THE BILL ITSELF
CS/CS/HB 1059
Speech and Debate Education
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A bill to be entitled
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An act relating to speech and debate education;
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creating s. 683.221, F.S.; designating Florida Speech
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and Debate Week annually in February; providing
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purposes for the annual observance; authorizing
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specified entities to observe Florida Speech and
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Debate Week; creating s. 1000.09, F.S.; subject to
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legislative appropriation, establishing the Florida
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Debate Initiative, Inc., (FDI) as a statewide speech
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and debate organization that performs certain
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functions in support of the Florida Civics and Debate
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Initiative (FCDI) in the Department of Education;
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providing the duties of the FDI; providing
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construction; authorizing the FDI to establish and
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maintain certain partnerships; specifying activities
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for the FDI and FCDI; providing authorized uses of
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funds for the FDI; requiring the FDI to publish a
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report online and submit the report to the department
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annually by a specified date; specifying requirements
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for the report; requiring the FCDI to annually provide
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certain data to the FDI by a specified date; providing
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an effective date.
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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Section 1. Section 683.221, Florida Statutes, is created
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to read:
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683.221 Florida Speech and Debate Week.—
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(1) February 1 through February 7 shall be annually
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designated as "Florida Speech and Debate Week."
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(2) Florida Speech and Debate Week shall be observed for
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all of the following purposes:
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(a) To recognize the academic, civic, and leadership value
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of competitive speech and debate.
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(b) To honor educators, coaches, judges, and school
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districts that support debate programming.
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(c) To inspire students statewide to participate in debate
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as a pathway to civic engagement.
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(d) To promote Florida's role as the national leader in
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scholastic speech and debate.
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(3) Public and charter schools, state agencies, and other
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entities may observe Florida Speech and Debate Week.
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Section 2. Section 1000.09, Florida Statutes, is created
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to read:
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1000.09 Competitive speech and debate.—
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(1) CREATION, DESIGNATION, AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—Subject
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to legislative appropriation and in alignment with, and in
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support of, the Department of Education and the program it
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operates called the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative (FCDI),
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the Florida Debate Initiative, Inc., (FDI) is established as
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this state's nonprofit statewide speech and debate organization
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that manages, develops, and expands K–20 civics, speech, and
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debate programs.
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(a)1. The FDI shall support and expand access to statewide
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civic literacy and speech and debate programs by undertaking the
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following, which list is not exhaustive:
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a. Educating and training coaches and students.
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b. Training judges and volunteers.
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c. Promoting educational competition opportunities.
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d. Leading training and leadership development
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experiences.
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e. Establishing competition standards.
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f. Maintaining statewide data reporting.
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g. Assisting the FCDI, upon its request, in civics-focused
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education, training, and programming initiatives.
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2. This paragraph may not be construed to prohibit
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schools, districts, or students from participating in civics,
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speech and debate activities, leagues, or competitions not
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operated or supervised by the FDI.
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(b) The FDI may establish and maintain partnerships with
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school districts, charter schools, state agencies, postsecondary
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institutions, nonprofit organizations, private entities, and
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national or international organizations to achieve the purposes
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of this section, including collaborative efforts with the FCDI.
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In such collaboration:
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1. The FCDI and FDI shall jointly host and operate the
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annual National Civics and Debate Championship known as The
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Great Debate, a nationally recognized synthesis of civics
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education and debate competition that challenges students' civic
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knowledge, debate skills, and endurance through multi-day,
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multi-event competition.
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2. The FCDI shall lead specific civics immersion events,
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including FCDI Day at the Capitol and the Great American Civics
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Challenge, which includes the Ronald Reagan Presidential Debates
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and the We The People Civics Showdown.
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3. The FDI shall provide logistical support, debate
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tournament operations support, and tournament coordination
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support for The Great Debate and other collaborative initiatives
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to advance statewide speech and debate opportunities.
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(2) AUTHORIZED USES OF FUNDS.—The FDI may expend program
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funds on all of the following:
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(a) Administrative operations, including staffing,
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insurance, compliance, reporting, and statewide infrastructure.
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(b) Programmatic operations, including curriculum,
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training, summer programs, workshops, camps, and mentorship
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programs.
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(c) Tournament operations, including logistics, staff,
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judge training, technology, awards, and regional team
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operations.
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(d) Travel, lodging, training, and transportation for
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participants, including local, state, and national travel to
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competitions hosted by the FDI, FCDI, or other civics, speech,
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and debate organizations.
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(e) Public-private partnership development, including
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sponsorship and philanthropic support.
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(f) Memberships, affiliations, and participation fees
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related to civics education, speech, debate, leadership, and
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academic competition programs, provided such memberships,
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affiliations, and participation advance the purposes of this
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section.
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(3) REPORTING.—The FDI shall make publicly available
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online and submit, no later than December 31 of each year, an
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annual report to the Department of Education which includes all
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of the following:
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(a) Student participation in statewide FDI programs, by
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district and demographics.
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(b) The number of active student teams in statewide FDI
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speech and debate programs.
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(c) Competitive and educational outcomes of statewide FDI
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programs.
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(d) A categorized summary of all expenditures.
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No later than November 1 of each year, the FCDI shall provide
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the FDI with the FCDI's most current reporting and data
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regarding paragraphs (a)-(d) above in order for the FDI to
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accurately report on the outcomes and expenditures related to
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any joint programming.
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Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.