HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 1 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to postsecondary educational 2
institutions; amending ss. 1001.03 and 1001.706, F.S.; 3
revising the date by which the State Board of 4
Education and the Board of Governors must annually 5
compile and publish specified assessments; creating s. 6
1001.93, F.S.; providing legislative findings; 7
providing definitions; requiring the Board of 8
Governors of the State University System to establish 9
an Office of Public Policy Events; requiring the 10
office to establish satellite offices at each state 11
university; providing duties of the office, including 12
duties relating to hosting specified events and 13
recordings of such events, maintaining calendars, and 14
reporting requirements; authorizing a state university 15
to assume the responsibilities of the satellite office 16
on its campus; providing requirements for such state 17
universities; requiring satellite offices to report to 18
specified state university offices; providing 19
requirements for events of the office; amending s. 20
1004.097, F.S.; prohibiting public institutions of 21
higher education from requiring the completion of a 22
political loyalty test or for persons to meet certain 23
qualifications; providing requirements for such 24
prohibited tests and qualifications; requiring the 25
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 2 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
State Board of Education and the Board of Governors t o 26
adopt rules and regulations for specified purposes; 27
providing severability; amending s. 1004.26, F.S.; 28
designating the Florida Student Association as the 29
nonprofit advocacy organization for students of the 30
State University System; authorizing the Chancel lor of 31
the Board of Governors, with approval from the Board 32
of Governors, to designate another organization to 33
serve such students under certain circumstances; 34
providing membership for the board of directors of the 35
association; providing requirements for s uch board of 36
directors relating to the board's chair and the 37
association's president; requiring the board of 38
directors to adopt certain bylaws; providing an 39
effective date. 40
41
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 42
43
Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (19) of section 44
1001.03, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 45
1001.03 Specific powers of State Board of Education. — 46
(19) INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM AND VIEWPOINT DIVERSITY 47
ASSESSMENT.— 48
(b) The State Board of Education shall require each 49
Florida College System institution to conduct an annual 50
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 3 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
assessment of the intellectual freedom and viewpoint diversity 51
at that institution. The State Board of Education shall select 52
or create an objective, nonpartisan, and statistically valid 53
survey to be used by each institution which considers the extent 54
to which competing ideas and perspectives are presented and 55
members of the college community, including students, faculty, 56
and staff, feel free to express their beliefs and viewpoints on 57
campus and in the classroom. The State Board of Education shall 58
annually compile and publish the assessments by December 31 59
September 1 of each year, beginning on December 31, 2024 60
September 1, 2022. The State Board of Education may adopt rules 61
to implement this para graph. 62
Section 2. Paragraph (b) of subsection (13) of section 63
1001.706, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 64
1001.706 Powers and duties of the Board of Governors. — 65
(13) INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM AND VIEWPOINT DIVERSITY 66
ASSESSMENT.— 67
(b) The Board of Governors shall require each state 68
university to conduct an annual assessment of the intellectual 69
freedom and viewpoint diversity at that institution. The Board 70
of Governors shall select or create an objective, nonpartisan, 71
and statistically valid survey to be used by each state 72
university which considers the extent to which competing ideas 73
and perspectives are presented and members of the university 74
community, including students, faculty, and staff, feel free to 75
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 4 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
express their beliefs and viewpoints on campu s and in the 76
classroom. The Board of Governors shall annually compile and 77
publish the assessments by December 31 September 1 of each year, 78
beginning on December 31, 2024 September 1, 2022. 79
Section 3. Section 1001.93, Florida Statutes, is created 80
to read: 81
1001.93 The Office of Public Policy Events within the 82
State University System. — 83
(1) The Legislature finds that the advancement of 84
knowledge is the fundamental purpose of the State University 85
System and that such advancement is facilitated by the fea rless 86
sifting and winnowing of a wide diversity of views and that the 87
open discussion and debate of contested public policy issues 88
from diverse perspectives provides essential preparation for 89
mature citizenship and an informed exercise of the right to 90
vote. 91
(2) For purposes of this section, the term: 92
(a) "Debate" means an event at which two or more 93
participants speak in favor of opposing approaches to the same 94
public policy dispute, after which each participant is allotted 95
time to address and rebut the position presented by the opposing 96
speakers. 97
(b) "Group forum" means an event at which two or more 98
speakers address a public policy dispute from divergent or 99
opposing perspectives, after which each participant is allotted 100
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 5 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
time to address questions from t he audience and to comment on 101
the other speakers' positions. 102
(3) The Board of Governors of the State University System 103
shall establish, fund, and staff an Office of Public Policy 104
Events. The office must have a satellite office at each state 105
university within the State University System. The office must, 106
at a minimum: 107
(a)1. Organize, publicize, and stage a substantial number 108
of debates, group forums, and individual lectures at each state 109
university that address, from multiple, divergent, and opposing 110
perspectives, an extensive range of public policy issues widely 111
discussed and debated in society at large. 112
2. Such debates, group forums, and lectures must include 113
speakers who represent widely held views on opposing sides of 114
the most widely discussed publi c policy issues of the day and 115
who hold a wide diversity of perspectives from within and 116
outside of the state university community. 117
3. If the office is unable to readily find an advocate 118
from within the state university community who is well -versed in 119
a perspective, the office shall invite a speaker who is able to 120
represent such perspective. The office shall, when necessary, 121
provide such speakers who are not from within the state 122
university community with per diem and a reimbursement for 123
travel expenses. 124
(b)1. Maintain a permanent, publicly accessible, 125
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 6 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
searchable, and up-to-date calendar in print, on the office's 126
website, and on each state university's website listing all of 127
the events sponsored by the office and all other debates, group 128
forums, and individual lectures open to the entire campus 129
community at the state university that address public policy 130
issues. The calendar must itemize the title of the event or 131
lecture, the name and institutional affiliation of the speaker 132
or speakers, and the office, institute, department, program, or 133
organization that sponsored the event, excluding those events 134
sponsored by off-campus groups in rented state university 135
facilities. 136
2. Beginning September 1, 2024, and annually each 137
September 1 thereafter, provide to th e Governor, the 138
Legislature, and to each state university a printed and an 139
electronic copy of the previous academic year's calendar for 140
each state university. Such calendars must be arranged 141
chronologically. Such calendars must be kept in the library 142
system of each state university. 143
(c) Make publicly available, in an online format, a 144
complete video record of every debate, group forum, and 145
individual lecture organized by the office. The video recording 146
for an event organized by the office must be posted on the 147
office's website within 10 business days after the event. Such 148
video must remain publicly assessible on the office's website 149
for at least 5 years after the date of the event. Such videos 150
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 7 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
must also be permanently preserved within, and made available to 151
the public through, the library of the state university that 152
hosted the event. 153
(4) At the discretion of the board of trustees of a state 154
university and the Board of Governors, the Board of Governors 155
may assign the duties of the office to an existing 156
administrative office within the state university rather than 157
establish a satellite office. The state university must appoint 158
a Director of Public Policy Events. The Director of Public 159
Policy Events and his or her staff are responsible for the 160
duties and reporting responsibilities of the office. 161
(5) Each satellite office shall report directly to either 162
the state university's office that is responsible for compiling 163
and reporting the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data 164
System's graduation rate survey or O ffice of General Counsel. 165
(6) Each debate, group forum, and individual lecture 166
organized by the office must be open to all students, faculty, 167
and staff of the state university and, unless restricting 168
attendance to such event is necessary to achieve a com pelling 169
governmental interest, to the general public. 170
Section 4. Subsection (4) of section 1004.097, Florida 171
Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (5), and a new subsection 172
(4) is added to that section, to read: 173
1004.097 Free expression on campus. — 174
(4)(a) A public institution of higher education may not: 175
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 8 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
1. Require or solicit a person to complete a political 176
loyalty test as a condition of employment or admission into, or 177
promotion within, such institution. 178
2. Give preferential consideration to a person for 179
employment by, admission into, or promotion within the 180
institution for an opinion or actions in support of: 181
a. A partisan, a political, or an ideological set of 182
beliefs; or 183
b. Another person or group of persons based on the 184
person's or group's race or ethnicity or support of an ideology 185
or movement identified under sub -subparagraph (b)1.a. 186
(b)1. A political loyalty test includes compelling, 187
requiring, or soliciting a person to identify commitment to or 188
to make a statement of personal belie f in support of: 189
a. Any ideology or movement that promotes the differential 190
treatment of a person or a group of persons based on race or 191
ethnicity, including an initiative or a formulation of 192
diversity, equity, and inclusion beyond upholding the equal 193
protection of the laws guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to 194
the United States Constitution or a theory or practice that 195
holds that systems or institutions upholding the equal 196
protection of the laws guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment of 197
the United States Constitution are racist, oppressive, or 198
otherwise unjust; or 199
b. A specific partisan, political, or ideological set of 200
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 9 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
beliefs. 201
2. A political loyalty test does not include fidelity to, 202
or an oath or effort taken to uphold, the United States 203
Constitution or the State Constitution. 204
(c) The State Board of Education and the Board of 205
Governors may adopt rules and regulations, respectively, to 206
implement this subsection and establish penalties for a willful 207
violation of this section. 208
(d) If any provision of this subsection or its application 209
to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity 210
does not affect other provisions or applications of this 211
subsection or chapter which can be given effect without the 212
invalid provision or application, a nd to this end the provisions 213
of this subsection are severable. 214
Section 5. Subsection (5) of section 1004.26, Florida 215
Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (6), and a new subsection 216
(5) is added to that section, to read: 217
1004.26 University student go vernments; the Florida 218
Student Association.— 219
(5)(a) The Florida Student Association is designated as 220
the nonprofit advocacy organization serving the needs of the 221
students of the State University System. If the Florida Student 222
Association fails to meet th e requirements of this section, the 223
Chancellor of the Board of Governors shall designate an 224
equivalent nonprofit advocacy organization to serve the needs of 225
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 10 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
the students of the State University System with the approval of 226
the Board of Governors. 227
(b) The Florida Student Association shall be governed by a 228
board of directors. The membership of the board of directors 229
shall be comprised of the 12 student body presidents of the 230
state universities. The board of directors shall annually elect 231
a chair from among t he board's members. The chair shall also 232
serve as president of the association. 233
(c) The Florida Student Association shall adopt bylaws to 234
establish: 235
1. A due process for the removal or impeachment of the 236
president of the association. Such due process must provide that 237
the president of the association may be removed by the majority 238
vote of members of the board of directors. The grounds for 239
removal of the president of the association are limited to 240
malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, incompetence, 241
permanent inability to perform official duties, or conviction of 242
a felony. 243
2. Procedures for the suspension and removal of the 244
president of the association following the conviction of a 245
felony. 246
3. Procedures for a president of the association who has 247
been disciplined, suspended, or removed from his or her position 248
to directly appeal such decision to the Vice Chancellor for 249
Academic and Student Affairs for the Board of Governors. The 250
HB 931 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0931-00
Page 11 of 11
FL O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
bylaws may not place any condition precedent on the exercise of 251
such right granted by this paragraph and the association may not 252
elect a new president until the exhaustion of the appeals 253
process or any other due process rights afforded by this 254
section. 255
Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 256