HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 1 of 10
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 veterans; amending s. 265.003, 2
F.S.; revising the maximum number of nominees for the 3
Florida Veterans' Hall of Fame submitted by the 4
Florida Veterans' Hall of Fame Council to the 5
Department of Veterans' Affairs for submission to the 6
Governor and the Cabinet; amending s. 292.05, F.S.; 7
requiring the Department of Veterans' Affairs to 8
conduct a study that includes a survey evaluating the 9
extent to which specified persons are aware of certain 10
existing programs or services; requiring that such 11
survey also include specified recommendations; 12
requiring that a certain report include additional 13
actions taken by the Department of Veterans' Affairs 14
and other information and recommendations as the 15
department determines are necessary; requiring that a 16
specified report include an evaluation of the health 17
literacy of veterans in this state and recommendations 18
on how to increase knowledge of programs and services 19
available to such veterans; requiring the department 20
to ensure coordination to the greatest ext ent possible 21
with the United States Department of Defense for a 22
specified purpose; authorizing the Department of 23
Veterans' Affairs to engage county and city veteran 24
service officers for assistance; amending s. 292.115, 25
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 2 of 10
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
F.S.; revising the purpose of the Vet eran Suicide 26
Prevention Training Pilot Program to include 27
specialized mental health training; requiring 28
individuals electing to participate in the pilot 29
program to be trained to identify indicators of 30
elevated mental health risk; requiring the department 31
to contract with an organization developing and 32
implementing veteran -relevant and evidence -based 33
mental health training; amending s. 295.124, F.S.; 34
revising a reference to the United States Code; 35
amending s. 295.21, F.S.; requiring Florida Is For 36
Veterans, Inc., to advise the Department of Veterans' 37
Affairs on specified problems or needs of certain 38
military personnel and their spouses; amending s. 39
295.22, F.S.; revising the collaborators of the 40
Veterans Employment and Training Services Program to 41
include a specified direct-support organization; 42
amending s. 296.43, F.S.; requiring the Department of 43
Veterans' Affairs to develop a plan to establish adult 44
day health care facilities across this state to serve 45
veterans and their families; requiring that such plans 46
include specified information; requiring the 47
department to provide a specified report to the 48
Legislature by a specified date; amending s. 49
320.08058, F.S.; authorizing the use of a specified 50
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 3 of 10
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
percentage of proceeds from the sale of a specified 51
specialty license plate for the promotion and 52
administrative costs of the plate; providing an 53
effective date. 54
55
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 56
57
Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section 58
265.003, Florida Statutes, is amende d to read: 59
265.003 Florida Veterans' Hall of Fame. — 60
(4)(a) The Florida Veterans' Hall of Fame Council shall 61
annually accept nominations of persons to be considered for 62
induction into the Florida Veterans' Hall of Fame and shall 63
transmit a list of up to 5 20 nominees to the Department of 64
Veterans' Affairs for submission to the Governor and the 65
Cabinet, who will select the nominees to be inducted. 66
Section 2. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) and subsection 67
(6) of section 292.05, Florida Statutes, are am ended, and 68
subsection (8) is added to that section, to read: 69
292.05 Duties of Department of Veterans' Affairs. — 70
(5) The department shall conduct an ongoing study on the 71
problems and needs of those residents of this state who are 72
veterans of the Armed F orces of the United States and the 73
problems and needs of their spouses and dependents. The study 74
shall include, but not be limited to: 75
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 4 of 10
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
(b) A survey of the needs of such persons in the areas of 76
social services, health care, education, and employment, and any 77
other areas of determined need, with recommendations regarding 78
federal, state, and community services that would meet those 79
needs. The survey must also evaluate the extent to which such 80
persons are aware of existing federal, state, or community 81
programs or services that meet their areas of need, with 82
recommendations regarding increasing public awareness using 83
administrative or legislative options. 84
(6) The department shall, by December 31 of each year, 85
submit an annual written report to the Governor, t he Cabinet, 86
and the Legislature which describes: 87
(a) The expenses incurred in veteran service work in the 88
state; the number, nature, and kind of cases handled by the 89
department and by county and city veteran service officers of 90
the state; the amounts of benefits obtained for veterans; the 91
names and addresses of all certified veteran service officers, 92
including county and city veteran service officers. 93
(b) The report must also describe the actions taken by the 94
department in implementing subsections (4), (5), and (7), and 95
(8) and include other information and recommendations as the 96
department determines are necessary to provide information on 97
its annual activities requires. 98
(c)(b) The current status of the department's domiciliary 99
and nursing homes estab lished pursuant to chapter 296, including 100
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 5 of 10
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
all receipts and expenditures, the condition of the homes, the 101
number of residents received and discharged during the preceding 102
year, occupancy rates, staffing, and any other information 103
necessary to provide an und erstanding of the management, 104
conduct, and operation of the homes. 105
(d) For the report due on December 31, 2025, an evaluation 106
by the department among veterans in this state on the level of 107
health literacy and any recommendations to increase veteran 108
knowledge of available programs and services and maximize their 109
use of such resources. 110
(8) The department shall ensure coordination to the 111
greatest extent possible with the United States Department of 112
Defense to directly engage all servicemembers returning home to, 113
or electing to remain in or move to, this state following their 114
service and during re -entry into civilian life, including 115
connecting them with Florida Is For Veterans, Inc., and other 116
relevant resources. The department may engage county and city 117
veteran service officers for assistance with fulfilling this 118
duty. 119
Section 3. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 292.115, 120
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 121
292.115 Veteran Suicide Prevention Training Pilot 122
Program.— 123
(1) The Department of Vetera ns' Affairs shall establish 124
the Veteran Suicide Prevention Training Pilot Program. The 125
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 6 of 10
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
purpose of the pilot program is to offer to each Department of 126
Veterans' Affairs claims examiner and each county and city 127
veteran service officer, as described in s. 292 .11, specialized 128
mental health training and certification in the prevention of 129
veteran suicide. 130
(2) Individuals electing to participate in the pilot 131
program must be trained to identify indicators of elevated 132
mental health or suicide risk and provide emer gency crisis 133
referrals for veterans expressing or exhibiting symptoms of 134
emotional or psychological distress. The Department of Veterans' 135
Affairs shall contract with an organization having proven 136
experience developing and implementing veteran -relevant and 137
evidence-based mental health and suicide prevention training to 138
develop the curriculum for such training. The department shall 139
establish and oversee the process for certifying program 140
participants who successfully complete such training. 141
Section 4. Section 295.124, Florida Statutes, is amended 142
to read: 143
295.124 State approving agency for veterans' education and 144
training.—The Department of Veterans' Affairs shall act as the 145
state approving agency for purposes of veterans' education and 146
training, in accordance with 38 U.S.C. s. 3671 38 U.S.C. s. 1771 147
and the applicable annual contract between the state and the 148
Federal Government. 149
Section 5. Paragraph (h) is added to subsection (3) of 150
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 7 of 10
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
section 295.21, Florida Statutes, to read: 151
295.21 Florida Is For V eterans, Inc.— 152
(3) DUTIES.—The corporation shall: 153
(h) Advise the Department of Veterans' Affairs on any 154
problems or needs of retired and recently separated military 155
personnel of this state and any problems or needs of their 156
spouses which the corporatio n has knowledge of and which may be 157
within the purview of the department in fulfilling its duties. 158
Section 6. Paragraph (c) of subsection (5) of section 159
295.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 160
295.22 Veterans Employment and Training Services Pr ogram.— 161
(5) COLLABORATION.— 162
(c) The corporation may collaborate with other state 163
agencies and entities for outreach, information exchange, 164
marketing, and referrals regarding programs and initiatives that 165
include, but are not limited to, the program cre ated by this 166
section and those within any of the following: 167
1. The Department of Veterans' Affairs: 168
a. Access to benefits and assistance programs. 169
b. Hope Navigators Program. 170
2. The Department of Commerce: 171
a. The Disabled Veteran Outreach Program and local veteran 172
employment representatives. 173
b. CareerSource Florida, Inc., and local workforce boards 174
employment and recruitment services. 175
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 8 of 10
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
c. The Quick-Response Training Program. 176
d. Efforts of the direct-support organization Florida 177
Defense Support Task Force created under s. 288.987, the Florida 178
Small Business Development Center Network, and the direct 179
support organization established in s. 288.012(6). 180
3. The Department of Business and Professional Regulation, 181
reciprocity and the availability of certain license and fee 182
waivers. 183
4. The Department of Education: 184
a. CAPE industry certifications under s. 1008.44. 185
b. Information related to earning postsecondary credit at 186
public postsecondary educational institutions for college -level 187
training and education acquired in the military under s. 188
1004.096. 189
5. The Department of Health: 190
a. The Office of Veteran Licensure Services. 191
b. The Florida Veterans Application for Licensure Online 192
Response expedited licensing. 193
6. The Office of Reimagining Education and Career Help. 194
Section 7. Section 296.43, Florida Statutes, is amended to 195
read: 196
296.43 Purpose and statewide plan.— 197
(1) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this part is to provide for 198
the establishment of basic standards for the operation of 199
veterans' adult day health care programs for eligible veterans 200
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 9 of 10
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
in need of such services. 201
(2) STATEWIDE PLAN. —The department shall develop a plan to 202
establish adult day health care facilities across this state to 203
serve veterans and their families. 204
(a) The plan must include: 205
1. Recommendations for locations that will have the most 206
impact on the veteran population. In making such 207
recommendations, the department shall: 208
a. Provide an evaluation of data, including, but not 209
limited to, veteran population and veteran population 210
demographics. 211
b. Provide an assessment of anticipated veteran needs. 212
2. Potential state and federal participation. 213
3. Estimates for the daily cost of running the facilities. 214
4. Estimates for the daily cost of maintenance and gene ral 215
upkeep of the facilities. 216
5. Location of existing potential infrastructure. 217
6. Potential construction costs. 218
(b) The department shall provide a report detailing the 219
plan required by this subsection to the President of the Senate 220
and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by November 1, 221
2025. 222
Section 8. Subsection (92) of section 320.08058, Florida 223
Statutes, is amended to read: 224
320.08058 Specialty license plates. — 225
HB 1043 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1043-00
Page 10 of 10
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
(92) GADSDEN FLAG LICENSE PLATES. — 226
(a) The department shall develop a Gadsden Flag license 227
plate as provided in this section and s. 320.08053. The design 228
of the license plate must replicate the color, layout, and 229
design of the Gadsden Flag. The word "Florida" must appear at 230
the top of the plate, and the words "Don't Tread on Me" must 231
appear at the bottom of the plate. 232
(b) The annual use fees shall be distributed to the 233
Florida Veterans Foundation, a direct -support organization of 234
the Department of Veterans' Affairs, and must be used to benefit 235
veterans. Up to 10 percent of the proceeds may be used for 236
continuing promotion and marketing of the license plate and for 237
administrative costs . 238
Section 9. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 239