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Updated 4/27
Senate Bill 86 was introduced in the Florida Legislature and passed the full Senate on a nearly party line vote with two Republicans dissenting. This proposed legislation breaks the promise the state made to its best and brightest students giving them a very uncertain future for their college education.
This bill requires the scholarship award amounts to be determined annually by the state budget. IF PASSED, THIS BILL WOULD HAVE ELIMINATED THE GUARANTEED 100% OR 75% TUITION AWARDS. (Instead of Bright Futures, the monies will likely be used to fund the massive voucher program found in SB 48 that is flying through the Senate.) The bill also makes changes to how funds are carried forward and cancels a provision to offer non-resident students the Benaquisto Scholarship.
If passed, this legislation provideD no consistency for the annual award amount. This prevents students from being able to financially plan for college and leaves the amount to political interests.
THIS BILL FAILED AS THE HOUSE REFUSED TO HEAR THIS BILL. They did pass language to discontinue the Out of State Benaquisto Scholarship after the 2021-2022 school year. The budget eliminates the $600 book stipend this year but leaves the language in statute so that it could be funded in future years.
Write your own message below and send it via email and/or Twitter. Use our sample messaging if you must but this is less effective than your own words. Include a personal reason why this issue is meaningful to you. It is important for elected officials to hear from you. Then, share this effort with your friends. Together, we can make a difference for children.
This action is for constituents of Florida only so you must use a Florida zip code to participate. However, you can still help! Please share the link to this effort with your Florida friends and family and ask them to take action. Thank you!
1. SPREAD THE WORD - Please select a social media channel below and share this with anyone else who might be interested in saving Bright Futures.
2. PROTECT FUNDING - SB 48 drains funding away from schools (including potentially Bright Futures) and funnels it, in the form of free vouchers, directly to privately owned schools with no accountability or oversight. Tell your senator and representative to protect public education funding at all4schools.org/vouchers
3. VISIT http://all4schools.org/advocacy/ to take action on other important education issues like funding/budgets for schools, colleges and universities!