HB 1313

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to students with disabilities; amending
3	ss. 1002.33, 1002.39, 1003.01, 1003.21, and 1003.438 F.S.,
4	relating to charter schools, the John M. McKay
5	Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program,
6	school attendance, and high school graduation
7	requirements; revising the terminology used to identify
8	students with certain disabilities; amending ss. 1007.02,
9	1007.264, and 1007.265, F.S., relating to postsecondary
10	education; revising the terminology used to identify
11	students with intellectual, emotional, or behavioral
12	disabilities; providing an effective date.
13
14	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
15
16	Section 1.  Paragraph (f) of subsection (10) of section
17	1002.33, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
18	1002.33  Charter schools.--
19	(10)  ELIGIBLE STUDENTS.--
20	(f)  Students with disabilities handicapping conditions and
21	students served in English for Speakers of Other Languages
22	programs shall have an equal opportunity of being selected for
23	enrollment in a charter school.
24	Section 2.  Subsection (1) of section 1002.39, Florida
25	Statutes, is amended to read:
26	1002.39  The John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with
27	Disabilities Program.--There is established a program that is
28	separate and distinct from the Opportunity Scholarship Program
29	and is named the John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with
30	Disabilities Program.
31	(1)  THE JOHN M. MCKAY SCHOLARSHIPS FOR STUDENTS WITH
32	DISABILITIES PROGRAM.--The John M. McKay Scholarships for
33	Students with Disabilities Program is established to provide the
34	option to attend a public school other than the one to which
35	assigned, or to provide a scholarship to a private school of
36	choice, for students with disabilities for whom an individual
37	educational education plan has been written in accordance with
38	rules of the State Board of Education. Students with
39	disabilities include K-12 students who are documented as having
40	an intellectual disability a mental handicap, including
41	trainable, profound, or educable; a speech impairment; a or
42	language impairment; a hearing impairment, including deafness; a
43	visual impairment, including blindness; a dual sensory
44	impairment; an orthopedic a physical impairment or other health
45	impairment; a serious emotional disturbance, including an
46	emotional or behavioral disability handicap; a specific learning
47	disability, including, but not limited to, dyslexia,
48	dyscalculia, or developmental aphasia; a traumatic brain injury;
49	a developmental delay; or autism spectrum disorder.
50	Section 3.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section
51	1003.01, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
52	1003.01  Definitions.--As used in this chapter, the term:
53	(3)(a)  "Exceptional student" means any student who has
54	been determined eligible for a special program in accordance
55	with rules of the State Board of Education. The term includes
56	students who are gifted; and students who have an intellectual
57	disability, autism spectrum disorder, a speech impairment, a
58	language impairment, an orthopedic impairment or other health
59	impairment, traumatic brain injury, a visual impairment, an
60	emotional or behavioral disability, or a specific learning
61	disability; students who are deaf or hard of hearing or dual
62	sensory impaired; children who are hospitalized or homebound;
63	children with developmental delays; and with disabilities who
64	are mentally handicapped, speech and language impaired, deaf or
65	hard of hearing, visually impaired, dual sensory impaired,
66	physically impaired, emotionally handicapped, specific learning
67	disabled, hospital and homebound, autistic, developmentally
68	delayed children, ages birth through 5 years, or children, ages
69	birth through 2 years, with established conditions that are
70	identified in State Board of Education rules pursuant to s.
71	1003.21(1)(e).
72	Section 4.  Paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of section
73	1003.21, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
74	1003.21  School attendance.--
75	(1)
76	(e)  Consistent with rules adopted by the State Board of
77	Education, children with disabilities who have attained the age
78	of 3 years shall be eligible for admission to public special
79	education programs and for related services under rules adopted
80	by the district school board. Exceptional Children with
81	disabilities younger than 3 years of age who are deaf or hard of
82	hearing, visually impaired, dual sensory impaired,
83	orthopedically impaired, or otherwise health impaired; who have
84	experienced traumatic brain injury; severely physically
85	handicapped, trainable mentally handicapped, or profoundly
86	handicapped, or who have autism spectrum disorder; established
87	conditions, or who exhibit developmental delays or intellectual
88	disabilities, below age 3 may be eligible for special programs
89	and may receive services in accordance with rules of the State
90	Board of Education; or, if enrolled in other school readiness
91	programs, they may be eligible for supplemental instruction.
92	Rules for the identification of established conditions for
93	children birth through 2 years of age and developmental delays
94	for children birth through 5 years of age must be adopted by the
95	State Board of Education.
96	Section 5.  Section 1003.438, Florida Statutes, is amended
97	to read:
98	1003.438  Special high school graduation requirements for
99	certain exceptional students.--A student who has been identified
100	properly classified, in accordance with rules established by the
101	State Board of Education, as a student with disabilities who has
102	an intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder, a language
103	impairment, an orthopedic impairment or other health impairment,
104	a traumatic brain injury, an emotional or behavioral disability,
105	or a specific learning disability or a student who is deaf or
106	hard of hearing, or dual sensory impaired "educable mentally
107	handicapped," "trainable mentally handicapped," "hearing
108	impaired," "specific learning disabled," "physically or language
109	impaired," or "emotionally handicapped" shall not be required to
110	meet all requirements of s. 1003.43 or s. 1003.428 and shall,
111	upon meeting all applicable requirements prescribed by the
112	district school board pursuant to s. 1008.25, be awarded a
113	special diploma in a form prescribed by the commissioner;
114	however, such special graduation requirements prescribed by the
115	district school board must include minimum graduation
116	requirements as prescribed by the commissioner. Any such student
117	who meets all special requirements of the district school board
118	for exceptionality, but is unable to meet the appropriate
119	special state minimum requirements, shall be awarded a special
120	certificate of completion in a form prescribed by the
121	commissioner. A student who has been properly classified as
122	"profoundly handicapped" and who meets the special requirements
123	of the district school board for a special diploma in accordance
124	with requirements for any exceptional student identified in this
125	section shall be awarded a special diploma; however, such a
126	student shall alternatively be eligible for a special
127	certificate of completion, in a form prescribed by the
128	commissioner, if all school requirements for students who are
129	"profoundly handicapped" have been met. However, this section
130	does not limit or restrict the right of an exceptional student
131	solely to a special diploma or special certificate of
132	completion. Any such student shall, upon proper request, be
133	afforded the opportunity to fully meet all requirements of s.
134	1003.43 or s. 1003.428 through the standard procedures
135	established therein and thereby to qualify for a standard
136	diploma upon graduation.
137	Section 6.  Subsection (2) of section 1007.02, Florida
138	Statutes, is amended to read:
139	1007.02  Access to postsecondary education and meaningful
140	careers for students with disabilities; popular name;
141	definition.--
142	(2)  For the purposes of this act, the term "student with a
143	disability" means any student who is documented as having an
144	intellectual disability mental retardation; a hearing
145	impairment, including deafness; a speech or language impairment;
146	a visual impairment, including blindness; an emotional or
147	behavioral disability a serious emotional disturbance, including
148	an emotional handicap; an orthopedic or other health impairment;
149	autism spectrum disorder; a traumatic brain injury; or a
150	specific learning disability, including, but not limited to,
151	dyslexia, dyscalculia, or developmental aphasia.
152	Section 7.  Section 1007.264, Florida Statutes, is amended
153	to read:
154	1007.264  Persons with learning disabilities Impaired and
155	learning disabled persons; admission to postsecondary
156	educational institutions; substitute requirements; rules.--
157	(1)  Any student with a disability, as defined in s.
158	1007.02(2), except those students who have been documented as
159	having intellectual disabilities mental retardation, shall be
160	eligible for reasonable substitution for any requirement for
161	admission into a public postsecondary educational institution
162	where documentation can be provided that the person's failure to
163	meet the admission requirement is related to the disability.
164	(2)  The State Board of Education, in consultation with the
165	Board of Governors, shall adopt rules to implement this section
166	for community colleges and shall develop substitute admission
167	requirements where appropriate.
168	(3)  The Board of Governors, in consultation with the State
169	Board of Education, shall adopt rules to implement this section
170	for state universities and shall develop substitute admission
171	requirements where appropriate.
172	Section 8.  Section 1007.265, Florida Statutes, is amended
173	to read:
174	1007.265  Persons with disabilities Impaired and learning
175	disabled persons; graduation, study program admission, and
176	upper-division entry; substitute requirements; rules.--
177	(1)  Any student with a disability, as defined in s.
178	1007.02(2), in a public postsecondary educational institution,
179	except those students who have been documented as having
180	intellectual disabilities mental retardation, shall be eligible
181	for reasonable substitution for any requirement for graduation,
182	for admission into a program of study, or for entry into the
183	upper division where documentation can be provided that the
184	person's failure to meet the requirement is related to the
185	disability and where failure to meet the graduation requirement
186	or program admission requirement does not constitute a
187	fundamental alteration in the nature of the program.
188	(2)  The State Board of Education, in consultation with the
189	Board of Governors, shall adopt rules to implement this section
190	for community colleges and shall develop substitute requirements
191	where appropriate.
192	(3)  The Board of Governors, in consultation with the State
193	Board of Education, shall adopt rules to implement this section
194	for state universities and shall develop substitute requirements
195	where appropriate.
196	Section 9.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.