Florida Laws Changing on July 1: From Condos To Dangerous Dogs
Many are in response to observed issues concerning the health of student athletes as well as other threats to Floridians such as opioids and dangerous dogs.
Drawn from media reports and state legislation, below are some of the most significant new laws taking effect in Florida from Tuesday.
SB 1514: Anaphylaxis in Public and Charter Schools
The bill, approved by Governor Ron DeSantis in May, requires each district and charter school board to ensure that adequate training is provided to school personnel regarding anaphylactic shocks-potentially life-threatening reactions to allergens. Training should ensure that school personnel are able to recognize the signs of anaphylaxis and know how to administer an epinephrine delivery device, or EpiPen.
SB 1070: Electrocardiograms for Student Athletes
The bill, also known as the "Second Chance Act," requires the Florida High School Athletic Association to increase the use of electrocardiogram (EKG) tests for student athletes and adopt policies barring students with abnormal EKGs from participating in sports without medical clearance. It mandates athletes to complete at least one screening before participating in interscholastic athletic competitions. It comes after a student from Port St. Joe High School student died while competing in a football game in September last year.
HB 597: Diabetes Management in Schools
The bill, referred to the House of Representative's educational and health subcommittees, aims to ensure schools are better equipped to handle diabetic emergencies. It authorizes schools to maintain stocks of undesignated glucagon, a medication used to treat severe hypoglycemia, authorizing flexible acquisition options such as via purchase, reduced pricing, free donation and transferred supplies that meet certain safety standards. It also requires that these glucagon supplies be kept in secure and easily accessible storage.
HB 593: Dangerous Dogs
The "Pam Rock Act" is aimed at regulating dangerous dogs and increasing the penalty for owners whose pets cause serious injury or death. The bill, unanimously passed in both chambers, was named after Pamela Rock, a woman killed in 2022 by a group of dogs with known histories of aggressive behaviour. HB 593 requires that dogs which have killed or seriously injured a human be confiscated, and that owners of dogs classified as dangerous obtain liability insurance of at least $100,000, microchip the dogs and securely confine them in suitable enclosures.
HB 255: Aggravated Animal Cruelty
Otherwise known as "Dexter's Law," this provides harsher sentences for individuals involved in aggravated cases of animal cruelty, while making it more likely that those found guilty of these crimes will go to prison. The bill was named after Dexter, a rescue dog who was adopted in 2024 and found beheaded in a public park days later. The bill will also create an online database of convicted animal abusers, allowing pet adoption services to screen applicants.
HB 351: Dangerous Excessive Speeding
This bill will impose harsher penalties and jail time for those who exceed speed limits by 50 miles per hour or more, or those who operate a vehicle at 100 mph or more "in a manner that threatens the safety of other persons or property or interferes with the operation of any vehicle." Those convicted of "dangerous excessive speeding" will face imprisonment of up to 30 days, a fine of $500 or both. Subsequent convictions will be punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a fine of $1,000 or both.
HB 913: Condominium and Cooperative Associations
The bill prohibits anyone whose community association manager (CAM) license is revoked from having any ownership interest in a community association management firm-a company contracted by a homeowner's association to handle the day-to-day management of a community-for a specified period. CAMS must also maintain up-to-date online accounts with Florida's Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
SB 1388: Vessels
The "Boater Freedom Act" is designed to safeguard access to Florida's waters and reduce regulatory impediments for boaters. It bars local government entities from banning gas-powered boats, prohibits authorities from conducting vessel inspections without probable case, and directs the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to proactively provide Florida Freedom Boater decals which will demonstrate to law enforcement that boaters have "taken the necessary steps to maintain proper safety requirements," per a statement on the governor's website.
HB 279: False Reporting
HB 279 aims to increase the penalties for those who misuse emergency communication services, specifically in cases where this results in serious harm or death. If found guilty of making false emergency calls-or "swatting"-individuals will have to pay restitution to victims as well as expenses incurred by law enforcement.
SB 994: Driver License Education Requirements
The bill requires that anyone aged 18 or older applying for a driver license must first complete a traffic law and substance abuse education course. Learner driver licenses may also be issued for anyone aged 15 who has completed an approved driver education course.
HB 259: Special Observances
HB 259 designates August 21 as Florida's Fentanyl Awareness & Education Day, encouraging schools to "sponsor events to promote awareness of dangers of fentanyl & potential overdoses" on this date.
HB 549: Gulf of America
This bill requires state agencies to rename the Gulf of Mexico in all geographic materials, reflecting the change adopted at the federal level earlier this year. The bill also mandates that public and charter schools adopt the new name in instructional and library materials after July 1.
HB 209: State Land Management
The legislation, also referred to as the "State Park Preservation Act," mandates that the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) encourage the protection of the state's public lands for recreational use. HB 209, which passed both chambers unanimously, also encourages transparency from the DEP regarding the use of public lands with public hearings and publicly available electronic copies of land management plans for parcels of a certain size and those located in state parks.
SB 700: Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Also known as the "Florida Farm Bill," this was signed into law by DeSantis in May. It introduces several departmental reforms, including expanded authority over hiring practices, giving the agency greater flexibility in staffing decisions. While it does not specifically mention the word fluoride, the bill bans "the use of certain additives in a water system" which do not meet strict new requirements. In effect, this will make Florida the second state after Utah to ban fluoride from public drinking water.
Florida Representative Judson Sapp, who sponsored the Dangerous Dogs bill, said: "This bill addresses the rising number of attacks and fatalities caused by dangerous dogs in Florida by clearly defining what constitutes a dangerous dog, establishing a tracking system, and providing a process for removal when necessary. At the same time, it includes safeguards to prevent misidentification and protect responsible pet owners."
Florida Representative Anne Gerwig, sponsor of the Special Observances bill, said: "Thousands of lives are lost every year due to opioid and fentanyl overdoses and this particularly affects our young adults and youth. Some lives are lost due to unintentional exposure including babies, young children and public servants that come into contact with this drug. The pain of addiction and the loss of lives due to fentanyl touches almost every family.
"Bringing awareness of the dangers and hope for those that need it can change lives. By bringing attention to the fact that almost 60,000 lives were lost to fentanyl last year, we can spread awareness of this deadly crisis."
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Miami Herald
a day ago
- Miami Herald
Why Florida is missing out on $200 million a year in Medicaid funding for schools
Florida lawmakers reached a rare consensus after the deadly Parkland school shooting: More money was needed for mental health counseling at schools. 'We haven't put enough resources into mental health issues,' said then-Sen. Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples. 'And look what happens.' Two years later, lawmakers passed a bill allowing Medicaid dollars assigned to school districts to be used for more types of care for kids, including counseling. But state officials didn't adopt the changes. And they have refused to comply with federal guidelines that would help school districts provide that care. Florida schools have missed out on about $200 million a year in Medicaid funding — a total of $2.2 billion since 2014 — to support children's mental health counseling, physical therapy and other services, advocates say. Their calls to recoup funding come as schools face multimillion-dollar shortfalls in the budget year that began July 1 — and as kids struggle with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. They say the problems lie with the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, which oversees Medicaid in the state and reports to Gov. Ron DeSantis. Documents show that for more than a decade, the agency hasn't followed federal reimbursement guidelines for school-based services — one of the few areas of Medicaid the Trump administration and Congress have not targeted for reductions. The federal program provides in-school medical care and instruction for school-age children with physical or developmental disabilities who qualify for Medicaid. About 2 million children in Florida are on Medicaid, which provides free or low-cost health care to people who qualify. Without the money, school districts have struggled to find therapists, nurses and others to treat children. Some kids experienced lower-quality care or had that care delayed during critical periods of their lives, observers say. The state agency strayed from federal guidelines in 2014, when the U.S. government changed its rules regarding the reimbursements. Experts consulted by the Times said Florida is one of the few states, and perhaps the only one, that is using the outdated payment method. The federal Center for Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program Services warned the agency in 2020 that it was 'not in compliance with current financing rules,' but no substantial action followed. Over that time, instead of collecting $2.2 billion from federal coffers to cover school-based expenses, the state received about $250 million. With money tight, school officials want the agency to make the necessary fixes. 'This is a significant agency failure,' said Ken Kniepmann, former state assistant deputy secretary for Medicaid Policy and Quality at the agency. He was hired in part to improve the system but said he was later instructed to stop. 'It's really unconscionable. Nobody should be OK with this.' A spokesperson for the agency said it did not have sufficient funding to update its reimbursement method until this year's legislative session, and it is committed to getting it done next year. Kniepmann said the agency had not asked the Legislature for permission to draw down the federal dollars needed to enact the changes until this year. The Hillsborough County school board held a workshop in April to address the Medicaid funding gap. Hillsborough received about $6 million in Medicaid reimbursements a year ago for the services it provided, specialist Deneen Gorassini told her board, but would have gotten about $10 million more if the state agency followed federal guidelines. It's money that could have expanded medical and mental health services in schools. Other districts experienced similar-sized gaps, according to Kniepmann's calculations. 'If we can get (the agency) to do their job and submit a (state plan amendment), we could start getting reimbursed based on our expenses, which are way more than what we are getting reimbursed now,' Gorassini told the board. Since 1997, the state has been reimbursing school districts for services — such as counseling or speech therapy — based on a flat rate. In 2014, the federal government required states to reimburse school districts based on the actual costs of those services, which is much higher. Five years ago, federal officials wrote Florida telling them it hadn't adopted the change, and the state had 90 days to comply. 'Please note that you may not pay a rate from a fee schedule and use this as a certification of cost,' Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services acting director Todd McMillion wrote Florida officials in March 2020. The center said it is working with the state to resolve the concerns listed in that letter. Florida is still paying schools a flat rate that has changed little since 1997. Karen Thomas, a Medicaid specialist for Leon County schools for more than 20 years, said that while the formulas are complex, the solution should be 'extremely simple.' 'We're 90% there, maybe 95% already, in the way we are doing things,' Thomas said of districts' processes for collecting receipts and monitoring providers' time. 'They have everything they need to be in compliance with federal payment methodology. They just need to change the invoice, one line on the invoice. ... The fault is squarely in the agency's failure to come into compliance.' The state has shown it can make the switch, Thomas said. She pointed out that when federal authorities ordered county health departments to start billing for actual costs instead of flat rates in 2020, the state quickly shifted. She noted that school-based services are 'a very niche portion' of the state's Medicaid budget — somewhere in the neighborhood of 1% — and that over time agency officials have paid less attention to them, decreasing communication with school districts and reducing staff dedicated to the service. The issue shouldn't be a side note, as it affects the lives of some of Florida's neediest children, she said. And the pandemic made kids' mental health a national crisis. 'Kids used to miss school because of asthma,' Thomas said. 'Now they're missing school because of anxiety and depression.' After the 2018 Parkland attack, state lawmakers wanted to make sure students were getting proper mental health assistance in schools. In 2020, they passed legislation allowing schools to use Medicaid dollars for other types of care. DeSantis signed it into law. But his Agency for Health Care Administration never rewrote the agency's rules to allow school districts to use the new law. 'The law was very clear,' said retired Sen. Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee, who sponsored the 2020 bill. 'Why they didn't do it I don't know.' Rep. Christine Hunchofsky, a Democrat who represents Parkland in the House, repeatedly has asked agency officials if the state is doing all it can to leverage federal money for student services. The issue comes up frequently on the Commission on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder, to which Hunchofsky was appointed by the Republican House speaker. She said the agency has provided few clear answers. Meanwhile, she's heard plenty from the school districts, and said she plans to pursue the questions further. Montford, also executive director of the state's superintendents association, said agency officials have told his group that they are preparing a rule revision to go into effect in mid-2026. That's when states are supposed to comply with an updated 2023 federal guidance on school-based services. But Kniepmann, who worked as associate director for health at the Florida Conference for Catholic Bishops before moving to the health agency, argued the state is stalling for reasons that remain unclear to him. He said the 2023 guidance was not intended to be a way for Florida to further delay implementing rules put in place more than a decade ago. Every holdup, he and others said, means less money available to pay for medical and related services. 'Eleven years and $2.2 billion is not a little thing,' he said. Hillsborough district officials, also leery of the state's ability to pull off a new rule by mid-2026, said they are looking into a different approach to bring in more Medicaid money. Gorassini told the board that her department would conduct a rate study for each service it provides and submit the updated amounts to the state for inclusion on the existing reimbursement schedule. Kniepmann said it's a long-shot effort that requires a lot of work at the district level, adding that the agency has discouraged such an approach. It's worth a shot, though, Gorassini told the Hillsborough school board. 'We'll never get what we spend,' she said. 'But in the meantime we're going to try to maximize our reimbursement.' What's really at stake is student health, said Thomas, the Leon County Medicaid specialist who also serves on the National Alliance for Medicaid in Education leadership team. Her district stands to reap about $2 million more per year if the change is made. 'That is the difference between being able to hire actual medical professionals who have the ability to recognize actual medical issues, and purchase medical equipment, actual things that could help the children that are most medically needy in this county,' she said. 'When I can't afford to pay for a nurse, all kids suffer.'
Axios
15-07-2025
- Axios
How Trump's "big, beautiful bill" could affect Miami
President Trump's " big, beautiful bill" could hurt low-income Miamians who rely on food stamps and government-subsidized health care. The big picture: Trump's tax and spending bill will slash federal funding from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which nearly a quarter of Miami-Dade County households rely on for groceries, according to the Miami Herald. Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill's passage will leave nearly 2 million Floridians without health care by 2034, a result of new Medicaid rules and the expiration of Affordable Care Act subsidies, the Palm Beach Post reports. How it works: The bill, which reduces federal payments to states for SNAP benefits, would require states like Florida with high payment error rates to pay between 5% and 15% of their total food stamp costs beginning in 2028. States that can't afford to pay their share of SNAP benefits might cut benefits or opt out of the program, per the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Meanwhile, new work requirements for some Medicaid recipients and requirements that states conduct eligibility checks twice a year could lead to higher state costs and coverage loss for enrolled Floridians. What they're saying:"If you're someone who relies on social programs, you're going to be negatively affected," University of South Florida economics professor Michael Snipes tells Axios Tampa Bay. Food banks, like Feeding South Florida, have warned that SNAP cuts could increase food insecurity. In Miami-Dade, Feeding South Florida estimates that 400,000 residents don't have enough food to eat or know where their next meal will come from, the Herald reported. Feeding South Florida says the county's food insecurity rate is up 50% from 2019, per the Herald. The other side: Proponents of the bill, which will cut $4 trillion in taxes, say changes to Medicaid and food stamps will curb abuse and encourage able-bodied people to work to receive government benefits.
Miami Herald
15-07-2025
- Miami Herald
What's making us sick in Miami? Heat, hurricanes, insects. Take a look
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