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A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to charter schools; amending s. 2
1002.33, F.S.; providing requirements for specified 3
deadlines for charter schools; authorizing charter 4
school governing boards to adopt codes of student 5
conduct; providing requirements for such codes; 6
providing requirements for the resolution of 7
complaints or appeals relating to such codes; revising 8
the criteria for a charter school to give enrollment 9
preferences or limit the enrollment process to certain 10
students; requiring charter schools to be in 11
compliance with specified provisions relating to 12
student welfare; revising the factors considered for 13
the determination of a charter school's capacity; 14
revising the facilities and land exempt from specified 15
ad valorem taxes; authorizing a charter school to 16
increase its student enrollment under certain 17
circumstances; providing requirements for such charter 18
school's facilities; providing requirements for 19
notification of increased enrollment; requiring 20
sponsors and the Department of Education to provide 21
specified access and data to a charter school and the 22
school's contractor; prohibiting certain persons from 23
serving as members of a charter school governing 24
board; amending s. 1002.331, F.S.; providing that 25
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certain students are excluded from specified 26
calculations relatin g to a high-performing charter 27
school's facility capacity; authorizing high -28
performing charter schools to assume the charters of 29
certain charter schools; providing requirements for a 30
request for a high-performing charter school to assume 31
a charter; authorizing high-performing charter schools 32
to provide virtual courses to certain students; 33
providing funding requirements for such courses; 34
amending s. 1013.15, F.S.; providing for the lease of 35
specified lands, facilities, or educational plants; 36
requiring district school boards to take specified 37
actions before the sale, transfer, lease, or disposal 38
of any land, facilities, or educational plants; 39
providing that a charter school may exercise right of 40
first refusal for such property; requiring a charter 41
school to submit a proposal within a specific 42
timeframe; requiring district school boards to 43
evaluate such proposal and award a contract using 44
specified criteria; authorizing a school board to act 45
if no proposals from a charter school are accepted; 46
amending s. 1013.28, F.S.; requiring district school 47
boards to comply with specified requirements for the 48
sale, transfer, lease, or disposal of any land, 49
facilities, or educational plants before the disposal 50
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of any land or real property; providing an effective 51
date. 52
53
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 54
55
Section 1. Paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (5), 56
paragraphs (d) and (h) of subsection (10), paragraphs (b) and 57
(c) of subsection (16), paragraph (c) of subsection (18), and 58
paragraphs (a) and (d) of subsection (20) of section 1002.33, 59
Florida Statutes, are amended, paragraph (s) is added to 60
subsection (9), paragraph (h) is added to subsection (18), and 61
paragraph (d) is added to subsection (26) of that section, to 62
read: 63
1002.33 Charter schools .— 64
(5) SPONSOR; DUTIES. — 65
(b) Sponsor duties. — 66
1.a. The sponsor shall monitor and review the charter 67
school in its progress toward the goals established in the 68
charter. 69
b. The sponsor shall monitor the revenues and expenditures 70
of the charter school and perform the duties provided in s. 71
1002.345. 72
c. The sponsor may approve a charter for a charter school 73
before the applicant has identified space, equipment, or 74
personnel, if the applicant indicates approval is necessary for 75
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it to raise working funds. 76
d. The sponsor may not apply its policies to a charter 77
school unless mutually agreed to by both the sponsor and the 78
charter school. If the sponsor subsequently amends any agreed -79
upon sponsor policy, the version of the policy in effect at the 80
time of the execution of the charter, or any subsequent 81
modification thereof, shall remain in effect and the sponsor may 82
not hold the charter school responsible for any provision of a 83
newly revised policy until the revised policy is mutually agreed 84
upon. 85
e. The sponsor shall ensure that the charter is innovative 86
and consistent with the state education goals established by s. 87
1000.03(5). 88
f. The sponsor shall ensure that the charter school 89
participates in the state's education accountability system. If 90
a charter school falls short of performance measures included in 91
the approved charter, the sponsor shall report such shortcomings 92
to the Department of Education. 93
g. The sponsor is not liable for civil damages under state 94
law for personal injury, property damage, or d eath resulting 95
from an act or omission of an officer, employee, agent, or 96
governing body of the charter school. 97
h. The sponsor is not liable for civil damages under state 98
law for any employment actions taken by an officer, employee, 99
agent, or governing b ody of the charter school. 100
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i. The sponsor's duties to monitor the charter school do 101
not constitute the basis for a private cause of action. 102
j. The sponsor may not impose additional reporting 103
requirements on a charter school as long as the charter school 104
has not been identified as having a deteriorating financial 105
condition or financial emergency pursuant to s. 1002.345. 106
k. The sponsor may not impose upon a charter school 107
administrative deadlines that are earlier than the sponsor's own 108
corresponding deadlines for similar reports or submissions. Any 109
deadline imposed upon a charter school for financial audits or 110
other administrative requirements may not be earlier than 15 111
days before the sponsor's own deadline for similar submissions 112
to the department. 113
l.k. The sponsor shall submit an annual report to the 114
Department of Education in a web -based format to be determined 115
by the department. 116
(I) The report shall include the following information: 117
(A) The number of applications received during the schoo l 118
year and up to August 1 and each applicant's contact 119
information. 120
(B) The date each application was approved, denied, or 121
withdrawn. 122
(C) The date each final contract was executed. 123
(II) Annually, by November 1, the sponsor shall submit to 124
the department the information for the applications submitted 125
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the previous year. 126
(III) The department shall compile an annual report, by 127
sponsor, and post the report on its website by January 15 of 128
each year. 129
2. Immunity for the sponsor of a charter school under 130
subparagraph 1. applies only with respect to acts or omissions 131
not under the sponsor's direct authority as described in this 132
section. 133
3. This paragraph does not waive a sponsor's sovereign 134
immunity. 135
4. A Florida College System institution may work with the 136
school district or school districts in its designated service 137
area to develop charter schools that offer secondary education. 138
These charter schools must include an option for students to 139
receive an associate degree upon high school graduation. If a 140
Florida College System institution operates an approved teacher 141
preparation program under s. 1004.04 or s. 1004.85, the 142
institution may operate charter schools that serve students in 143
kindergarten through grade 12 in any school district within the 144
service area of the institution. District school boards shall 145
cooperate with and assist the Florida College System institution 146
on the charter application. Florida College System institution 147
applications for charter schools are not subject to the time 148
deadlines outlined in subsection (6) and may be approved by the 149
district school board at any time during the year. Florida 150
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College System institutions may not report FTE for any students 151
participating under this subparagraph who receive FTE funding 152
through the Florida Edu cation Finance Program. 153
5. For purposes of assisting the development of a charter 154
school, a school district may enter into nonexclusive interlocal 155
agreements with federal and state agencies, counties, 156
municipalities, and other governmental entities that operate 157
within the geographical borders of the school district to act on 158
behalf of such governmental entities in the inspection, 159
issuance, and other necessary activities for all necessary 160
permits, licenses, and other permissions that a charter school 161
needs in order for development, construction, or operation. A 162
charter school may use, but may not be required to use, a school 163
district for these services. The interlocal agreement must 164
include, but need not be limited to, the identification of fees 165
that charter schools will be charged for such services. The fees 166
must consist of the governmental entity's fees plus a fee for 167
the school district to recover no more than actual costs for 168
providing such services. These services and fees are not 169
included within the se rvices to be provided pursuant to 170
subsection (20). Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an 171
interlocal agreement or ordinance that imposes a greater 172
regulatory burden on charter schools than school districts or 173
that prohibits or limits the creation o f a charter school is 174
void and unenforceable. An interlocal agreement entered into by 175
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a school district for the development of only its own schools, 176
including provisions relating to the extension of 177
infrastructure, may be used by charter schools. 178
6. The board of trustees of a sponsoring state university 179
or Florida College System institution under paragraph (a) is the 180
local educational agency for all charter schools it sponsors for 181
purposes of receiving federal funds and accepts full 182
responsibility for all local educational agency requirements and 183
the schools for which it will perform local educational agency 184
responsibilities. A student enrolled in a charter school that is 185
sponsored by a state university or Florida College System 186
institution may not be incl uded in the calculation of the school 187
district's grade under s. 1008.34(5) for the school district in 188
which he or she resides. 189
(c) Sponsor accountability. — 190
1. The department shall, in collaboration with charter 191
school sponsors and charter school operat ors, develop a sponsor 192
evaluation framework that must address, at a minimum: 193
a. The sponsor's strategic vision for charter school 194
authorization and the sponsor's progress toward that vision. 195
b. The alignment of the sponsor's policies and practices 196
to best practices for charter school authorization. 197
c. The academic and financial performance of all operating 198
charter schools overseen by the sponsor. 199
d. The status of charter schools authorized by the 200
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sponsor, including approved, operating, and closed sc hools. 201
2. The department shall compile the results by sponsor and 202
include the results in the report required under sub -sub-203
subparagraph (b)1.l.(III) (b)1.k.(III). 204
(9) CHARTER SCHOOL REQUIREMENTS. — 205
(s) A charter school governing board may adopt its ow n 206
code of student conduct. The code of student conduct must meet 207
or exceed the minimum standards set forth in the sponsor's code 208
of student conduct. Any provision of the code of student conduct 209
which is more stringent than the sponsor's code of student 210
conduct must align with the mission of the charter school. The 211
sponsor may review the code and offer recommendations. Any 212
complaint or appeal related to the code of student conduct shall 213
be resolved by the charter school's governing board using the 214
board's established procedures and must be in compliance with 215
applicable law and rules. 216
(10) ELIGIBLE STUDENTS. — 217
(d) A charter school may give enrollment preference to the 218
following student populations: 219
1. Students who are siblings of a student enrolled in the 220
charter school. 221
2. Students who are the children of a member of the 222
governing board of the charter school. 223
3. Students who are the children of an employee of the 224
charter school. 225
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4. Students who are the children of: 226
a. An employee of the business partner of a charter 227
school-in-the-workplace established under paragraph (15)(b) or a 228
resident of the municipality in which such charter school is 229
located; or 230
b. A resident or employee of a municipality that operates 231
a charter school-in-a-municipality pursuant to paragraph (15)(c) 232
or allows a charter school to use a school facility or portion 233
of land provided by the municipality for the operation of the 234
charter school. 235
5. Students who have successfully completed, during the 236
previous year, a voluntary prekindergarten education program 237
under ss. 1002.51-1002.79 provided by the charter school, the 238
charter school's governing board, or a voluntary prekindergarten 239
provider that has a written agreement with the governing board. 240
6. Students who are the childre n of an active duty member 241
of any branch of the United States Armed Forces. 242
7. Students who attended or are assigned to failing 243
schools pursuant to s. 1002.38(2). 244
8. Students who are the children of a safe -school officer, 245
as defined in s. 1006.12, at t he school. 246
9. Students who transfer from a classical school in this 247
state to a charter classical school in this state. For purposes 248
of this subparagraph, the term "classical school" means a 249
traditional public school or charter school that implements a 250
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classical education model that emphasizes the development of 251
students in the principles of moral character and civic virtue 252
through a well-rounded education in the liberal arts and 253
sciences which is based on the classical trivium stages of 254
grammar, logic, and rhetoric. 255
(h) The capacity of the charter school shall be determined 256
annually by the governing board, in conjunction with the 257
sponsor, of the charter school in consideration of the factors 258
identified in this subsection and subsection (18) unless the 259
charter school is designated as a high -performing charter school 260
pursuant to s. 1002.331. A sponsor may not require a charter 261
school to waive the provisions of s. 1002.331 or require a 262
student enrollment cap that prohibits a high -performing charter 263
school from increasing enrollment in accordance with s. 264
1002.331(2) as a condition of approval or renewal of a charter. 265
(16) EXEMPTION FROM STATUTES. — 266
(b) Additionally, a charter school shall be in compliance 267
with the following statutes: 268
1. Section 286.011, r elating to public meetings and 269
records, public inspection, and criminal and civil penalties. 270
2. Chapter 119, relating to public records. 271
3. Section 1003.03, relating to the maximum class size, 272
except that the calculation for compliance pursuant to s. 273
1003.03 shall be the average at the school level. 274
4. Section 1012.22(1)(c), relating to compensation and 275
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salary schedules. 276
5. Section 1012.33(5), relating to workforce reductions. 277
6. Section 1012.335, relating to contracts with 278
instructional personnel hired on or after July 1, 2011. 279
7. Section 1012.34, relating to the substantive 280
requirements for performance evaluations for instructional 281
personnel and school administrators. 282
8. Section 1006.12, relating to safe -school officers. 283
9. Section 1006.07( 7), relating to threat management 284
teams. 285
10. Section 1006.07(9), relating to School Environmental 286
Safety Incident Reporting. 287
11. Section 1006.07(10), relating to reporting of 288
involuntary examinations. 289
12. Section 1006.1493, relating to the Florida Sa fe 290
Schools Assessment Tool. 291
13. Section 1006.07(6)(d), relating to adopting an active 292
assailant response plan. 293
14. Section 943.082(4)(b), relating to the mobile 294
suspicious activity reporting tool. 295
15. Section 1012.584, relating to youth mental health 296
awareness and assistance training. 297
16. Section 1001.42(4)(f)2., relating to middle school and 298
high school start times. A charter school -in-the-workplace is 299
exempt from this requirement. 300
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17. Section 1001.42(8)(c), relating to student welfare. 301
(c) For purposes of subparagraphs (b)4. -7. and 17.: 302
1. The duties assigned to a district school superintendent 303
apply to charter school administrative personnel, as defined in 304
s. 1012.01(3)(a) and (b), and the charter school governing board 305
shall designate at least one administrative person to be 306
responsible for such duties. 307
2. The duties assigned to a district school board apply to 308
a charter school governing board. 309
3. A charter school may hire instructional personnel and 310
other employees on an at -will basis. 311
4. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, 312
instructional personnel and other employees on contract may be 313
suspended or dismissed any time during the term of the contract 314
without cause. 315
(18) FACILITIES.— 316
(c) Any facility, or portion thereof, used to house a 317
charter school whose charter has been approved by the sponsor 318
and the governing board, pursuant to subsection (7), is exempt 319
from ad valorem taxes pursuant to s. 196.1983. Any facility or 320
land owned by a library, community service, museum, performing 321
arts, theater, cinema, or church facility; any facility or land 322
owned by a Florida College System institution or university; any 323
similar public institutional facilities or land; and any 324
facility recently used to house a school or child care faci lity 325
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licensed under s. 402.305 may provide space to charter schools 326
within their facilities or land under their preexisting zoning 327
and land use designations without obtaining a special exception, 328
rezoning, or a land use change. 329
(h) A charter school that is not implementing a school 330
improvement plan pursuant to paragraph (9)(n) or a corrective 331
action plan pursuant to s. 1002.345 may increase its student 332
enrollment to more than the capacity identified in the charter, 333
but student enrollment may not exceed th e capacity of the 334
facility at the time the enrollment increase will take effect. 335
Facility capacity for purposes of expansion shall include any 336
improvements to an existing facility or any new facility in 337
which the student of the charter school will enroll. A charter 338
school must notify its sponsor in writing by March 1 if the 339
charter school intends to increase enrollment for the following 340
school year. The written notice must specify the amount of the 341
enrollment increase. 342
(20) SERVICES.— 343
(a)1. A sponsor shall provide certain administrative and 344
educational services to charter schools. These services shall 345
include contract management services; full -time equivalent and 346
data reporting services; exceptional student education 347
administration services; services rel ated to eligibility and 348
reporting duties required to ensure that school lunch services 349
under the National School Lunch Program, consistent with the 350
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needs of the charter school, are provided by the sponsor at the 351
request of the charter school, that any fund s due to the charter 352
school under the National School Lunch Program be paid to the 353
charter school as soon as the charter school begins serving food 354
under the National School Lunch Program, and that the charter 355
school is paid at the same time and in the sam e manner under the 356
National School Lunch Program as other public schools serviced 357
by the sponsor or the school district; test administration 358
services, including payment of the costs of state -required or 359
district-required student assessments; processing of teacher 360
certificate data services; and information services, including 361
equal access to the sponsor's student information systems that 362
are used by public schools in the district in which the charter 363
school is located or by schools in the sponsor's portfolio of 364
charter schools if the sponsor is not a school district. Access 365
to the sponsor's student information system shall be provided to 366
the charter school and its contractor, unless prohibited by 367
general or federal law. Student performance data for each 368
student in a charter school, including, but not limited to, 369
statewide FCAT scores, standardized test scores, coordinated 370
screening and progress monitoring student results, previous 371
public school student report cards, and student performance 372
measures, shall be p rovided by the sponsor to a charter school 373
in the same manner provided to other public schools in the 374
district or by schools in the sponsor's portfolio of charter 375
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schools if the sponsor is not a school district. The department 376
must provide student performa nce data to a charter school and 377
its contractor, unless prohibited by general or federal law. 378
2. A sponsor shall provide training to charter schools on 379
systems the sponsor will require the charter school to use. 380
3. A sponsor may withhold an administrat ive fee for the 381
provision of such services which shall be a percentage of the 382
available funds defined in paragraph (17)(b) calculated based on 383
weighted full-time equivalent students. If the charter school 384
serves 75 percent or more exceptional education stu dents as 385
defined in s. 1003.01(9), the percentage shall be calculated 386
based on unweighted full -time equivalent students. The 387
administrative fee shall be calculated as follows: 388
a. Up to 5 percent for: 389
(I) Enrollment of up to and including 250 students i n a 390
charter school as defined in this section. 391
(II) Enrollment of up to and including 500 students within 392
a charter school system which meets all of the following: 393
(A) Includes conversion charter schools and nonconversion 394
charter schools. 395
(B) Has all of its schools located in the same county. 396
(C) Has a total enrollment exceeding the total enrollment 397
of at least one school district in this state. 398
(D) Has the same governing board for all of its schools. 399
(E) Does not contract with a for -profit service provider 400
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for management of school operations. 401
(III) Enrollment of up to and including 250 students in a 402
virtual charter school. 403
b. Up to 2 percent for enrollment of up to and including 404
250 students in a high -performing charter school as defined in 405
s. 1002.331. 406
c. Up to 2 percent for enrollment of up to and including 407
250 students in an exceptional student education center that 408
meets the requirements of the rules adopted by the State Board 409
of Education pursuant to s. 1008.3415(3). 410
4. A sponsor may not charge charter schools any additional 411
fees or surcharges for administrative and educational services 412
in addition to the maximum percentage of administrative fees 413
withheld pursuant to this paragraph. A sponsor may not charge or 414
withhold any administrat ive fee against a charter school for any 415
funds specifically allocated by the Legislature for teacher 416
compensation. 417
5. A sponsor shall provide to the department by September 418
15 of each year the total amount of funding withheld from 419
charter schools pursuan t to this subsection for the prior fiscal 420
year. The department must include the information in the report 421
required under sub-sub-subparagraph (5)(b)1.l.(III) 422
(5)(b)1.k.(III). 423
6. A sponsor shall annually provide a report to its 424
charter schools on what ser vices are being rendered from the 425
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sponsor's portion of the administrative fee. The report must 426
include the listed services and be submitted to the department 427
by September 15 of each year. 428
(d) Each charter school shall annually complete and submit 429
a survey, provided in a format specified by the Department of 430
Education, to rate the timeliness and quality of services 431
provided by the sponsor in accordance with this section. The 432
department shall compile the results, by sponsor, and include 433
the results in the r eport required under sub -sub-subparagraph 434
(5)(b)1.l.(III) (5)(b)1.k.(III). 435
(26) STANDARDS OF CONDUCT AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE. — 436
(d) A landlord of a charter school or his or her spouse or 437
an officer, director, or employee of an entity that is a 438
landlord of a charter school or his or her spouse may not be a 439
member of a governing board of a charter school unless the 440
charter school was established pursuant to paragraph (15)(c). 441
Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 1002.331, Florida 442
Statutes, is amended to read: 443
1002.331 High-performing charter schools. — 444
(2) A high-performing charter school is authorized to: 445
(a) Increase its student enrollment once per school year 446
to more than the capacity identified in the charter, but student 447
enrollment may not exceed the capacity of the facility at the 448
time the enrollment increase will take effect. Students enrolled 449
in virtual courses may not be counted as enrolled students for 450
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purposes of determining the facility's capacity. Facility 451
capacity for purposes of expansion must shall include any 452
improvements to an existing facility or any new facility in 453
which the students of t he high-performing charter school will 454
enroll. 455
(b) Expand grade levels within kindergarten through grade 456
12 to add grade levels not already served if any annual 457
enrollment increase resulting from grade level expansion is 458
within the limit established in p aragraph (a). 459
(c) Submit a quarterly, rather than a monthly, financial 460
statement to the sponsor pursuant to s. 1002.33(9)(g). 461
(d) Consolidate under a single charter the charters of 462
multiple high-performing charter schools operated in the same 463
school district by the charter schools' governing board 464
regardless of the renewal cycle. 465
(e) Receive a modification of its charter to a term of 15 466
years or a 15-year charter renewal. The charter may be modified 467
or renewed for a shorter term at the option of the h igh-468
performing charter school. The charter must be consistent with 469
s. 1002.33(7)(a)19. and (10)(h) and (i), is subject to annual 470
review by the sponsor, and may be terminated during its term 471
pursuant to s. 1002.33(8). 472
(f) Assume the charter of an existing charter school 473
within the same school district in which it operates. Any 474
request to assume a charter must be initiated by a school in a 475
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written format to the high -performing charter school. 476
(g) Provide virtual courses, approved pursuant to s. 477
1003.499, to students in grades 9 through 12. Funding for 478
virtual courses shall be as provided in s. 1002.45(6). 479
480
A high-performing charter school shall notify its sponsor in 481
writing by March 1 if it intends to increase enrollment or 482
expand grade levels the followin g school year. The written 483
notice shall specify the amount of the enrollment increase and 484
the grade levels that will be added, as applicable. If a charter 485
school notifies the sponsor of its intent to expand, the sponsor 486
shall modify the charter within 90 d ays to include the new 487
enrollment maximum and may not make any other changes. The 488
sponsor may deny a request to increase the enrollment of a high -489
performing charter school if the commissioner has declassified 490
the charter school as high -performing. If a hig h-performing 491
charter school requests to consolidate multiple charters or to 492
assume an existing charter , the sponsor has shall have 40 days 493
after receipt of that request to provide an initial draft 494
charter to the charter school. The sponsor and charter scho ol 495
shall have 50 days thereafter to negotiate and notice the 496
charter contract for final approval by the sponsor. 497
Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 1013.15, Florida 498
Statutes, is amended to read: 499
1013.15 Lease, rental, and lease -purchase of educational 500
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plants, ancillary plants, and auxiliary facilities and sites. — 501
(1)(a) A board may lease any land, facilities, or 502
educational plants owned by it to any person or entity for such 503
term, for such rent, and upon such terms and conditions as the 504
board determines to be in its best interests; any such lease may 505
provide for the optional or binding purchase of the land, 506
facilities, or educational plants by the lessee upon such terms 507
and conditions as the boa rd determines are in its best 508
interests. A determination that any such land, facility, or 509
educational plant so leased is unnecessary for educational 510
purposes is not a prerequisite to the leasing or lease -purchase 511
of such land, facility, or educational plan t. Before entering 512
into or executing any such lease, a board shall consider 513
approval of the lease or lease -purchase agreement at a public 514
meeting, at which a copy of the proposed agreement in its final 515
form shall be available for inspection and review by t he public, 516
after due notice as required by law. 517
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) and before the sale, 518
transfer, lease, or disposal of any land, facilities, or 519
educational plants, a district school board shall provide public 520
notice of the proposed transa ction and provide charter schools 521
with the first right of refusal. Each charter school seeking to 522
exercise the right of first refusal must submit a proposal 523
within 60 days after the public notice. The district school 524
board shall evaluate proposals and awar d a contract considering 525
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such factors as price, quality, and concept of the proposal. If 526
no proposals are accepted pursuant to this subsection, the 527
district school board may proceed with the transaction. This 528
paragraph does not apply to school district fac ilities used for 529
administration before July 1, 2025. 530
Section 4. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 531
1013.28, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 532
1013.28 Disposal of property. — 533
(1) REAL PROPERTY.— 534
(a) Subject to rules of the State Board o f Education, a 535
district school board, the Board of Trustees for the Florida 536
School for the Deaf and the Blind, or a Florida College System 537
institution board of trustees may dispose of any land or real 538
property to which the board holds title which is, by re solution 539
of the board, determined to be unnecessary for educational 540
purposes as recommended in an educational plant survey. A 541
district school board, the Board of Trustees for the Florida 542
School for the Deaf and the Blind, or a Florida College System 543
institution board of trustees shall take diligent measures to 544
dispose of educational property only in the best interests of 545
the public. However, appraisals may be obtained by the district 546
school board, the Board of Trustees for the Florida School for 547
the Deaf and the Blind, or the Florida College System 548
institution board of trustees prior to or simultaneously with 549
the receipt of bids. A district school board shall comply with 550
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the requirements of s. 1013.15(1)(b) before the disposal of any 551
land or real property. 552
Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 553