Florida Senate - 2023 SB 1028 By Senator Stewart 17-01530-23 20231028__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to professional licensing requirements 3 for barbers and cosmetologists; amending s. 455.213, 4 F.S.; providing a period of time when a conviction, or 5 any other adjudication, for a crime may not be grounds 6 for denial of licensure as a barber or cosmetologist; 7 providing an exception; requiring the applicable board 8 to approve certain educational program credits offered 9 to inmates in certain institutions or facilities for 10 purposes of satisfying training requirements for 11 licensure as a barber or cosmetologist; providing an 12 effective date. 13 14 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 15 16 Section 1.Paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of section 17 455.213, Florida Statutes, is amended, paragraph (f) is added to 18 that subsection, and paragraph (a) of that subsection is 19 republished, to read: 20 455.213General licensing provisions. 21 (3)(a)Notwithstanding any other law, the applicable board 22 shall use the process in this subsection for review of an 23 applicants criminal record to determine his or her eligibility 24 for licensure as: 25 1.A barber under chapter 476; 26 2.A cosmetologist or cosmetology specialist under chapter 27 477; 28 3.Any of the following construction professions under 29 chapter 489: 30 a.Air-conditioning contractor; 31 b.Electrical contractor; 32 c.Mechanical contractor; 33 d.Plumbing contractor; 34 e.Pollutant storage systems contractor; 35 f.Roofing contractor; 36 g.Sheet metal contractor; 37 h.Solar contractor; 38 i.Swimming pool and spa contractor; 39 j.Underground utility and excavation contractor; or 40 k.Other specialty contractors; or 41 4.Any other profession for which the department issues a 42 license, provided the profession is offered to inmates in any 43 correctional institution or correctional facility as vocational 44 training or through an industry certification program. 45 (b)1.A conviction, or any other adjudication, for a crime 46 more than 3 years before the date the application is received by 47 the applicable board may not be grounds for denial of a license 48 specified in subparagraph (a)1. or subparagraph (a)2. unless the 49 applicant was convicted of a crime at any time during the 3-year 50 period immediately preceding the application. A conviction, or 51 any other adjudication, for a crime more than 5 years before the 52 date the application is received by the applicable board may not 53 be grounds for denial of a license specified in subparagraph 54 (a)3. or subparagraph (a)4 paragraph (a). For purposes of this 55 paragraph, the term conviction means a determination of guilt 56 that is the result of a plea or trial, regardless of whether 57 adjudication is withheld. This paragraph does not limit the 58 applicable board from considering an applicants criminal 59 history that includes a crime listed in s. 775.21(4)(a)1. or s. 60 776.08 at any time, but only if such criminal history has been 61 found to relate to the practice of the applicable profession. 62 2.The applicable board may consider the criminal history 63 of an applicant for licensure under subparagraph (a)3. if such 64 criminal history has been found to relate to good moral 65 character. 66 (f)The applicable board shall approve educational program 67 credits offered to inmates in any correctional institution or 68 correctional facility as vocational training or through an 69 industry certification program for purposes of satisfying 70 applicable training requirements for licensure in a profession 71 under subparagraph (a)1. or subparagraph (a)2. 72 Section 2.This act shall take effect July 1, 2023.