Florida 2024 2024 Regular Session

Florida House Bill H0439 Analysis / Analysis

Filed 01/31/2024

                    This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives. 
STORAGE NAME: h0439a.EQS 
DATE: 1/31/2024 
 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS  
 
BILL #: HB 439    Corporal Punishment 
SPONSOR(S): Waldron and others 
TIED BILLS:  None. IDEN./SIM. BILLS: SB 1318 
 
REFERENCE 	ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or 
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF 
1) Education Quality Subcommittee 	17 Y, 0 N Wolff Sanchez 
2) Education & Employment Committee   
SUMMARY ANALYSIS 
School districts and school personnel are authorized by current law to use corporal punishment as a method of 
maintaining student discipline. “Corporal punishment” means the moderate use of physical force or physical 
contact by a teacher or principal as may be necessary to maintain discipline or to enforce school rule. 
 
The bill amends the provisions of Florida law governing corporal punishment to require parents to opt-in to the 
use of corporal punishment on their children. The bill requires that school principals be responsible for the 
implementation and administration of corporal punishment in schools. 
 
The bill prohibits the use of corporal punishment as discipline for the following students: exceptional education 
students; students with an individual education plan; students who attend an alternative school; children and 
youths who are experiencing homelessness; and students covered under s. 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 
1973 and 29 U.S.C. s. 794. 
 
The bill requires each principal to annually report the following information to the Office of Safe School and the 
school district: the number of instances where corporal punishment was used during the school year; the 
number of students who were punished using corporal punishment during the school year; the number of 
students who were punished more than once using corporal punishment during the school year. 
 
The bill adds the new requirements related to corporal punishment to the list of education statutes that charter 
schools are required to comply with to provide all Florida’s public school families the same limitations in the 
application of corporal punishment. 
 
The bill does not have a fiscal impact. 
 
The bill has an effective date of July 1, 2024.   STORAGE NAME: h0439a.EQS 	PAGE: 2 
DATE: 1/31/2024 
  
FULL ANALYSIS 
I.  SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS 
 
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES: 
Present Situation 
 
Student Discipline 
 
Florida law requires each district school board to provide for the proper accounting for all students; for 
the attendance and control of students at school; and for proper attention to health, safety, and other 
matters relating to the welfare of students. School boards must adopt rules, policies, and procedures 
for addressing disciplinary issues and providing for a safe and orderly school environment.
1
 
 
Each school board must adopt a code of student conduct
 
that is based upon its rules governing student 
conduct and discipline.
2
 The code of student conduct must include, but is not limited to: 
 consistent policies and specific grounds for disciplinary action;  
 penalties and procedures for acts requiring discipline, including in-school suspension, out-of-
school suspension, expulsion, and corporal punishment; 
 an explanation of the rights and responsibilities of students with regard to attendance, respect 
for persons and property, knowledge and observation of rules of conduct, the right to learn, free 
speech and student publications, assembly, privacy, and participation in school programs and 
activities; 
 a dress code policy and penalties and procedures for addressing dress code violations; 
 notice that student possession of alcohol, drugs, weapons, or firearms; violence against school 
district personnel; disruptive behavior on a school bus; sexual harassment; use of a wireless 
communications device in a criminal act; and threats or false reports made against school 
property, personnel, or transportation are grounds for disciplinary action and may result in the 
imposition of criminal penalties and referral to mental health services;  
 policies for the assignment of violent or disruptive students to alternative educational programs 
or referral of such students to mental health services identified by the school district; 
 student eligibility standards and related student disciplinary actions regarding student 
participation in extracurricular activities; 
 criteria for recommending to law enforcement that a student who commits a criminal offense be 
allowed to participate in a civil citation or similar prearrest diversion program as an alternative to 
expulsion or arrest; and 
 criteria for assigning a student who commits a petty act of misconduct, as defined in the district 
school board zero tolerance for crime and victimization policy, to a school-based intervention 
program.
3
  
 
At the beginning of each school year, the code of student conduct must be: 
 distributed to all teachers, school personnel, students, and parents; 
 made available in the school district’s student handbook or similar publication; and  
discussed in student classes, school advisory council meetings, and parent and teacher 
association or organization meetings at the beginning of the school year.
4
 
 
Current law provides an extensive description of the roles, duties, and authority of each personnel 
classification charged with maintaining a safe and orderly school environment and enforcing 
disciplinary violations.
5
 Each district school superintendent must, among other duties, recommend to 
the district school board plans for promoting the welfare of students, including attendance, discipline, 
                                                
1
 Section 1006.07(1)(a), F.S.  
2
 Section 1006.07(2), F.S. 
3
 Section 1006.07(2)(a)-(o), F.S. 
4
 Section 1006.07(2), F.S. 
5
 See ss. 1003.32 (classroom teachers and school principals), 1006.08 (superintendents), 1006.09 (school principals), and 1006.10, F.S. 
(school bus drivers).  STORAGE NAME: h0439a.EQS 	PAGE: 3 
DATE: 1/31/2024 
  
health and safety, and other matters. Each superintendent must fully support the disciplinary authority 
of school principals, classroom teachers, and school bus drivers.
6
 
 
Generally speaking, the law provides that each classroom teacher “shall have such authority for the 
control and discipline of students as may be assigned to him or her by the principal . . . .” Consistent 
with the school district’s code of student conduct, classroom teachers have authority to establish 
classroom rules of conduct; establish and implement consequences for infractions; and remove 
disobedient, disorderly, or violent students from the classroom.
7
  
 
Each school principal must, among other responsibilities, develop policies for delegating responsibility 
for the control and direction of students to classroom teachers, other instructional staff, and school bus 
drivers. Each school principal must fully support the authority of such personnel to remove disobedient, 
disrespectful, violent, abusive, uncontrollable, or disruptive students from the classroom and the school 
bus. The principal must consider disciplinary recommendations made by such personnel when making 
disciplinary referrals.
8
  
 
Corporal Punishment 
 
School districts and school personnel are authorized by current law to use corporal punishment as a 
method of maintaining student discipline. “Corporal punishment” means the moderate use of physical 
force or physical contact by a teacher or principal as may be necessary to maintain discipline or to 
enforce school rules.
9
  
 
The use of corporal punishment must be approved by the principal before it is used, but approval is not 
necessary for each specific instance in which it is used.
10
 The principal must prepare guidelines for 
administering such punishment which identify punishable offenses, the conditions for administering 
such punishment, and the school staff who are authorized to administer the punishment.
11
 A teacher or 
principal may only administer corporal punishment in the presence of another adult who is informed 
beforehand, and in the student’s presence, of the reason for the punishment.
12
  
 
If requested by a student’s parent, a teacher or principal who has administered corporal punishment to 
the student must provide a written explanation of the reason for the punishment and the name of the 
other adult who was present.
13
 District school boards may prohibit the use of corporal punishment if a 
written program of alternative control or discipline is adopted.
14
 A school board that has a policy 
authorizing the use of corporal punishment must review its policy once every three years during a 
school board meeting.
15
 
 
Charter Schools 
 
Charter schools are nonsectarian, public schools that operate under a performance contract with a 
sponsor.
16
 This performance contract is known as a “charter.”
17
 The charter exempts the school from 
many regulations applicable to traditional public schools to encourage the use of innovative learning 
methods.
18
 One of the guiding principles of charter schools is to “meet high standards of student 
                                                
6
 Section 1006.08(1), F.S. 
7
 Section 1003.32(1), F.S. 
8
 Section 1006.09(1)(a), F.S. 
9
 Section 1003.01(7), F.S. The term does not include the use of reasonable force by a teacher or principal necessary to protect 
themselves or other students from disruptive behavior. 
10
 Section 1003.32(1)(k)1., F.S. 
11
 Id. 
12
 Section 1003.32(1)(k)2., F.S. 
13
 Section 1003.32(1)(k)3., F.S. 
14
 Section 1006.07(1)(a), F.S. 
15
 Section 1002.20(4)(c)2., F.S. 
16
 Section 1002.33(1), (7), and (9)(a), F.S. 
17
 Section 1002.33(7) and (9)(c), F.S. 
18
 Section 1002.33(2)(b)3. and (16), F.S.  STORAGE NAME: h0439a.EQS 	PAGE: 4 
DATE: 1/31/2024 
  
achievement while providing parents flexibility to choose among diverse educational opportunities 
within the state’s public school system.”
19
  
 
Charter schools are exempt from a number of Florida’s Early Learning-20 Education Code statutes,
20 
except for statutes that pertain specifically to charter schools.
21
 Statutory provisions that expressly 
include charter schools within their scope include statutes pertaining to student assessment and school 
grading; the provision of services to students with disabilities; civil rights; student health, safety and 
welfare; public records, public meetings and public inspection; criminal and civil penalties and 
provisions relating to educator compensation, contracts and the substantive requirements relating to 
performance evaluations.
22
 Additionally, charter schools must be in compliance with statutes relating to 
school safety, including safe-school officers; school safety plans, tools, and reporting; school personnel 
training on youth mental health; and reporting of involuntary examinations.
23
 Therefore, charter schools  
are authorized by current law to use corporal punishment as a method of maintaining student discipline. 
 
Corporal Punishment Data 
 
As authorized by law, corporal punishment is used by a number of school districts across the state. The 
following charts provides that data, as reported by district to the Department of Education, for the prior 
3 school years: 
 
Incidents of Corporal Punishment 2020-2023 
School Year Number of 
Districts 
Number of 
Incidents 
2020-2021
24
 21 	736 
2021-2022
25
 20 	717 
2022-2023
26
 18 	509 
 
Effect of Proposed Changes 
 
The bill amends the provisions of Florida law governing corporal punishment to require parents to opt-in 
to the use of corporal punishment on their children. The bill requires that school principals be 
responsible for the implementation and administration of corporal punishment in schools. 
 
Specifically, the bill requires that each principal that elects to use corporal punishment in his or her 
school must at the beginning of the school year provide each parent of a student enrolled at his or her 
school a written form that allows the parent to authorize the use of corporal punishment when 
disciplining his or her child. The form is required to read: 
Do you authorize the use of corporal punishment on your child? Florida 
Statutes defines the term 'corporal punishment' as 'the moderate use of 
physical force or physical contact by a principal as may be necessary to 
maintain school discipline or to enforce school rule.' Your school district's 
code of student conduct provides further information on how corporal 
punishment may be administered at your student's school. Please check 
                                                
19
 Section 1002.33(2)(a)1., F.S. 
20
 Chapters 1000 through 1013, F.S., comprise the Florida Early Learning-20 Education Code. Section 1000.01(1), F.S. 
21
 Section 1002.33(16), F.S. 
22
 Id.  
23
 Section 1002.33(16)(b)8.-15., F.S.  
24
 Florida Department of Education, Discipline Data, https://www.fldoe.org/safe-schools/discipline-data.stml (last visited Jan. 27, 
2024) (click “Discipline Data, 2020-21” hyperlink to access the excel file). 
25
 Florida Department of Education, Discipline Data, https://www.fldoe.org/safe-schools/discipline-data.stml (last visited Jan. 27, 
2024) (click “Discipline Data, 2021-22” hyperlink to access the excel file). 
26
 Florida Department of Education, Discipline Data, https://www.fldoe.org/safe-schools/discipline-data.stml (last visited Jan. 27, 
2024) (click “Discipline Data, 2022-23” hyperlink to access the excel file); see also Graham Bernstein, Florida Student Policy Forum, 
University of Florida, Corporal Punishment in Florida’s Public Schools, 2020-2023, https://infogram.com/school-corporal-
punishment-in-florida-2020-2021-2021-2022-and-2022-2023-1h1749vggqy1q6z (last visited Jan. 27, 2024) (providing a visualization 
of statewide corporal punishment data for 2020-2023).  STORAGE NAME: h0439a.EQS 	PAGE: 5 
DATE: 1/31/2024 
  
YES if you consent to the use of corporal punishment on your student or 
check NO if you do not consent to the use of corporal punishment on your 
student and provide your signature. You may contact your student's 
principal with any relevant questions about the administration of corporal 
punishment. 
 
Each principal must collect and store the completed forms. The bill expressly provides that a parent’s 
failure to return a completed form bars the use of corporal punishment on that parent’s student. 
 
The bill requires, prior to the application of corporal punishment, the principal to, in the presence of 
another adult, verify that the parent of such student has completed the parental consent form and 
consented to allow the administration of corporal punishment on his or her student. Additionally, after 
the administration of corporal punishment, the principal must provide the student's parent with a written 
explanation of the reason for the punishment and the name of the other adult who was present and 
who witnessed the principal verify the student's parental consent form before the administration of the 
corporal punishment. 
 
The bill prohibits the use of corporal punishment as discipline for the following students: 
 Exceptional education students; 
 Students with an individual education plan; 
 Students who attend an alternative school; 
 Children and youths who are experiencing homelessness; and 
 Students covered under s. 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and 29 U.S.C. s. 794. 
 
The bill requires each principal to annually report the following information to the Office of Safe Schools 
and the school district: 
 The number of instances where corporal punishment was used during the school year. 
 The number of students who were punished using corporal punishment during the school year. 
 The number of students who were punished more than once using corporal punishment during 
the school year. 
 
The bill adds the new requirements related to corporal punishment to the list of education statutes that 
charter schools are required to comply with to provide all Florida’s public school families the same 
guardrails in the application of corporal punishment. 
 
B. SECTION DIRECTORY: 
Section 1: Amends s. 1002.20, F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the act. 
 
Section 2: Amends s. 1002.33, F.S.; requiring charter schools to comply with general law relating to 
corporal punishment. 
 
Section 3: Amends s. 1003.01, F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the act. 
 
Section 4: Amends s. 1003.32, F.S.; deleting provisions authorizing teachers to administer corporal 
punishment; providing duties of and responsibilities for principals relating to corporal 
punishment; requiring a specified notification be provided to parents relating to corporal 
punishment; providing requirements for a student to be disciplined using corporal 
punishment; prohibiting the use of corporal punishment on specified students; providing 
reporting requirements relating to corporal punishment. 
 
Section 5: Provides an effective date. 
II.  FISCAL ANALYSIS & ECONOMIC IMPACT STATEMENT 
 
A. FISCAL IMPACT ON STATE GOVERNMENT: 
  STORAGE NAME: h0439a.EQS 	PAGE: 6 
DATE: 1/31/2024 
  
1. Revenues: 
None. 
 
2. Expenditures: 
None. 
 
B. FISCAL IMPACT ON LOCAL GOVERNMENTS: 
 
1. Revenues: 
None. 
 
2. Expenditures: 
None. 
 
C. DIRECT ECONOMIC IMPACT ON PRIVATE SECTOR: 
None. 
 
D. FISCAL COMMENTS: 
None. 
III.  COMMENTS 
 
A. CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES: 
 
 1. Applicability of Municipality/County Mandates Provision: 
None. 
 
 2. Other: 
None. 
 
B. RULE-MAKING AUTHORITY: 
None. 
 
C. DRAFTING ISSUES OR OTHER COMMENTS: 
None. 
IV.  AMENDMENTS/COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE CHANGES 
None.