HB 387 2025
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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 prohibited discrimination based on 2
hairstyle; providing a short title; amending s. 3
1000.05, F.S.; defining the term "protected 4
hairstyle"; prohibiting discrimination based on 5
protected hairstyle in the K -20 public education 6
system; amending s. 1002.20, F.S.; defining the terms 7
"race" and "protected hairstyles" for purposes of 8
public K-12 nondiscrimination requirements; amending 9
s. 1002.421, F.S.; defining the terms "race" and 10
"protected hairstyles" for purposes of 11
antidiscrimination requirements for private schools 12
participating in the state school choice scholarship 13
program; providing an effective date. 14
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 16
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Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Creating a 18
Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act" or "CROWN Act." 19
Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 1000.05, Florida 20
Statutes, is amended to read: 21
1000.05 Discriminat ion against students and employees in 22
the Florida K-20 public education system prohibited; equality of 23
access required.— 24
(2)(a) As used in this section, the term "protected 25
HB 387 2025
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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
hairstyle" means hair characteristics historically associated 26
with race, such as hair texture and styles, including, but not 27
limited to, afros, braids, locks, or twists. 28
(b) Discrimination on the basis of race, color, national 29
origin, sex, disability, religion, or marital status against a 30
student or an employee in the state system of public K-20 31
education is prohibited. No person in this state shall, on the 32
basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, 33
religion, or marital status, be excluded from participation in, 34
be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination 35
under any public K-20 education program or activity, or in any 36
employment conditions or practices, conducted by a public 37
educational institution that receives or benefits from federal 38
or state financial assistance. Additionally, discrimination on 39
the basis of a protected hairstyle against a student in the 40
state system of public K -20 education is prohibited. A student 41
may not be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits 42
of, or subjected to discrimination under any public K -20 43
education program or activity on the basis of a protected 44
hairstyle. 45
(c)(b) The criteria for admission to a program or course 46
may shall not have the effect of restricting access by students 47
persons of a particular race, color, national origin, sex, 48
disability, religion, or m arital status or with a protected 49
hairstyle. 50
HB 387 2025
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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
(d)(c) All public K-20 education classes must shall be 51
available to all students without regard to race, color, 52
protected hairstyle, national origin, sex, disability, religion, 53
or marital status; however, this is not intended to eliminate 54
the provision of programs designed to meet the needs of students 55
with limited proficiency in English, gifted students, or 56
students with disabilities or programs tailored to students with 57
specialized talents or skills. 58
(e)(d) Students may be separated by sex for a single -59
gender program, for any portion of a class that deals with human 60
reproduction, or during participation in bodily contact sports. 61
For the purpose of this section, bodily contact sports include 62
wrestling, boxing, rugby, ice hockey, football, basketball, and 63
other sports in which the purpose or major activity involves 64
bodily contact. 65
(f)(e) Guidance services, counseling services, and 66
financial assistance services in the state public K -20 education 67
system shall be available to students equally. Guidance and 68
counseling services, materials, and promotional events shall 69
stress access to academic and career opportunities for students 70
without regard to race, color, protected hairstyle, national 71
origin, sex, disability, religion, or marital status. 72
Section 3. Subsection (7) of section 1002.20, Florida 73
Statutes, is amended to read: 74
1002.20 K-12 student and parent rights. —Parents of public 75
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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
school students must receive accurate and timely information 76
regarding their child's academic progress and must be informed 77
of ways they can help their child to succeed in school. K -12 78
students and their parents are afforded numerous statutory 79
rights including, but not limited to, the following: 80
(7) NONDISCRIMINATION. —All education programs, activities, 81
and opportunities offered by public educational institutions 82
must be made available without discrimination on the basis of 83
race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, disability, religion, 84
or marital status, in accordance with the provisions of s. 85
1000.05. For purposes of this subsection, the term "race" is 86
inclusive of traits historically associated with race, 87
including, but not limited to, hair texture, hair type, and 88
protected hairstyles. The term "protected hairstyles" includes, 89
but is not limited to, afros, braids, locks, or twists. 90
Section 4. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 91
1002.421, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 92
1002.421 State school choice scholarship program 93
accountability and oversight. — 94
(1) PRIVATE SCHOOL ELIGIBILITY AND OBLIGATIONS. —A private 95
school participating in an educational scholarship program 96
established pursuant to this chapter must be a private school as 97
defined in s. 1002.01 in this state, be registered, and be in 98
compliance with all requirements of this section in addition to 99
private school requirements outlined in s. 1002.42, specific 100
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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
requirements identified within respective scholarship program 101
laws, and other provisions of Florida law that apply to private 102
schools, and must: 103
(a) Comply with the antidiscrimination provisions of 42 104
U.S.C. s. 2000d. For purposes of this paragraph, the term "race" 105
as used in 42 U.S.C. s. 2000d is inclusive of traits 106
historically associated with race, including, but not limited 107
to, hair texture, hair type, and protected hairstyles. The term 108
"protected hairstyles" includes, but is not limited to, afros, 109
braids, locks, or twists. 110
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The department shall suspend the payment of funds to a private 112
school that knowingly fails to comply with this subsec tion, and 113
shall prohibit the school from enrolling new scholarship 114
students, for 1 fiscal year and until the school complies. If a 115
private school fails to meet the requirements of this subsection 116
or has consecutive years of material exceptions listed in th e 117
report required under paragraph (q), the commissioner may 118
determine that the private school is ineligible to participate 119
in a scholarship program. 120
Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 121