHOOL ELIGIBILITY AND OBLIGATIONS. —A private 1830
school participating in an educational scholarship program 1831
established pursuant to this chapter must be a private school as 1832
defined in s. 1002.01 s. 1002.01(2) in this state, be 1833
registered, and be in compliance with all requirements of this 1834
section in addition to private school requirements outlined in 1835
s. 1002.42, specific requirements identified within respective 1836
scholarship program laws, and other provisions o f Florida law 1837
that apply to private schools, and must: 1838
(a) Comply with the antidiscrimination provisions of 42 1839
U.S.C. s. 2000d. 1840
(b) Notify the department of its intent to participate in 1841
a scholarship program. 1842
(c) Notify the department of any change i n the school's 1843
name, school director, mailing address, or physical location 1844
within 15 days after the change. 1845
(d) Provide to the department or scholarship -funding 1846
organization all documentation required for a student's 1847
participation, including the private school's and student's 1848
individual fee schedule, and attendance verification as required 1849
by the department or scholarship-funding organization, prior to 1850
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scholarship payment. 1851
(e) Annually complete and submit to the department a 1852
notarized scholarship compliance statement certifying that all 1853
school employees and contracted personnel with direct student 1854
contact have undergone background screening pursuant to s. 1855
435.12 and have met the screening standards as provided in s. 1856
435.04. 1857
(f) Demonstrate fiscal soundness and accountability by: 1858
1. Being in operation for at least 3 school years or 1859
obtaining a surety bond or letter of credit for the amount equal 1860
to the scholarship funds for any quarter and filing the surety 1861
bond or letter of credit with the department. 1862
2. Requiring the parent of each scholarship student to 1863
personally restrictively endorse the scholarship wa rrant to the 1864
school or to approve a funds transfer before any funds are 1865
deposited for a student. The school may not act as attorney in 1866
fact for the parent of a scholarship student under the authority 1867
of a power of attorney executed by such parent, or under any 1868
other authority, to endorse a scholarship warrant or approve a 1869
funds transfer on behalf of such parent. 1870
(g) Meet applicable state and local health, safety, and 1871
welfare laws, codes, and rules, including: 1872
1. Firesafety. 1873
2. Building safety. 1874
(h) Employ or contract with teachers who hold 1875
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baccalaureate or higher degrees, have at least 3 years of 1876
teaching experience in public or private schools, or have 1877
special skills, knowledge, or expertise that qualifies them to 1878
provide instruction in subjects taug ht. 1879
(i) Maintain a physical location in the state at which 1880
each student has regular and direct contact with teachers. 1881
(j) Publish on the school's website, or provide in a 1882
written format, information for parents regarding the school, 1883
including, but not limited to, programs, services, and the 1884
qualifications of classroom teachers , and a statement that a 1885
parentally placed private school student with a disability does 1886
not have an individual right to receive some or all of the 1887
special education and related s ervices that the student would 1888
receive if enrolled in a public school under the Individuals 1889
with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as amended . 1890
(k) At a minimum, provide the parent of each scholarship 1891
student with a written explanation of the student's progress on 1892
a quarterly basis. 1893
(l) Cooperate with a student whose parent chooses to 1894
participate in the statewide assessments pursuant to s. 1008.22. 1895
(m) Require each employee and contracted personnel with 1896
direct student contact, upon employment or enga gement to provide 1897
services, to undergo a state and national background screening, 1898
pursuant to s. 943.0542, by electronically filing with the 1899
Department of Law Enforcement a complete set of fingerprints 1900
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taken by an authorized law enforcement agency or an em ployee of 1901
the private school, a school district, or a private company who 1902
is trained to take fingerprints and deny employment to or 1903
terminate an employee if he or she fails to meet the screening 1904
standards under s. 435.04. Results of the screening shall be 1905
provided to the participating private school. For purposes of 1906
this paragraph: 1907
1. An "employee or contracted personnel with direct 1908
student contact" means any employee or contracted personnel who 1909
has unsupervised access to a scholarship student for whom th e 1910
private school is responsible. 1911
2. The costs of fingerprinting and the background check 1912
shall not be borne by the state. 1913
3. Continued employment of an employee or contracted 1914
personnel after notification that he or she has failed the 1915
background screening under this paragraph shall cause a private 1916
school to be ineligible for participation in a scholarship 1917
program. 1918
4. An employee or contracted personnel holding a valid 1919
Florida teaching certificate who has been fingerprinted pursuant 1920
to s. 1012.32 is not required to comply with the provisions of 1921
this paragraph. 1922
5. All fingerprints submitted to the Department of Law 1923
Enforcement as required by this section shall be retained by the 1924
Department of Law Enforcement in a manner provided by rule and 1925
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entered in the statewide automated biometric identification 1926
system authorized by s. 943.05(2)(b). Such fingerprints shall 1927
thereafter be available for all purposes and uses authorized for 1928
arrest fingerprints entered in the statewide automated biometric 1929
identification system pursuant to s. 943.051. 1930
6. The Department of Law Enforcement shall search all 1931
arrest fingerprints received under s. 943.051 against the 1932
fingerprints retained in the statewide automated biometric 1933
identification system under subparagraph 5. Any arres t record 1934
that is identified with the retained fingerprints of a person 1935
subject to the background screening under this section shall be 1936
reported to the employing school with which the person is 1937
affiliated. Each private school participating in a scholarship 1938
program is required to participate in this search process by 1939
informing the Department of Law Enforcement of any change in the 1940
employment or contractual status of its personnel whose 1941
fingerprints are retained under subparagraph 5. The Department 1942
of Law Enforcement shall adopt a rule setting the amount of the 1943
annual fee to be imposed upon each private school for performing 1944
these searches and establishing the procedures for the retention 1945
of private school employee and contracted personnel fingerprints 1946
and the dissemination of search results. The fee may be borne by 1947
the private school or the person fingerprinted. 1948
7. Employees and contracted personnel whose fingerprints 1949
are not retained by the Department of Law Enforcement under 1950
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subparagraphs 5. and 6. are requ ired to be refingerprinted and 1951
must meet state and national background screening requirements 1952
upon reemployment or reengagement to provide services in order 1953
to comply with the requirements of this section. 1954
8. Every 5 years following employment or engagem ent to 1955
provide services with a private school, employees or contracted 1956
personnel required to be screened under this section must meet 1957
screening standards under s. 435.04, at which time the private 1958
school shall request the Department of Law Enforcement to 1959
forward the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation 1960
for national processing. If the fingerprints of employees or 1961
contracted personnel are not retained by the Department of Law 1962
Enforcement under subparagraph 5., employees and contracted 1963
personnel must electronically file a complete set of 1964
fingerprints with the Department of Law Enforcement. Upon 1965
submission of fingerprints for this purpose, the private school 1966
shall request that the Department of Law Enforcement forward the 1967
fingerprints to the Feder al Bureau of Investigation for national 1968
processing, and the fingerprints shall be retained by the 1969
Department of Law Enforcement under subparagraph 5. 1970
(n) Adopt policies establishing standards of ethical 1971
conduct for educational support employees, instruct ional 1972
personnel, and school administrators. The policies must require 1973
all educational support employees, instructional personnel, and 1974
school administrators, as defined in s. 1012.01, to complete 1975
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training on the standards; establish the duty of educational 1976
support employees, instructional personnel, and school 1977
administrators to report, and procedures for reporting, alleged 1978
misconduct by other educational support employees, instructional 1979
personnel, and school administrators which affects the health, 1980
safety, or welfare of a student; and include an explanation of 1981
the liability protections provided under ss. 39.203 and 768.095. 1982
A private school, or any of its employees, may not enter into a 1983
confidentiality agreement regarding terminated or dismissed 1984
educational support employees, instructional personnel, or 1985
school administrators, or employees, personnel, or 1986
administrators who resign in lieu of termination, based in whole 1987
or in part on misconduct that affects the health, safety, or 1988
welfare of a student, and may not provide the employees, 1989
personnel, or administrators with employment references or 1990
discuss the employees', personnel's, or administrators' 1991
performance with prospective employers in another educational 1992
setting, without disclosing the employees', personnel's , or 1993
administrators' misconduct. Any part of an agreement or contract 1994
that has the purpose or effect of concealing misconduct by 1995
educational support employees, instructional personnel, or 1996
school administrators which affects the health, safety, or 1997
welfare of a student is void, is contrary to public policy, and 1998
may not be enforced. 1999
(o) Before employing a person in any position that 2000
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requires direct contact with students, conduct employment 2001
history checks of previous employers, screen the person through 2002
use of the screening tools described in s. 1001.10(5), and 2003
document the findings. If unable to contact a previous employer, 2004
the private school must document efforts to contact the 2005
employer. The private school may not employ a person whose 2006
educator certificate i s revoked, who is barred from reapplying 2007
for an educator certificate, or who is on the disqualification 2008
list maintained by the department pursuant to s. 1001.10(4)(b). 2009
(p) Require each owner or operator of the private school, 2010
prior to employment or engag ement to provide services, to 2011
undergo level 2 background screening as provided under chapter 2012
435. For purposes of this paragraph, the term "owner or 2013
operator" means an owner, operator, superintendent, or principal 2014
of, or a person with equivalent decisionma king authority over, a 2015
private school participating in a scholarship program 2016
established pursuant to this chapter. The fingerprints for the 2017
background screening must be electronically submitted to the 2018
Department of Law Enforcement and may be taken by an au thorized 2019
law enforcement agency or a private company who is trained to 2020
take fingerprints. However, the complete set of fingerprints of 2021
an owner or operator may not be taken by the owner or operator. 2022
The owner or operator shall provide a copy of the results of the 2023
state and national criminal history check to the Department of 2024
Education. The cost of the background screening may be borne by 2025
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the owner or operator. 2026
1. Every 5 years following employment or engagement to 2027
provide services, each owner or operator must meet level 2 2028
screening standards as described in s. 435.04, at which time the 2029
owner or operator shall request the Department of Law 2030
Enforcement to forward the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of 2031
Investigation for level 2 screening. If the fingerprin ts of an 2032
owner or operator are not retained by the Department of Law 2033
Enforcement under subparagraph 2., the owner or operator must 2034
electronically file a complete set of fingerprints with the 2035
Department of Law Enforcement. Upon submission of fingerprints 2036
for this purpose, the owner or operator shall request that the 2037
Department of Law Enforcement forward the fingerprints to the 2038
Federal Bureau of Investigation for level 2 screening, and the 2039
fingerprints shall be retained by the Department of Law 2040
Enforcement under subparagraph 2. 2041
2. Fingerprints submitted to the Department of Law 2042
Enforcement as required by this paragraph must be retained by 2043
the Department of Law Enforcement in a manner approved by rule 2044
and entered in the statewide automated biometric identific ation 2045
system authorized by s. 943.05(2)(b). The fingerprints must 2046
thereafter be available for all purposes and uses authorized for 2047
arrest fingerprints entered in the statewide automated biometric 2048
identification system pursuant to s. 943.051. 2049
3. The Department of Law Enforcement shall search all 2050
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arrest fingerprints received under s. 943.051 against the 2051
fingerprints retained in the statewide automated biometric 2052
identification system under subparagraph 2. Any arrest record 2053
that is identified with an owner's or operator's fingerprints 2054
must be reported to the owner or operator, who must report to 2055
the Department of Education. Any costs associated with the 2056
search shall be borne by the owner or operator. 2057
4. An owner or operator who fails the level 2 background 2058
screening is not eligible to participate in a scholarship 2059
program under this chapter. 2060
5. In addition to the offenses listed in s. 435.04, a 2061
person required to undergo background screening pursuant to this 2062
part or authorizing statutes may not have an arre st awaiting 2063
final disposition for, must not have been found guilty of, or 2064
entered a plea of nolo contendere to, regardless of 2065
adjudication, and must not have been adjudicated delinquent for, 2066
and the record must not have been sealed or expunged for, any of 2067
the following offenses or any similar offense of another 2068
jurisdiction: 2069
a. Any authorizing statutes, if the offense was a felony. 2070
b. This chapter, if the offense was a felony. 2071
c. Section 409.920, relating to Medicaid provider fraud. 2072
d. Section 409.9201, relating to Medicaid fraud. 2073
e. Section 741.28, relating to domestic violence. 2074
f. Section 817.034, relating to fraudulent acts through 2075
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mail, wire, radio, electromagnetic, photoelectronic, or 2076
photooptical systems. 2077
g. Section 817.234, relating to f alse and fraudulent 2078
insurance claims. 2079
h. Section 817.505, relating to patient brokering. 2080
i. Section 817.568, relating to criminal use of personal 2081
identification information. 2082
j. Section 817.60, relating to obtaining a credit card 2083
through fraudulent me ans. 2084
k. Section 817.61, relating to fraudulent use of credit 2085
cards, if the offense was a felony. 2086
l. Section 831.01, relating to forgery. 2087
m. Section 831.02, relating to uttering forged 2088
instruments. 2089
n. Section 831.07, relating to forging bank bills, checks, 2090
drafts, or promissory notes. 2091
o. Section 831.09, relating to uttering forged bank bills, 2092
checks, drafts, or promissory notes. 2093
p. Section 831.30, relating to fraud in obtaining 2094
medicinal drugs. 2095
q. Section 831.31, relating to the sale, manufactu re, 2096
delivery, or possession with the intent to sell, manufacture, or 2097
deliver any counterfeit controlled substance, if the offense was 2098
a felony. 2099
6. At least 30 calendar days before a transfer of 2100
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ownership of a private school, the owner or operator shall 2101
notify the parent of each scholarship student. 2102
7. The owner or operator of a private school that has been 2103
deemed ineligible to participate in a scholarship program 2104
pursuant to this chapter may not transfer ownership or 2105
management authority of the school t o a relative in order to 2106
participate in a scholarship program as the same school or a new 2107
school. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term "relative" 2108
means father, mother, son, daughter, grandfather, grandmother, 2109
brother, sister, uncle, aunt, cousin, ne phew, niece, husband, 2110
wife, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, 2111
brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, stepmother, stepson, 2112
stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half -brother, or half-2113
sister. 2114
(q) Provide a report from an indep endent certified public 2115
accountant who performs the agreed -upon procedures developed 2116
pursuant to s. 1002.395(6)(q) s. 1002.395(6)(o) if the private 2117
school receives more than $250,000 in funds from scholarships 2118
awarded under this chapter in a state fiscal y ear. A private 2119
school subject to this subsection must annually submit the 2120
report by September 15 to the scholarship -funding organization 2121
that awarded the majority of the school's scholarship funds. 2122
However, a school that receives more than $250,000 in 2123
scholarship funds only through the John M. McKay Scholarship for 2124
Students with Disabilities Program pursuant to s. 1002.39 must 2125
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submit the annual report by September 15 to the department. The 2126
agreed-upon procedures must be conducted in accordance with 2127
attestation standards established by the American Institute of 2128
Certified Public Accountants. 2129
(r) Prohibit education support employees, instructional 2130
personnel, and school administrators from employment in any 2131
position that requires direct contact with students i f the 2132
personnel or administrators are ineligible for such employment 2133
pursuant to this section or s. 1012.315, or have been terminated 2134
or have resigned in lieu of termination for sexual misconduct 2135
with a student. If the prohibited conduct occurs subsequent to 2136
employment, the private school must report the person and the 2137
disqualifying circumstances to the department for inclusion on 2138
the disqualification list maintained pursuant to s. 2139
1001.10(4)(b). 2140
2141
The department shall suspend the payment of funds to a priva te 2142
school that knowingly fails to comply with this subsection, and 2143
shall prohibit the school from enrolling new scholarship 2144
students, for 1 fiscal year and until the school complies. If a 2145
private school fails to meet the requirements of this subsection 2146
or has consecutive years of material exceptions listed in the 2147
report required under paragraph (q), the commissioner may 2148
determine that the private school is ineligible to participate 2149
in a scholarship program. 2150
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(3) COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION AUTHORITY AND OBLI GATIONS.—2151
The Commissioner of Education: 2152
(c) May permanently deny or revoke the authority of an 2153
owner, officer, or director or operator to establish or operate 2154
a private school in the state and include such individual on the 2155
disqualification list maintain ed by the department pursuant to 2156
s. 1001.10(4)(b) if the commissioner decides that the owner , 2157
officer, or director: or operator 2158
1. Is operating or has operated an educational institution 2159
in the state or another state or jurisdiction in a manner 2160
contrary to the health, safety, or welfare of the public ; or 2161
2. Has operated an educational institution that closed 2162
during the school year. An individual may be removed from the 2163
disqualification list if the individual reimburses the 2164
department or eligible nonpro fit scholarship-funding 2165
organization the amount of scholarship funds received by the 2166
educational institution during the school year in which it 2167
closed, and shall include such individuals on the 2168
disqualification list maintained by the department pursuant to 2169
s. 1001.10(4)(b). 2170
Section 9. Section 1002.44, Florida Statutes, is created 2171
to read: 2172
1002.44 Part-time public school enrollment. — 2173
(1) Any public school in this state, including a charter 2174
school, may enroll a student who meets the regular school 2175
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attendance criteria in s. 1003.01(13)(b) -(f) on a part-time 2176
basis, subject to space and availability according to the 2177
school's capacity determined pursuant to s. 1002.31(2)(b). 2178
(2) A student attending a public school on a part -time 2179
basis pursuant to this section shall generate full -time 2180
equivalent student membership as described in s. 1011.61(1)(b). 2181
A student receiving a scholarship under this chapter who attends 2182
a public school on a part -time basis through contracted services 2183
provided by the public schoo l or school district may not be 2184
reported for funding. 2185
(3) A student attending a public school on a part -time 2186
basis pursuant to this section is not considered to be in 2187
regular attendance at a public school as defined in s. 2188
1003.01(13)(a). 2189
Section 10. Paragraphs (d) and (e) of subsection (13) of 2190
section 1003.01, Florida Statutes, are amended, and paragraph 2191
(f) is added to that subsection, to read: 2192
1003.01 Definitions. —As used in this chapter, the term: 2193
(13) "Regular school attendance" means the actu al 2194
attendance of a student during the school day as defined by law 2195
and rules of the State Board of Education. Regular attendance 2196
within the intent of s. 1003.21 may be achieved by attendance 2197
in: 2198
(d) A home education program that meets the requirements 2199
of chapter 1002; or 2200
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(e) A private tutoring program that meets the requirements 2201
of chapter 1002; or. 2202
(f) A personalized education program that meets the 2203
requirements of s. 1002.395. 2204
Section 11. Paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of section 2205
1003.27, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 2206
1003.27 Court procedure and penalties. —The court procedure 2207
and penalties for the enforcement of the provisions of this 2208
part, relating to compulsory school attendance, shall be as 2209
follows: 2210
(2) NONENROLLMENT AND NONATTEND ANCE CASES.— 2211
(c) Each designee of the governing body of each private 2212
school and each parent whose child is enrolled in a home 2213
education program or personalized education program may provide 2214
the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles with the 2215
legal name, sex, date of birth, and social security number of 2216
each minor student under his or her jurisdiction who fails to 2217
satisfy relevant attendance requirements and who fails to 2218
otherwise satisfy the requirements of s. 322.091. The Department 2219
of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles may not issue a driver 2220
license or learner's driver license to, and shall suspend any 2221
previously issued driver license or learner's driver license of, 2222
any such minor student pursuant to s. 322.091. 2223
Section 12. Paragraph (k) of s ubsection (4) of section 2224
1003.485, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 2225
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1003.485 The New Worlds Reading Initiative. — 2226
(4) ADMINISTRATOR RESPONSIBILITIES. —The administrator 2227
shall: 2228
(k) Expend eligible contributions received only for the 2229
purchase and delivery of books and to implement the requirements 2230
of this section, as well as for administrative expenses not to 2231
exceed 2 percent of total eligible contributions. 2232
Notwithstanding s. 1002.395(6)(l)2. s. 1002.395(6)(j)2., the 2233
administrator may carry forward up to 25 percent of eligible 2234
contributions made before January 1 of each state fiscal year 2235
and 100 percent of eligible contributions made on or after 2236
January 1 of each state fiscal year to the following state 2237
fiscal year for purposes authorized by this sub section. Any 2238
eligible contributions in excess of the allowable carry forward 2239
not used to provide additional books throughout the year to 2240
eligible students shall revert to the state treasury. 2241
Section 13. Subsections (3) and (5) of section 1009.30, 2242
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 2243
1009.30 Dual Enrollment Scholarship Program. — 2244
(3)(a) The program shall reimburse eligible postsecondary 2245
institutions for tuition and related instructional materials 2246
costs for dual enrollment courses taken during the fa ll or 2247
spring terms by eligible students, consisting of: 2248
1. Private school students who take dual enrollment 2249
courses pursuant to s. 1007.271(24)(b); or 2250
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2. Home education program secondary students ; or 2251
3. Personalized education program secondary studen ts. 2252
(b) Beginning in the 2022 summer term, The program shall 2253
reimburse institutions for tuition and related instructional 2254
materials costs for dual enrollment courses taken by public 2255
school, private school, or home education program secondary 2256
students, or personalized education program secondary students 2257
during the summer term. 2258
(5) Each participating institution must report to the 2259
department any eligible secondary students eligible pursuant to 2260
subsection (3) from private schools or home education program s 2261
who were enrolled during the fall or spring terms within 30 days 2262
after the end of regular registration. Each participating 2263
institution must report to the department any secondary students 2264
eligible pursuant to subsection (3) public school, private 2265
school, or home education program students who were enrolled 2266
during the summer term within 30 days after the end of regular 2267
registration. For each dual enrollment course in which the 2268
student is enrolled, the report must include a unique student 2269
identifier, the postsecondary institution name, the 2270
postsecondary course number, and the postsecondary course name. 2271
The department shall reimburse each participating institution no 2272
later than 30 days after the institution has reported enrollment 2273
for that term. 2274
Section 14. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 2275