THE BILL ITSELF
SB 742
Nursing Licensure
Florida Senate - 2026 SB 742 By Senator Rodriguez 40-00439-26 2026742__
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A bill to be entitled
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An act relating to nursing licensure; amending s.
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464.019, F.S.; revising information that the Board of
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Nursing must publish on its website with respect to
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approved nursing education programs; revising graduate
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passage rate requirements for approved nursing
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education programs; creating s. 464.0125, F.S.;
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providing for provisional licensure of registered
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nurses and licensed practical nurses; specifying
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requirements for such provisional licensure; providing
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that provisional licenses are not renewable;
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specifying circumstances under which a provisional
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license becomes void; prohibiting applicants for
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provisional licensure from practicing until the
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provisional license is issued; establishing that
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provisional licensees may practice only under direct
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supervision of a registered nurse or licensed
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practical nurse, as applicable; specifying
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requirements for such supervision; requiring the Board
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of Nursing to, by a specified date, submit a formal
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request to National Council of State Boards of Nursing
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to offer the nursing licensing examination and its
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test preparation materials in Spanish by a specified
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date; providing an effective date.
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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Section 1. Subsection (4) and paragraph (a) of subsection
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(5) of section 464.019, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
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464.019 Approval of nursing education programs.—
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(4) INTERNET WEBSITE.—The board shall publish the following
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information on its Internet website:
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(a) A list of each accredited program conducted in the
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state and the program’s graduate passage rates for the most
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recent 2 calendar years, which the department shall determine
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through the following sources:
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1. For a program’s accreditation status, the specialized
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accrediting agencies that are nationally recognized by the
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United States Secretary of Education to accredit nursing
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education programs.
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2. For a program’s graduate passage rates, the contract
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testing service of the National Council of State Boards of
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Nursing.
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(b) The following data for each approved program, which
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includes, to the extent applicable:
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1. All documentation provided by the program in its program
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application.
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2. The summary description of the program’s compliance
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submitted under subsection (3).
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3. The program’s accreditation status, including
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identification of the accrediting agency.
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4. The program’s probationary status.
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5. The program’s graduate passage rates for first-, second
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, and third-time test takers for the most recent 2 calendar
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years.
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6. Each program’s retention rates for students tracked from
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program entry to graduation.
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(c) The average passage rates for United States educated,
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first-, second-, and third-time first-time test takers on the
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National Council of State Boards of Nursing Licensing
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Examination for the most recent 2 calendar years, as calculated
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by the contract testing service of the National Council of State
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Boards of Nursing. The average passage rates shall be published
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separately for each type of comparable degree program listed in
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subparagraph (5)(a)1.
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The information required to be published under this subsection
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shall be made available in a manner that allows interactive
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searches and comparisons of individual programs selected by the
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website user. The board shall update the Internet website at
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least quarterly with the available information.
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(5) ACCOUNTABILITY.—
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(a)1. An approved program must achieve a graduate passage
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rate for first-, second-, and third-time first-time test takers
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which is not more than 10 percentage points lower than the
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average passage rate during the same calendar year for graduates
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of comparable degree programs who are United States educated,
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first-, second-, and third-time first-time test takers on the
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National Council of State Boards of Nursing Licensing
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Examination, as calculated by the contract testing service of
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the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. For purposes of
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this subparagraph, an approved program is comparable to all
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degree programs of the same program type from among the
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following program types:
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a. Professional nursing education programs that terminate
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in a bachelor’s degree.
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b. Professional nursing education programs that terminate
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in an associate degree.
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c. Professional nursing education programs that terminate
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in a diploma.
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d. Practical nursing education programs.
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2. If an approved program’s graduate passage rates do not
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equal or exceed the required passage rates for 2 consecutive
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calendar years, the board shall place the program on
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probationary status pursuant to chapter 120 and the program
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director shall appear before the board to present a plan for
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remediation, which shall include specific benchmarks to identify
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progress toward a graduate passage rate goal. The program must
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remain on probationary status until it achieves a graduate
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passage rate that equals or exceeds the required passage rate
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for any 1 calendar year. The board shall deny a program
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application for a new prelicensure nursing education program
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submitted by an educational institution if the institution has
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an existing program that is already on probationary status.
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3. Upon the program’s achievement of a graduate passage
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rate that equals or exceeds the required passage rate, the
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board, at its next regularly scheduled meeting following release
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of the program’s graduate passage rate by the National Council
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of State Boards of Nursing, shall remove the program’s
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probationary status. If the program, during the 2 calendar years
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following its placement on probationary status, does not achieve
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the required passage rate for any 1 calendar year, the board may
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extend the program’s probationary status for 1 additional year,
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provided the program has demonstrated adequate progress toward
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the graduate passage rate goal by meeting a majority of the
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benchmarks established in the remediation plan. If the program
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is not granted the 1-year extension or fails to achieve the
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required passage rate by the end of such extension, the board
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shall terminate the program pursuant to chapter 120.
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Section 2. Section 464.0125, Florida Statutes, is created
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to read:
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464.0125 Provisional licenses.—
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(1) The department shall issue a provisional license to
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practice as a registered nurse or licensed practical nurse to an
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applicant who meets all of the following criteria:
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(a) Has submitted a completed application for a provisional
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license to the department in a form prescribed by department
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rule.
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(b) Has graduated from an approved nursing education
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program and is eligible to take the licensure examination under
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s. 464.008(1).
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(c) Has submitted an application for licensure under s.
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464.008.
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(d) Demonstrates proof of possessing malpractice insurance.
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(e) Submits documentation, in accordance with rules adopted
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by the board, verifying that the applicant will practice under
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the direct supervision of a licensed registered nurse or
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licensed practical nurse as provided in subsection (3).
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(2) A provisional license is not renewable and is valid
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until a full license is granted by the department. However, a
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provisional license is void if the licensee does not pass the
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licensure examination approved by the board within 3 months
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after the date of graduation from an approved nursing education
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program or if the licensee fails the licensure examination three
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consecutive times during such 3-month period. If a provisional
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license is void, the provisional licensee must immediately cease
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practicing in a licensed nursing position.
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(3) An applicant for a provisional license may not work as
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a registered nurse or licensed practical nurse until the
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provisional license is issued. A registered nurse or licensed
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practical nurse practicing under a provisional license may only
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do so under the direct supervision of a licensed registered
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nurse or licensed practical nurse. A supervising nurse may
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supervise only one licensee at any given time. The supervising
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nurse must have been licensed for at least 6 months before the
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supervision period begins and must cosign all patient records
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produced by the registered nurse or licensed practical nurse
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practicing under a provisional license.
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Section 3. By July 1, 2026, the Board of Nursing shall
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submit a formal request to the National Council of State Boards
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of Nursing to offer the nursing licensing examination and its
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test preparation materials in Spanish by July 1, 2027, or as
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soon as possible thereafter.
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Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.