Call, email and meet with your state representative and senator
It may seem antiquated, but your elected officials hearing from you makes a difference. Their staff has to document how many points of contact they receive for or against any piece of legislation that they will be voting on. So together, we can make a real difference here!
You are a constituent of these legislators, and they need to honor your request to hear your concerns and schedule a time to meet with you in person or virtually. (Read more about these bills below).
Enter your home address below and complete the form to request a meeting with your senator and representative about higher education:
Here are a few more ways to take action:
1. Testify in person or virtually!
If you are willing to to testify — in person, in Tallahassee or remotely — or offer written testimony, please let UFF (uff@floridaea.org) know ASAP.
2. Write an OpEd for your local paper
FEA’s Write a Letter to the Editor tool has weblinks to many local papers — or you can contact your paper directly. Please share it widely so we can cross-promote your contribution! Make your personal story heard and felt as it relates to the proposed legislation and its impacts on your workplace.
3. Join the Working Families Lobby Corps
2022 Working Families Lobby Corps signup — Through the Florida AFL-CIO, members can sign up to help AFL-CIO, one of our affiliated unions, with its advocacy against union-busting and education-hobbling bills.
More info on the Working Families Lobby Corps can be found on the Florida AFL-CIO website.
4. Host a Zoom phone party or video party to:
- Make phone calls to legislative offices
- Write postcards or short written letters to legislators
- Tweetstorm your legislators
- Write letters to your local paper
Learn more about the bills we’re most concerned about
SB 1458 / HB 1197 – “Employee Organizations” – This bill will remove the right to organize, form, and keep unions for many workers in Florida’s higher education system by requiring membership percentage minimums, removing payroll deductions for union dues, and allowing for unreasonable challenges to union membership lists. UFF stands opposed to this clear attempt to undermine the rights to collective action guaranteed in the Florida Constitution.
SB 520 / HB 703 – “Public Records and Public Meetings” – This bill will remove presidential job searches at Florida’s universities and colleges from Sunshine Law requirements, meaning full lists of candidates, identifications of conflicts of interest, and other safeguards of state dollars and resources will no longer be available to the public. Secrecy only benefits those with ulterior motives. UFF stands on the side of the faculty, staff, students, and public of Florida in supporting transparency in these key hiring processes.
HB 6007 – “Licenses to Carry Concealed Weapons or Firearms” – At UFF, we believe guns have no place on college and university campuses, unless in the hands of law enforcement professionals who are trained in de-escalation techniques. Florida has already seen enough gun violence. There is no need to add the potential for more destruction with this reckless and senseless bill.
Weekly Schedule
Agenda Watch: During the interim weeks, the committees will receive reports and presentations as requested by the committee’s chairperson. The types of information shared during these meetings offers insight into what the committees will focus on during the regular session.
It’s also important to note that bills can move through committees during the interim committee week period. Sometimes substantial bills even make it through all of their committee stops during this interim period meaning they are ready for final passage as soon as session technically begins in March.
Legislators count on the public not paying attention during the interim committee weeks, and we must make sure they know we’re watching them every step of the way.
Click on the plus sign (+) by the week to expand the details for the week.
- No education related committee meetings in either chamber.
- 8:30-10:30 a.m. Senate Education Postsecondary will receive presentations on State University System institutes and centers
- 9:00-11:00 a.m. House Careers & Workforce Subcommittee will receive a presentation on Florida’s manufacturing industry.
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate Education Pre-K – 12 will receive presentations on supports for families and students with autism.
- 3:30-5:30 p.m. House Higher Education Budget Subcommittee will have a panel discussion on Florida’s higher education budget.
- 3:30-5:30 p.m. House PreK-12 Budget Subcommittee will receive an overview of Florida’s PreK-12 budget.
- 9:00-11:00 a.m. Senate Education Pre-K – 12 Appropriations will receive a presentation on the PreK-12 budget.
- 9:00-11:00 a.m. House Student Academic Success Subcommittee
- 1:00-3:00 p.m. Senate Appropriations Committee on Higher Education will receive a presentation on the higher education budget.
- 3:30-5:30 p.m. House Education Administration Subcommittee
- No education related committee meetings in either chamber.
- No education related committee meetings in either chamber.
Monday, January 20
- State offices closed in honor of MLK, Jr. holiday
Tuesday, January 21
- No education related committee meetings in either chamber.
Wednesday, January 22
- 8:30-10:30 a.m. Senate Education Postsecondary Committee
- 9:00-11:00 a.m. House Careers & Workforce Subcommittee
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate Education Pre-K – 12 Committee
- 3:30-5:30 p.m. House Higher Education Budget Subcommittee
- 3:30-5:30 p.m. House PreK-12 Budget Subcommittee
Thursday, January 23
- 9:00-11:00 a.m. House Student Academic Success Subcommittee
- 9:00-11:00 a.m. Senate Appropriations Committee on Pre-K – 12 Education
- 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Senate Appropriations Committee on Higher Education
- 3:30-5:30 p.m. House Education Administration Subcommittee
Friday, January 24
- No education related committee meetings in either chamber.
Tuesday, September 19
9:00-10:30 a.m.Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee is not meeting during their designated time.1:30-3:00 p.m.House Education Quality Subcommittee is not meeting during their designated time.
Note: there are no committee meetings scheduled on Monday or Wednesday-Friday.
Tuesday, October 10
- 11:00-a.m.-12:30 p.m. Postsecondary Education Committee will not meet during their designated time.
- 4:00-5:30 p.m. PreK-12 Education Committee will receive a presentation on recommended cut scores for FAST. (Video of meeting here.)
Wednesday, October 11
11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.Education Appropriations Committee will not meet during their designated time.
Note: There are no committee meetings scheduled on Monday, Thursday or Friday. Full schedule for the week is here.
8:30-10:30 a.m.House PreK-12 Appropriations Committee will not meet during their scheduled time.10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m.Senate Postsecondary Education Committee will not meet during their scheduled time.- 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. House Education Quality Subcommittee will receive a presentation on school safety measures. (Video of meeting here.)
9:00-11:00 a.m.House Postsecondary Education & Workforce Subcommittee will not meet during their scheduled time.11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.Senate Education Appropriations Committee will not meet during their scheduled time.1:30-3:00 p.m.House Education Choice & Innovation Subcommittee will not meet during their scheduled time.3:30-5:00 p.m.House Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee will not meet during their scheduled time.4:00-5:30 p.m.Senate PreK-12 Education Committee will not meet during their scheduled time.
1:00-2:00 p.m.House Education & Employment Committee will not meet during their scheduled time.
- The above list is only for education related committee meetings. A listing of all committee meetings for the week can be found here.
- Committees may, or may not, meet during their scheduled time. However, they cannot meet outside of their scheduled time.
- During interim committee weeks, agendas must be finalized one week before the committee meeting. As agendas are released, we’ll add them to this page or indicate the committee isn’t meeting during its scheduled time.
Monday, November 6:
- 10:00-10:30 a.m. House in session
- 10:00-10:45 a.m. Senate in session
- 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Senate Fiscal Policy Committee will take up SB 4C related to expanding vouchers. (Video of meeting here.)
- 3:30-6:00 p.m. House Appropriations Committee will take up HB 3C related to expanding vouchers. (Video of meeting here.)
Tuesday, November 7:
- 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. House in session
- 10:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Senate Education Postsecondary Committee will not meet during their designated time.
- 3:30-5:00 p.m. House Higher Education Appropriations Committee will receive updates on implementation of new legislation from the Department of Education. (Video of meeting here.)
- 3:45-6:00 p.m. Senate Education Pre-K–12 Committee will hold a workshop on reducing regulations on public schools. (Video of meeting here.)
Wednesday, November 8:
- 9:00-11:30 a.m. House PreK-12 Appropriations Committee is not meeting during their designated time.
- 10:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Senate Appropriations Committee on Education is not meeting during their designated time.
- 1:00-2:00 p.m.House Postsecondary Education & Workforce Subcommittee is not meeting during their designated time.
- 3:00-4:30 p.m. House Education Quality Committee will receive a presentation from the Department of Education on Commissioner Manny Diaz’s suggested revisions to the PreK-12 education code. (Video of meeting here.)
- 5:30-6:00 p.m. Senate in session
Thursday, November 9:
- 9:00-10:30 a.m. House Education Choice and Innovation Committee will receive presentations on charter schools. (Video of meeting here.)
- 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Senate in session (if needed)
Friday, November 10: (Veterans Day observed): No meetings currently scheduled.
Notes:
- Only education related committee meetings are shown above. To see the full schedule of meetings for the week, click here.
- For interim committee week meetings, agendas must be published a full week in advance. However, special session meeting agendas only require two hours notice. We’ll post agendas as soon as they become available.
Monday, November 13:
- No education related meetings scheduled in either chamber.
Tuesday, November 14:
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate Education Postsecondary Committee is not meeting during their designated time.
- 1:00-2:00 p.m. House Education & Employment Committee is not meeting during their designated time.
Wednesday, November 15
- 10:00-11:30 a.m. House Postsecondary Education & Workforce Subcommittee will receive a presentation on workforce development. (Video of meeting here.)
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate Appropriations Committee on Education is not meeting during their designated time.
- 1:00-2:30 p.m. House Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee will receive a presentation from the DOE related to EASE grants. (Video of meeting here.)
- 2:00-4:00 p.m. Senate Education Pre-K–12 Committee will meet to hear SB 7000, SB 7002, and SB 7004 related to removing regulations on public schools. (Video of meeting here.)
- 3:00-4:30 p.m. House Education Quality Subcommittee will receive a presentation from the Department of Education on pathways to teacher certification. (Video of meeting here.)
Thursday, November 16
- 9:00-11:30 a.m.House PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee is not meeting during their designated time.
- 12:00-1:30 p.m. House Education Choice & Innovation Subcommittee will have a presentation and then a panel discussion on career and technical education. (Video of meeting here.)
Friday, November 17
- No meetings scheduled in either chamber.
Notes:
- Only education related meetings are shown above. To see the full schedule of meetings for the week, click here.
- Videos of the meetings are available within a few hours of the conclusion of the meeting. We’ll post videos as soon as they are available.
Monday, December 4
- No education committee meetings scheduled.
Tuesday, December 5
- 9:00-10:30 a.m. House Education and Employment Committee is not meeting during their scheduled time.
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate Postsecondary Education Committee will receive a presentation and then host a panel discussion on articulation agreements and career and technical education programs. (Video of meeting here.)
- 4:00-6:00 p.m. House Higher Education Appropriations Committee will receive a presentation from the Board of Governors on fiscal issues. (Video of meeting here.)
Wednesday, December 6
- 9:00-11:00 a.m. House Education Choice and Innovation Committee is not meeting during their scheduled time.
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate PreK-12 Education Committee is not meeting during its scheduled time.
- 11:00 a.m.-1:30 p.m. House Postsecondary Education & Workforce Committee will receive a presentation from Career Source Florida on the REACH act and will take up HB 501 to rename Tallahassee Community College to Tallahassee State College. (Video of meeting here.)
- 2:00-5:00 p.m. House PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee will discuss charter school funding. (Video of meeting here.)
- 4:15-6:00 p.m. Senate Education Appropriations Committee will receive a presentation on Gov. DeSantis education budget proposal. (Video of meeting here.)
Thursday, December 7
- 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. House Education Quality Subcommittee will receive a presentation from the Helios Foundation on chronic absenteeism. (Video of meeting here.)
Friday, December 8
- No meetings currently scheduled.
Notes:
- Only education committee meetings are listed above. For a full listing of committee meetings, click here.
- Agendas will be released during the week of November 27, and we will post agendas as soon as they are available.
Monday, December 11
- No education committee meetings in either chamber.
Tuesday, December 12
- 9:30-11:00 a.m. Senate Fiscal Policy Committee will take up SB 7000, 7002, and 7004 the “deregulation” bills. (Video of meeting here.)
- 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. House Education and Employment Committee will have a presentation followed by a panel discussion on apprenticeship programs. (Video of meeting here.)
- 1:00-3:00 p.m. House Postsecondary and Workforce Committee will receive a presentation on adult education programs. (Video of meeting here.)
- 1:30-3:30 p.m. Senate Postsecondary Education Committee is not meeting during their scheduled time.
- 3:30-6:00 p.m. House Higher Education Appropriations Committee will receive a presentation on Gov. DeSantis’ proposed budget. (Video of meeting here.)
Wednesday, December 13
- 8:00-10:00 a.m. House Education Quality Committee is not meeting during their designated time.
- 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. House Education Choice and Innovation Committee will receive a presentation from the DOE and then host a round table with Step up for Students to discuss vouchers. (Video of meeting here.)
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate PreK-12 Education Committee is not meeting during its scheduled time.
- 1:30-4:00 p.m. House PreK-12 Appropriations Committee will receive a presentation on Gov. DeSantis’ proposed education budget. (Video of meeting here.)
Thursday, December 14
- 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Senate Education Appropriations Committee is not meeting during its scheduled time.
Friday, December 15
- No meetings scheduled in either chamber.
Notes:
- Only education committee meetings are listed above. For a full listing of committee meetings, click here.
