CS/HB 1035 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1035-01-c1
Page 1 of 7
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to teacher training and conduct; 2
requiring the Commissioner of Education to take 3
specified actions relating to classroom teacher 4
training requirements by a specified date; amending s. 5
1003.32, F.S.; authorizing classroom teachers and 6
other members of staff to request a special magistrate 7
or bring a specified action against a school district 8
if directed by his or her school district or school to 9
violate general law or rule; providing requirements 10
for the appointment of such magistrate; providing for 11
the award of attorney fees and court costs under 12
certain circumstances; revising requirements for 13
determining and imposing discipline; requiring 14
principals to provide specified notification to 15
teachers and to consult with teachers before taking 16
disciplinary action for certain students; conforming 17
cross-references; amending s. 1012.75, F.S.; creating 18
a rebuttable presumption in certain proceedings fo r 19
teachers and staff members who take specified actions 20
to maintain safety or the educational atmosphere; 21
authorizing such individuals to receive specified 22
legal services; providing an effective date. 23
24
WHEREAS, education is critically important in the 25
CS/HB 1035 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1035-01-c1
Page 2 of 7
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
development of children in the state, and 26
WHEREAS, high-quality teachers are supremely important in a 27
child's education, and 28
WHEREAS, public schools in the state must comply with 29
requirements relating to training employees and third -party 30
vendors in areas such as policy and procedure, curriculum, 31
professional development, health and wellness, human resources, 32
and school safety and security, and 33
WHEREAS, certain training requirements are redundant, 34
overly burdensome, or no longer necessary while other t raining 35
requirements are necessary and cannot be eliminated, and 36
WHEREAS, considered separately, many training requirements 37
can be viewed as sincere efforts to enhance the quality of 38
education, student achievement, health and wellness, safety and 39
security, accountability, transparency, and the efficient 40
expenditure of taxpayer money, but their combined effect can 41
result in an unwieldy and burdensome task of complying with 42
deadlines and reporting, recordkeeping, and paperwork 43
requirements, and 44
WHEREAS, relief from burdensome training requirements can 45
save school districts and taxpayers money and result in more 46
efficient operations, NOW, THEREFORE, 47
48
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 49
50
CS/HB 1035 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1035-01-c1
Page 3 of 7
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Section 1. By December 31, 2023, the Commissi oner of 51
Education shall: 52
(1) Conduct a thorough and comprehensive review of all 53
classroom teacher training requirements in federal and state law 54
or rule and district policy. 55
(2) Assess all classroom teacher training requirements and 56
identify any duplicate federal and state training requirements. 57
(3) Evaluate any potential negative impacts of eliminating 58
certain classroom teacher training requirements in state law or 59
rule or district policy. 60
(4) Review all available literature related to 61
comprehensive reviews of classroom teacher training requirements 62
in other states. 63
(5) Eliminate any classroom teacher training requirements 64
not required by federal or state law. 65
(6) Provide recommendations to the Legislature for 66
eliminating classroom teacher training requirements in state law 67
or rule or district policy. 68
Section 2. Subsections (1) through (9) of section 1003.32, 69
Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (2) through 70
(10), respectively, present subsections (3) and (5) are amended, 71
and a new subsection (1) is added to that section, to read: 72
1003.32 Authority of teacher; responsibility for control 73
of students; district school board and principal duties. —Subject 74
to law and to the rules of the district school board, each 75
CS/HB 1035 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1035-01-c1
Page 4 of 7
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
teacher or other member of the staff of any school shall have 76
such authority for the control and discipline of students as may 77
be assigned to him or her by the principal or the principal's 78
designated representative and shall keep good order in the 79
classroom and in other pla ces in which he or she is assigned to 80
be in charge of students. 81
(1) Teachers and other members of the staff have the right 82
to direct classroom instruction in accordance with general law 83
and rule. A teacher or other member of the staff who is directed 84
by his or her school district or school to take an action that 85
would violate law or rule may: 86
(a) Request the Commissioner of Education to appoint a 87
special magistrate who is a member of The Florida Bar in good 88
standing and who has at least 5 years' experie nce in 89
administrative law. The special magistrate shall determine facts 90
relating to the dispute over the school district procedure or 91
practice, consider information provided by the school district, 92
and render a recommended decision for resolution to the St ate 93
Board of Education within 30 days after receipt of the request 94
by the teacher or staff member. The State Board of Education 95
must approve or reject the recommended decision at its next 96
regularly scheduled meeting that is more than 7 calendar days 97
but not more than 30 days after the date the recommended 98
decision is transmitted. The costs of the special magistrate 99
shall be borne by the school district. The State Board of 100
CS/HB 1035 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1035-01-c1
Page 5 of 7
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Education shall adopt rules, including forms, necessary to 101
implement this subsection. 102
(b) Bring an action against the school district to obtain 103
declaratory or injunctive relief for a violation of this 104
subsection. A court may award damages and shall award reasonable 105
attorney fees and court costs to a teacher or staff member who 106
receives declaratory or injunctive relief. 107
(4)(3) A teacher may send a student to the principal's 108
office to maintain effective discipline in the classroom and may 109
recommend an appropriate consequence consistent with the student 110
code of conduct under s. 1006.07. After determining that the 111
student has violated the student code of conduct, the principal 112
shall respond either by employing the teacher's recommended 113
consequence, or by imposing a more serious disciplinary action , 114
if the student's overall behavioral history of disruptive 115
behavior warrants it. If the principal determines that a lesser 116
disciplinary action other than that recommended by the teacher 117
is appropriate, the principal should consult with the teacher 118
before prior to taking disciplinary action. If the principal 119
determines that the student has not violated the student code of 120
conduct, the principal may not impose any discipline. The 121
principal shall notify the teacher of any decision regarding 122
discipline, or lack thereof, and interventions provided to a 123
student to address the behavior. If the principal deviates in 124
any way from the teacher's recommendation, the principal shall 125
CS/HB 1035 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1035-01-c1
Page 6 of 7
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
provide the reasons for any such deviation in writing to the 126
teacher. 127
(6)(5) If a teacher removes a student from class under 128
subsection (5) (4), the principal may place the student in 129
another appropriate classroom, in in -school suspension, or in a 130
dropout prevention and academic intervention program as provided 131
by s. 1003.53; or the principal may recommend the student for 132
out-of-school suspension or expulsion, as appropriate. The 133
student may be prohibited from attending or participating in 134
school-sponsored or school-related activities. The principal may 135
not return the student to that teacher's class without the 136
teacher's consent unless the committee established under 137
subsection (7) (6) determines that such placement is the best or 138
only available alternative. The teacher and the placement review 139
committee must render decisions within 5 days of the removal of 140
the student from the classroom . 141
Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 1012.75, Florida 142
Statutes, is amended to read: 143
1012.75 Liability of teacher or principal; excessive 144
force.— 145
(1) Except in the case of excessive force or cruel and 146
unusual punishment, in any administrative, civ il, or criminal 147
proceeding there shall be a rebuttable presumption that an 148
action by a teacher or other member of the instructional staff, 149
a principal or the principal's designated representative, or a 150
CS/HB 1035 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1035-01-c1
Page 7 of 7
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
bus driver was necessary to restore or maintain safety or the 151
educational atmosphere. Such individuals may receive legal 152
services pursuant to s. 1012.26 and shall not be civilly or 153
criminally liable for any action carried out in conformity with 154
State Board of Education and district school board rules 155
regarding the control, discipline, suspension, and expulsion of 156
students, including, but not limited to, any exercise of 157
authority under s. 1003.32 or s. 1006.09. 158
Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 159