Florida Senate - 2018 SB 1644
By Senator Lee
20-01335C-18 20181644__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to instructional materials; amending
3 s. 1006.283, F.S.; requiring district school board
4 rules to include a longer public review period for
5 student editions of recommended instructional
6 materials; requiring district school boards to
7 establish by rule a process by which certain persons
8 may recommend instructional materials for
9 consideration by district instructional materials
10 reviewers; requiring a district school board to
11 provide notification to certain publishers; amending
12 s. 1006.31, F.S.; requiring public access to and an
13 opportunity to comment on instructional materials
14 recommended for adoption; requiring certain comments
15 to be provided to the Commissioner of Education;
16 requiring specified virtual presentations to be posted
17 on the Department of Education’s website; authorizing
18 members of the public to recommend instructional
19 materials for consideration; requiring the Department
20 of Education to provide notification to certain
21 publishers; conforming a cross-reference; amending s.
22 1006.34, F.S.; exempting certain instructional
23 materials from certain public review procedures;
24 authorizing district school board members to initiate
25 certain public review procedures before instructional
26 materials are adopted under certain conditions;
27 amending s. 1006.40, F.S.; conforming a provision to
28 changes made by the act; providing an effective date.
29
30 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
31
32 Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section
33 1006.283, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
34 1006.283 District school board instructional materials
35 review process.—
36 (2)
37 (b) District school board rules must also:
38 1. Identify, by subject area, a review cycle for
39 instructional materials.
40 2. Specify the qualifications for an instructional
41 materials reviewer and the process for selecting reviewers; list
42 a reviewer’s duties and responsibilities, including compliance
43 with the requirements of s. 1006.31; and provide that all
44 instructional materials recommended by a reviewer be accompanied
45 by the reviewer’s statement that the materials align with the
46 state standards pursuant to s. 1003.41 and the requirements of
47 s. 1006.31.
48 3. State the requirements for an affidavit to be made by
49 each district instructional materials reviewer which
50 substantially meet the requirements of s. 1006.30.
51 4. Comply with s. 1006.32, relating to prohibited acts.
52 5. Establish a process that certifies the accuracy of
53 instructional materials.
54 6. Incorporate applicable requirements of s. 1006.31, which
55 relates to the duties of instructional materials reviewers.
56 7. Incorporate applicable requirements of s. 1006.38,
57 relating to the duties, responsibilities, and requirements of
58 publishers of instructional materials.
59 8. Establish the process by which instructional materials
60 are adopted by the district school board, which must include:
61 a. A process to allow student editions of recommended
62 instructional materials to be accessed and viewed online by the
63 public at least 45 20 calendar days before the school board
64 hearing and public meeting as specified in this subparagraph.
65 This process must include reasonable safeguards against the
66 unauthorized use, reproduction, and distribution of
67 instructional materials considered for adoption.
68 b. An open, noticed school board hearing to receive public
69 comment on the recommended instructional materials.
70 c. An open, noticed public meeting to approve an annual
71 instructional materials plan to identify any instructional
72 materials that will be purchased through the district school
73 board instructional materials review process pursuant to this
74 section. This public meeting must be held on a different date
75 than the school board hearing.
76 d. Notice requirements for the school board hearing and the
77 public meeting that must specifically state which instructional
78 materials are being reviewed and the manner in which the
79 instructional materials can be accessed for public review. The
80 hearing must allow the parent of a public school student or a
81 resident of the county to proffer evidence that a recommended
82 instructional material does not meet the criteria provided in s.
83 1006.31(2), taking into consideration course expectations based
84 on the district’s comprehensive plan for student progression
85 under s. 1008.25(2) and course descriptions in the course code
86 directory.
87 9. Establish the process by which the district school board
88 shall receive public comment on, and review, the recommended
89 instructional materials.
90 10. Establish the process by which instructional materials
91 will be purchased, including advertising, bidding, and
92 purchasing requirements.
93 11. Establish the process by which the school district will
94 notify parents of their ability to access their children’s
95 instructional materials through the district’s local
96 instructional improvement system and by which the school
97 district will encourage parents to access the system. This
98 notification must be displayed prominently on the school
99 district’s website and provided annually in written format to
100 all parents of enrolled students.
101 12. Establish the process by which parents and residents of
102 the county, as defined in s. 1006.28(1)(b), may recommend
103 instructional materials for consideration by district
104 instructional materials reviewers. The district school board
105 must notify the publisher of any instructional material that is
106 recommended for consideration and provide the publisher with the
107 Florida Instructional Materials Adoption Schedule for the
108 current adoption cycle.
109 Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 1006.31, Florida
110 Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to that
111 section, to read:
112 1006.31 Duties of the Department of Education and school
113 district instructional materials reviewer.—The duties of the
114 instructional materials reviewer are:
115 (2) EVALUATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS.—To use the
116 selection criteria listed in s. 1006.34(2)(c) s. 1006.34(2)(b)
117 and recommend for adoption only those instructional materials
118 aligned with the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards
119 provided for in s. 1003.41. Instructional materials recommended
120 by each reviewer shall be, to the satisfaction of each reviewer,
121 accurate, objective, balanced, noninflammatory, current, free of
122 pornography and material prohibited under s. 847.012, and suited
123 to student needs and their ability to comprehend the material
124 presented. Reviewers shall consider for recommendation materials
125 developed for academically talented students, such as students
126 enrolled in advanced placement courses. When recommending
127 instructional materials, each reviewer shall:
128 (a) Include only instructional materials that accurately
129 portray the ethnic, socioeconomic, cultural, religious,
130 physical, and racial diversity of our society, including men and
131 women in professional, career, and executive roles, and the role
132 and contributions of the entrepreneur and labor in the total
133 development of this state and the United States.
134 (b) Include only materials that accurately portray,
135 whenever appropriate, humankind’s place in ecological systems,
136 including the necessity for the protection of our environment
137 and conservation of our natural resources and the effects on the
138 human system of the use of tobacco, alcohol, controlled
139 substances, and other dangerous substances.
140 (c) Include materials that encourage thrift, fire
141 prevention, and humane treatment of people and animals.
142 (d) Require, when appropriate to the comprehension of
143 students, that materials for social science, history, or civics
144 classes contain the Declaration of Independence and the
145 Constitution of the United States. A reviewer may not recommend
146 any instructional materials that contain any matter reflecting
147 unfairly upon persons because of their race, color, creed,
148 national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, disability,
149 socioeconomic status, or occupation.
150 (4) PUBLIC ACCESS AND INPUT.—Members of the public must be
151 provided access to, and be given an opportunity to submit
152 comments on, instructional materials recommended for adoption by
153 state instructional materials reviewers. Any submitted comment
154 related to a specific recommended instructional material must be
155 provided to the commissioner as part of his or her consideration
156 of the instructional material pursuant to s. 1006.34(2)(a). Any
157 virtual presentation provided by a bidding instructional
158 material publisher or manufacturer must be posted on the
159 department’s website for public access until the adoption period
160 closes. Members of the public must also be allowed to recommend
161 any instructional material for consideration by state
162 instructional materials reviewers. The Department of Education
163 must notify the publisher of any instructional material that is
164 recommended for consideration and provide the publisher with the
165 Florida Instructional Materials Adoption Schedule for the
166 current adoption cycle.
167 Section 3. Present paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of
168 section 1006.34, Florida Statutes, is redesignated as paragraph
169 (c), and a new paragraph (b) is added to that subsection, to
170 read:
171 1006.34 Powers and duties of the commissioner and the
172 department in selecting and adopting instructional materials.—
173 (2) SELECTION AND ADOPTION OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS.—
174 (b) Instructional materials are not subject to public
175 review procedures under s. 1006.40(4)(b) if the materials are
176 found by the commissioner to fully meet or be more rigorous than
177 the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards under s. 1003.41
178 and are found to comply with the adoption criteria and standards
179 of paragraph (c) and s. 1003.42 and are not prohibited by ss.
180 847.012 and 1002.206. However, a district school board member
181 may initiate the public review procedures before the
182 instructional materials are adopted by the commissioner if he or
183 she has evidence that the instructional materials do not meet
184 the criteria required by this paragraph.
185 Section 4. Paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section
186 1006.40, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
187 1006.40 Use of instructional materials allocation;
188 instructional materials, library books, and reference books;
189 repair of books.—
190 (4) Each district school board is responsible for the
191 content of all materials used in a classroom or otherwise made
192 available to students. Each district school board shall adopt
193 rules, and each district school superintendent shall implement
194 procedures, that:
195 (b) Except as provided in s. 1006.34(2)(b), provide a
196 process for public review of, public comment on, and the
197 adoption of instructional materials that satisfies the
198 requirements of s. 1006.283(2)(b)8., 9., and 11.
199 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.