STORAGE NAME: h0765a.GOS
DATE: 4/1/2025
1
FLORIDA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
BILL ANALYSIS
This bill analysis was prepared by nonpartisan committee staff and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.
BILL #: HB 765
TITLE: Celia Cruz Day
SPONSOR(S): Daniels, Rizo
COMPANION BILL: SB 972 (Rodriguez)
LINKED BILLS: None
RELATED BILLS: None
Committee References
Government Operations
16 Y, 0 N
State Affairs
SUMMARY
Effect of the Bill:
The bill designates October 21 of each year as “Celia Cruz Day.”
Fiscal or Economic Impact:
None.
JUMP TO SUMMARY ANALYSIS RELEVANT INFORMATION BILL HISTORY
ANALYSIS
EFFECT OF THE BILL:
The bill designates October 21 of each year as “Celia Cruz Day.” (Section 1)
The bill provides an effective date of July 1, 2025. (Section 2)
RELEVANT INFORMATION
SUBJECT OVERVIEW:
Legal Holidays and Special Observances
Current law provides designations for legal holidays and special observances. Recognition of a legal holiday or
special observance may apply statewide or may be limited to a particular region. For example, “Gasparilla Day”
1 is
a legal holiday observed only in Hillsborough County, while “Bill of Rights Day,”
2 if issued by the Governor, applies
throughout the state. Depending on the holiday or special observance, certain actions may be required to be
performed for the commemoration or observance of the date, day, or month. For example, the Governor may
annually issue a proclamation designating April 2 as “Florida State Day” and may designate the week of March 27
to April 2 as “Pascua Florida Week.”
3 Florida law recognizes the month of September as “American Founders’
Month,” urging all civic, fraternal, and religious organizations and public and private educational institutions to
recognize this occasion through appropriate programs and celebrations,
4 and the last full week of classes in
September as “Celebrate Freedom Week,”
5 in which public schools are required to include at least three hours of
grade-appropriate instruction related to the meaning and importance of the Declaration of Independence in social
studies classes.
6
1
S. 683.08, F.S.
2
S. 683.25, F.S.
3
S. 683.06, F.S.
4
S. 688.1455, F.S.
5
S. 1003.421, F.S.
6
Florida Department of Education, American Founders’ Month (last visited March 26, 2025). JUMP TO SUMMARY ANALYSIS RELEVANT INFORMATION BILL HISTORY
2
There are 21 legal holidays
7 established in law and 36 special observances.
8 The state recognizes nine paid
holidays that are observed by all state branches and agencies.
9
Celia Cruz
Celia Cruz was born in Havana, Cuba on October 21, 1925. She recorded over 80 albums over the course of a
career spanning six decades and is known internationally as the “Queen of Latin Music” and “Queen of Salsa.”
10 In
1960, Cruz’s band, La Sonora Matancera, renounced Fidel Castro’s socialist regime, resulting in her exile from Cuba
and subsequent immigration to the United States in 1961.
11 She went on to win five Grammy Awards and several
honors and recognitions for her contribution to Latin music,
12 including the National Medal of Arts by President Bill
Clinton.
13 In 2024, the United States Mint honored Celia Cruz by including her among the honorees of the American
Women Quarters Program, honoring women who have made significant contributions to American life.
14 In 2018, a
statue of Celia Cruz was unveiled in the Cuban Culture in Exile Heritage Park in Hialeah.
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BILL HISTORY
COMMITTEE REFERENCE ACTION DATE
STAFF
DIRECTOR/
POLICY CHIEF
ANALYSIS
PREPARED BY
Government Operations
Subcommittee
16 Y, 0 N 4/1/2025 Toliver Lines
State Affairs Committee
7
S. 683.01, F.S.
8
Ss. 683.04-683.3341, F.S.
9
S. 110.117(1), F.S. Paid state holidays include: New Year’s Day, the Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Day,
Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans’ Day, Thanksgiving Day, the Friday after Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day.
10
National Museum of American History Behring Center, Celia Cruz: Queen of Salsa (Last visited Mar. 26, 2025).
11
National Museum of African American History & Culture, Celia Cruz (Last visited Mar. 26, 2025).
12
National Museum of American History Behring Center, Celia Cruz: Queen of Salsa (Last visited Mar. 26, 2025)
13 PBS: On Stage at the Kennedy Center, Celia Cruz (Last visited Mar. 26, 2025).
14
United States Mint, United States Mint Announces 2024 American Quarters Program Honorees (Last visited Mar. 26, 2025).
15
City of Hialeah, Cuban Culture in Exile Heritage Park (Last visited Mar. 26, 2025).