Florida 2025 Regular Session

Florida House Bill H1291 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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10	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
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14	14	A bill to be entitled 1
15	15	An act relating to public records; amending s. 295.22, 2
16	16	F.S.; providing an exemption from public records 3
17	17	requirements for specified materials and information 4
18	18	received, generated, ascertained, or discovered by 5
19	19	Florida Is For Veterans, Inc., while administering the 6
20	20	Veterans Florida Opportunity Program; providing for 7
21	21	future legislative review and repeal of the exemption; 8
22	22	providing a statement of public necessity; providing a 9
23	23	contingent effective date. 10
24	24	11
25	25	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 12
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27	27	Section 1. Subsection (4) of section 295.22, Florida 14
28	28	Statutes, as amended by HB 1241, 2025 Regular Session, is 15
29	29	amended to read: 16
30	30	295.22 Veterans Florida Opportunity Program. — 17
31	31	(4) ADMINISTRATION AND PUBLIC RECORDS EXEMPTION .— 18
32	32	(a) Florida Is For Veterans, Inc., shall administer the 19
33	33	Veterans Florida Opportunity Program and perform all of the 20
34	34	following functions: 21
35	35	1.(a) Conduct marketing and recrui ting efforts directed at 22
36	36	individuals within the target market who reside in or have an 23
37	37	interest in relocating to this state and who are seeking 24
38	38	employment. Marketing must include information related to how 25
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47	47	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
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51	51	military experience can be valuable to a target in dustry or 26
52	52	secondary industry business. Such efforts may include attending 27
53	53	job fairs and events; hosting events for servicemembers, 28
54	54	veterans, and their spouses or the business community; and using 29
55	55	digital and social media and direct mail campaigns. The 30
56	56	corporation shall also include such marketing as part of its 31
57	57	main marketing campaign. 32
58	58	2.(b) Assist individuals in the target market who reside 33
59	59	in or relocate to this state and who are seeking employment with 34
60	60	target industry or secondary industry businesses. The 35
61	61	corporation shall offer skills assessments to such individuals 36
62	62	and assist them in establishing employment goals and applying 37
63	63	for and achieving gainful employment. 38
64	64	a.1. Assessment may include skill match information, skill 39
65	65	gap analysis, résumé creatio n, translation of military skills 40
66	66	into civilian workforce skills, and translation of military 41
67	67	achievements and experience into generally understood civilian 42
68	68	workforce skills. 43
69	69	b.2. Assistance may include providing the servicemember, 44
70	70	veteran, or his or her spouse with information on current 45
71	71	workforce demand by industry or geographic region, creating 46
72	72	employment goals, and aiding or teaching general knowledge 47
73	73	related to completing applications. 48
74	74	c.3. Assessment and assistance may be in person or by 49
75	75	electronic means, as determined by the corporation to be most 50
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84	84	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
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88	88	efficient and best meet the needs of veterans or their spouses. 51
89	89	3.(c) Assist Florida target industry and secondary 52
90	90	industry businesses in recruiting and hiring individuals in the 53
91	91	target market. The cor poration shall provide services to Florida 54
92	92	businesses to meet their hiring needs by connecting businesses 55
93	93	with suitable applicants for employment. Suitable applicants 56
94	94	include veterans or veterans' spouses who have appropriate job 57
95	95	skills or may need additio nal training to meet the specific 58
96	96	needs of a business. The corporation shall also provide 59
97	97	information about the state and federal benefits of hiring 60
98	98	veterans. 61
99	99	4.(d) Create a grant program to provide funding to assist 62
100	100	individuals in the target market in m eeting the workforce -skill 63
101	101	needs of target industry and secondary industry businesses 64
102	102	seeking to hire, promote, or generally improve specialized 65
103	103	skills of veterans, establish criteria for approval of requests 66
104	104	for funding, and maximize the use of funding fo r this program. 67
105	105	Grant funds may be used only in the absence of available 68
106	106	veteran-specific federally funded programs. Grants may fund 69
107	107	specialized training specific to a particular business. 70
108	108	a.1. The program may prioritize grant funds to be used to 71
109	109	provide a certificate, a license, or nondegree training from the 72
110	110	Master Credentials List pursuant to s. 445.004(4)(h); any 73
111	111	federally created certifications or licenses; and any skills -74
112	112	based industry certifications or licenses deemed relevant or 75
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121	121	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
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125	125	necessary by the corporation. Funds may be allocated only upon a 76
126	126	review that includes, but is not limited to, documentation of 77
127	127	accreditation and licensure. 78
128	128	b.2. Grant reimbursements are limited to $5,000 per 79
129	129	eligible trainee per fiscal year. Qualified businesses must 80
130	130	cover the entire cost for all of the training provided before 81
131	131	receiving reimbursement from the corporation. Training costs for 82
132	132	a trainee in a fiscal year must be equal to or greater than 83
133	133	$5,000. Eligible costs and expenditures include, but are not 84
134	134	limited to: 85
135	135	(I)a. Tuition and fees. 86
136	136	(II)b. Books and classroom materials. 87
137	137	(III)c. Rental fees for facilities. 88
138	138	c.3. Before funds are allocated for a request pursuant to 89
139	139	this section, the corporation shall prepare a grant agreement 90
140	140	between the business reque sting funds and the corporation. Such 91
141	141	agreement must include, but need not be limited to: 92
142	142	(I)a. Identification of the personnel necessary to conduct 93
143	143	the instructional program, instructional program description, 94
144	144	and any vendors used to conduct the instruc tional program. 95
145	145	(II)b. Identification of the duration of the instructional 96
146	146	program. 97
147	147	(III)c. Identification of all direct, training -related 98
148	148	costs. 99
149	149	(IV)d. Identification of special program requirements that 100
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158	158	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
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162	162	are not otherwise addressed in the agreement. 101
163	163	(V)e. Permission to access aggregate information specific 102
164	164	to the wages and performance of participants upon the completion 103
165	165	of instruction for evaluation purposes. The agreement must 104
166	166	specify that any evaluation published subsequent to the 105
167	167	instruction may not identify the employer or any individual 106
168	168	participant. 107
169	169	d.4. A business may receive a grant under any state 108
170	170	program and a grant under this section for the same veteran 109
171	171	trainee. 110
172	172	e.5. Notwithstanding sub-subparagraph b. subparagraph 2., 111
173	173	grant funds may be used as educational stipends for individuals 112
174	174	in the target market while training at any location of the 113
175	175	University of Florida's Institute for Food and Agricultural 114
176	176	Sciences within this state. The corporation and the University 115
177	177	of Florida shall enter in to an agreement before any grant funds 116
178	178	are expended, and the corporation shall determine the amount and 117
179	179	structure of any educational stipend. Such stipend may be used 118
180	180	only for such training for a period of no less than 4 months and 119
181	181	no more than 6 months, i n the absence of veteran -specific 120
182	182	federally funded programs. 121
183	183	5.(e) Contract with one or more entities to administer an 122
184	184	entrepreneur initiative program for individuals in the target 123
185	185	market in this state which connects business leaders in the 124
186	186	state with such individuals seeking to become entrepreneurs. 125
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199	199	a.1. The corporation shall award each contract in 126
200	200	accordance with the competitive bidding requirements in s. 127
201	201	287.057 to one or more public or private entities that: 128
202	202	(I)a. Demonstrate the ability to implement the program and 129
203	203	the commitment of resources, including financial resources, to 130
204	204	such programs. 131
205	205	(II)b. Have a demonstrated experience working with veteran 132
206	206	entrepreneurs. 133
207	207	(III)c. As determined by the corporation, hav e been 134
208	208	recognized for their performance in assisting entrepreneurs to 135
209	209	launch successful businesses in this state. 136
210	210	b.2. Each contract must include performance metrics, 137
211	211	including a focus on employment and business creation. The 138
212	212	entity may also work with a university or college offering 139
213	213	related programs to refer individuals in the target market or to 140
214	214	provide services. The entrepreneur initiative program may 141
215	215	include activities and assistance such as peer -to-peer learning 142
216	216	sessions, mentoring, technical assista nce, business roundtables, 143
217	217	networking opportunities, support of student organizations, 144
218	218	speaker series, or other tools within a virtual environment. 145
219	219	6.(f) Administer a SkillBridge initiative for target 146
220	220	industry and secondary industry businesses in this st ate and for 147
221	221	eligible individuals in the target market who reside in, or who 148
222	222	wish to reside in, this state. In administering the initiative, 149
223	223	the corporation shall: 150
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236	236	a.1. Establish and maintain, as applicable, its 151
237	237	certification for the SkillBridge initiativ e or any other 152
238	238	similar workforce training and transition programs established 153
239	239	by the United States Department of Defense; 154
240	240	b.2. Educate businesses, business associations, and 155
241	241	eligible individuals in the target market on the SkillBridge 156
242	242	initiative and its benefits, and educate military command and 157
243	243	personnel within the state on the opportunities available to 158
244	244	eligible individuals in the target market; 159
245	245	c.3. Assist businesses in obtaining approval for skilled 160
246	246	workforce training curricula under the SkillBridge initiative, 161
247	247	including, but not limited to, apprenticeships, internships, or 162
248	248	fellowships; and 163
249	249	d.4. Match eligible individuals in the target market with 164
250	250	training opportunities offered by the corporation or 165
251	251	participating businesses, with the intent of havi ng them achieve 166
252	252	gainful employment in this state upon completion of their 167
253	253	SkillBridge training. 168
254	254	(b) Materials that relate to methods of manufacture or 169
255	255	production, potential trade secrets, potentially patentable 170
256	256	material, actual trade secrets, workforce t raining plans, 171
257	257	business transactions, business plans, military records, skills 172
258	258	assessments and career goals, resumes and contact information, 173
259	259	certificates, financial and proprietary information, and 174
260	260	agreements or proposals to receive funding which are rece ived, 175
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273	273	generated, ascertained, or discovered by Florida Is For 176
274	274	Veterans, Inc., including partnership and training participants, 177
275	275	such as private enterprises, educational institutions, and other 178
276	276	organizations, for the purposes of administering this subsection 179
277	277	are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. 180
278	278	I of the State Constitution. Aggregated data with no personal 181
279	279	identifying information for reporting purposes is not exempt. 182
280	280	This paragraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review 183
281	281	Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on 184
282	282	October 2, 2030, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through 185
283	283	reenactment by the Legislature. 186
284	284	Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public 187
285	285	necessity that information pertaining to an in dividual or 188
286	286	organization that seeks assistance, services, or training under 189
287	287	s. 295.22(4), Florida Statutes, be made confidential and exempt 190
288	288	from public records requirements under s. 119.07(1), Florida 191
289	289	Statutes, and s. 24(a), Article I of the State Constitu tion. The 192
290	290	Legislature created Florida Is For Veterans, Inc., and funds the 193
291	291	program under s. 295.22(4), Florida Statutes, administered by 194
292	292	the corporation, in order to provide assistance, services, and 195
293	293	training to separating servicemembers, veterans, and oth ers 196
294	294	through organizations such as employers, nonprofits, and 197
295	295	universities in the areas of career placement and training and 198
296	296	entrepreneurship training to support workforce and economic 199
297	297	development within this state. Making information, such as 200
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310	310	resumes of job seekers, entrepreneurship business plans, and 201
311	311	employer workforce training plans and curricula, publicly 202
312	312	available exposes those individuals and organizations to risk of 203
313	313	loss of personal privacy and theft of confidential business 204
314	314	information. Without the public records exemption, the state 205
315	315	would be unable to effectively and efficiently implement and 206
316	316	administer the program. 207
317	317	Section 3. This act shall take effect on the same date 208
318	318	that HB 1241 or similar legislation takes effect , if such 209
319	319	legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an 210
320	320	extension thereof and becomes a law. 211