(Source: News Service of Florida) By News Service of Florida | April 29, 2021 at 6:35 AM EDT - Updated April 29 at 6:35 AM
TALLAHASSEE (News Service of Florida) - Hereâs whatâs on tap in the Capitol today.
Legislature:
SENATE DEMOCRATS MEET: The Senate Democratic caucus will meet to discuss issues in advance of a floor session. (9 a.m., 228 Senate Office Building. Public access at https://flsenate.zoom.us/j/9165394846?pwd=STZscXo3UVBaeVE5ZUJ 2MXpBWTBwdz09. Meeting ID: 9165394846. Passcode: 410275)
SENATE TAKES UP POLICE STANDARDS BILL: The Senate will take up numerous issues during a floor session, including a proposal (HB 7051) that would require new training standards for law-enforcement officers. The legislation is a response to the nationwide debate on policing practices after the killing of George Floyd, a Black man, by a Minneapolis police officer in May. (10 a.m., Senate chamber, the Capitol.)
Florida Republicans Pass 11th-Hour Anti-Trans Bill
The latest assault on trans youth now heads to the desk of Gov. Ron DeSantis, a far-right Trump ally. April 29 2021 11:58 AM EDT
A week after political observers declared trans-exclusionary sports legislation in Florida dead, Republicans lawmakers used a procedural shortcut on Wednesday night to pass the bill. It’s now up to Republican governor Ron DeSantis to sign or veto the measure targeting trans athletes.
The Florida House earlier this month passed a bill described as a “carbon copy” of a controversial Idaho law prohibiting trans girls and women from competing in girls and women’s collegiate sports. But in the Senate, a less exclusionary version of the bill was never heard in its final committee and seemingly shelved before reaching the Senate floor. But in the end, the Republican majority got a measure across the finish line thanks to an unfair competitive advantage in both chambers.
Lee Co. lawmakers pressure school board to restrict transgender bathroom access
Spencer Roach is ‘uninformed’ about medical pot potency, doctors say.
Spencer Roach says allowing faculty and students in wrong restrooms will lead to rapes.
Most of Lee County’s Legislative Delegation signed onto a letter demanding local schools dictate what restroom transgender students use.
“We urge you to immediately discontinue or cancel any policies that allow male students and faculty members to use the girls’ bathrooms and locker rooms in Lee County Schools,” reads a letter from Rep.
Spencer Roach, chair of the delegation.
The letter is in response to a local controversy. Hundreds of residents showed up to a recent School Board meeting, according to
WMNF
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Activists warn Florida is becoming unsafe for LGBTQ youth
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Following the passage of the ‘Parents Bill of Rights’, activists in Florida warn the state is becoming unsafe for LGBTQ youth.
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Republican Senator Kelli Stargel might’ve quashed her own bill banning transgender girls from girls sports, but the “Parents Bill of Rights” is now on its way to Gov. Ron DeSantis’s desk for his signature.
Ray Rodrigues, the bill’s Senate sponsor said the bill only gathers existing law into one place.
“What we are seeing is government power is slowly encroaching and expanding,” he said. “It will do so until the parents assert the rights that they have, but they have to know what those rights are in order to assert them.”
Originally published on April 22, 2021 3:34 pm
A House bill that passed a floor vote would effectively ban transgender women and girls from playing on female school sports teams. Its Senate companion requires these individuals to undergo hormone therapy if they want to compete on a team that aligns with their gender identity. But the Senate sponsor, Sen. Kelli Stargel (R-Lakeland), offered an amendment that would conform her bill more to the House version. The Southern Poverty Law Center s Carrie Boyd says the proposal is an attack on transgender youth. It denies children the critical life lessons that sports can teach them like leadership, teamwork, dedication, and we decided long ago in this country that discrimination is wrong, and everyone should have the same opportunities for development and success in this life, Boyd says.