Text of FL H 1119 (2026)

HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 1 of 9 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 materials harmful to minors; 2 amending s. 1006.28, F.S.; defining the term "harmful 3 to minors"; revising the list of materials used in a 4 classroom which are subject to the objection process 5 by parents or residents; reenacting s. 1014.05(1)(c), 6 F.S., relating to school district notifications on 7 parental rights, to incorporate the amendment made to 8 s. 1006.28, F.S., in a reference thereto; providing an 9 effective date. 10 11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 12 13 Section 1. Subsection (1) and paragraph (a) of subsection 14 (2) of section 1006.28, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 15 1006.28 Duties of district school board, district school 16 superintendent; and school principal regarding K-12 17 instructional materials.— 18 (1) DEFINITIONS.— 19 (a) As used in this section, the term: 20 1. "Adequate instructional materials" means a sufficient 21 number of student or site licenses or sets of materials that are 22 available in bound, unbound, kit, or package form and may 23 consist of hardbacked or softbacked textbooks, electronic 24 content, consumables, learning laboratories, manipulatives, 25 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 2 of 9 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 electronic media, and computer courseware or software that serve 26 as the basis for instruction in the core subject areas of 27 mathematics, language arts, social studies, science, reading, 28 and literature. 29 2. "Harmful to minors" means any reproduction, imitation, 30 characterization, description, exhibition, presentation, or 31 representation, of whatever kind or form, depicting nudity, 32 sexual conduct, or sexual excitement when it: 33 a. Predominantly appeals to prurient, shameful, or morbid 34 interest; and 35 b. Is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the 36 adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable 37 material or conduct for minors. 38 3.2. "Instructional materials" has the same meaning as in 39 s. 1006.29(2). 40 4.3. "Library media center" means any collection of books, 41 ebooks, periodicals, or videos maintained and accessible on the 42 site of a school, including in classrooms. 43 (b) As used in this section and s. 1006.283, the term 44 "resident" means a person who has maintained his or her 45 residence in this state for the preceding year, has purchased a 46 home that is occupied by him or her as his or her residence, or 47 has established a domicile in this state pursuant to s. 222.17. 48 (c) As used in this section and ss. 1006.283, 1006.32, 49 1006.35, 1006.37, 1006.38, 1006.40, and 1006.42, the term 50 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 3 of 9 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 "purchase" includes purchase, lease, license, and acquire. 51 (2) DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD.—The district school board has 52 the constitutional duty and responsibility to select and provide 53 adequate instructional materials for all students in accordance 54 with the requirements of this part. The district school board 55 also has the following specific duties and responsibilities: 56 (a) Courses of study; adoption.—Adopt courses of study, 57 including instructional materials, for use in the schools of the 58 district. 59 1. Each district school board is responsible for the 60 content of all instructional materials and any other materials 61 used in a classroom, made available in a school or classroom 62 library, or included on a reading list, whether adopted and 63 purchased from the state-adopted instructional materials list, 64 adopted and purchased through a district instructional materials 65 program under s. 1006.283, or otherwise purchased or made 66 available. 67 2. Each district school board must adopt a policy 68 regarding an objection by a parent or a resident of the county 69 to the use of a specific material, which clearly describes a 70 process to handle all objections and provides for resolution. 71 The objection form, as prescribed by State Board of Education 72 rule, and the district school board's process must be easy to 73 read and understand and be easily accessible on the homepage of 74 the school district's website. The objection form must also 75 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 4 of 9 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 identify the school district point of contact and contact 76 information for the submission of an objection. The process must 77 provide the parent or resident the opportunity to proffer 78 evidence to the district school board that: 79 a. An instructional material does not meet the criteria of 80 s. 1006.31(2) or s. 1006.40(3)(c) if it was selected for use in 81 a course or otherwise made available to students in the school 82 district but was not subject to the public notice, review, 83 comment, and hearing procedures under s. 1006.283(2)(b)8., 9., 84 and 11. 85 b. Any material used in a classroom, made available in a 86 school or classroom library, or included on a reading list 87 contains content which: 88 (I) Is pornographic or prohibited under s. 847.012; 89 (II) Is harmful to minors; 90 (III)(II) Depicts or describes sexual conduct as defined 91 in s. 847.001(19), unless such material is specifically 92 authorized as part of a health education course required under 93 s. 1003.46; as part of comprehensive health education required 94 under s. 1003.42(2)(o)1.g. or 3.; or as approved through for a 95 course required by s. 1003.46 or s. 1003.42(2)(o)1.g. or 3., or 96 identified by State Board of Education rule for specific 97 educational purposes; 98 (IV)(III) Is not suited to student needs and their ability 99 to comprehend the material presented; or 100 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 5 of 9 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 (V)(IV) Is inappropriate for the grade level and age group 101 for which the material is used. 102 103 A resident of the county who is not the parent or guardian of a 104 student with access to school district materials may not object 105 to more than one material per month. The State Board of 106 Education may adopt rules to implement this provision. Any 107 material that is subject to an objection on the basis of sub- 108 sub-subparagraphs b.(I)-(III) sub-sub-subparagraph b.(I) or sub- 109 sub-subparagraph b.(II) must be removed within 5 school days 110 after receipt of the objection and remain unavailable to 111 students of that school until the objection is resolved. The 112 school district may not consider potential literary, artistic, 113 political, or scientific value as a basis for retaining the 114 material if it contains material harmful to minors. Parents 115 shall have the right to read passages from any material that is 116 subject to an objection. If the school board denies a parent the 117 right to read passages due to content that meets the 118 requirements under sub-sub-subparagraph b.(I) or sub-sub- 119 subparagraph b.(II), the school district shall discontinue the 120 use of the material in the school district. If the district 121 school board finds that any material meets the requirements 122 under sub-subparagraph a. or that any other material contains 123 prohibited content under sub-sub-subparagraph b.(I) or sub-sub- 124 subparagraph b.(II), the school district shall discontinue use 125 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 6 of 9 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 of the material. If the district school board finds that any 126 other material contains prohibited content under sub-sub- 127 subparagraphs b.(III)-(V) b.(II)-(IV), the school district shall 128 discontinue use of the material for any grade level or age group 129 for which such use is inappropriate or unsuitable. The State 130 Board of Education shall monitor district compliance with the 131 requirements of sub-sub-subparagraphs b.(I)-(III) through 132 regular audits and reporting. Upon finding that a district has 133 failed to comply with these requirements, the State Board of 134 Education must provide written notice of noncompliance to the 135 district and require the district to submit a corrective action 136 plan within 30 days after receiving such notice; may withhold 137 the transfer of state funds, discretionary grant funds, 138 discretionary lottery funds, or any other funds specified by the 139 Legislature until the district complies with the requirements; 140 and may impose additional sanctions or requirements as 141 conditions for the continued receipt of state funds. 142 3. Each district school board must establish a process by 143 which the parent of a public school student or a resident of the 144 county may contest the district school board's adoption of a 145 specific instructional material. The parent or resident must 146 file a petition, on a form provided by the school board, within 147 30 calendar days after the adoption of the instructional 148 material by the school board. The school board must make the 149 form available to the public and publish the form on the school 150 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 7 of 9 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 district's website. The form must be signed by the parent or 151 resident, include the required contact information, and state 152 the objection to the instructional material based on the 153 criteria of s. 1006.31(2) or s. 1006.40(3)(c). Within 30 days 154 after the 30-day period has expired, the school board must, for 155 all petitions timely received, conduct at least one open public 156 hearing before an unbiased and qualified hearing officer. The 157 hearing officer may not be an employee or agent of the school 158 district. The hearing is not subject to the provisions of 159 chapter 120; however, the hearing must provide sufficient 160 procedural protections to allow each petitioner an adequate and 161 fair opportunity to be heard and present evidence to the hearing 162 officer. The school board's decision after convening a hearing 163 is final and not subject to further petition or review. 164 4. Meetings of committees convened for the purpose of 165 ranking, eliminating, or selecting instructional materials for 166 recommendation to the district school board must be noticed and 167 open to the public in accordance with s. 286.011. Any committees 168 convened for such purposes must include parents of students who 169 will have access to such materials. 170 5. Meetings of committees convened for the purpose of 171 resolving an objection by a parent or resident to specific 172 materials must be noticed and open to the public in accordance 173 with s. 286.011. Any committees convened for such purposes must 174 include parents of students who will have access to such 175 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 8 of 9 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 materials. 176 6. If a parent disagrees with the determination made by 177 the district school board on the objection to the use of a 178 specific material, a parent may request the Commissioner of 179 Education to appoint a special magistrate who is a member of The 180 Florida Bar in good standing and who has at least 5 years' 181 experience in administrative law. The special magistrate shall 182 determine facts relating to the school district's determination, 183 consider information provided by the parent and the school 184 district, and render a recommended decision for resolution to 185 the State Board of Education within 30 days after receipt of the 186 request by the parent. The State Board of Education must approve 187 or reject the recommended decision at its next regularly 188 scheduled meeting that is more than 7 calendar days and no more 189 than 30 days after the date the recommended decision is 190 transmitted. The costs of the special magistrate shall be borne 191 by the school district. The State Board of Education shall adopt 192 rules, including forms, necessary to implement this 193 subparagraph. 194 Section 2. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment 195 made by this act to section 1006.28, Florida Statutes, in a 196 reference thereto, paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section 197 1014.05, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 198 1014.05 School district notifications on parental rights.— 199 (1) Each district school board shall, in consultation with 200 HB 1119 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1119-00 Page 9 of 9 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 parents, teachers, and administrators, develop and adopt a 201 policy to promote parental involvement in the public school 202 system. Such policy must include: 203 (c) Procedures, pursuant to s. 1006.28(2)(a)2., for a 204 parent to object to instructional materials and other materials 205 used in the classroom. Such objections may be based on beliefs 206 regarding morality, sex, and religion or the belief that such 207 materials are harmful. For purposes of this section, the term 208 "instructional materials" has the same meaning as in s. 209 1006.29(2) and may include other materials used in the 210 classroom, including workbooks and worksheets, handouts, 211 software, applications, and any digital media made available to 212 students. 213 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 214