Legislation Session 2025 Results
- Logan Bell
- 6 days ago
- 6 min read
Hi everyone,
Giving an update on the legislation results from 2025. The session officially started March 2nd, 2025, and was originally going to May 2nd. Given the legislature has not passed the state budget yet, a vote was passed in both House and Senate to extend the legislative session to June 6th, with the prime focus on passing a state budget. They may continue to pass bills, but most news outlets are reporting that the general swath of passing bills may be over.
I’ll continue updating this post should things change between now and June 6th. This thread will include things very relevant to our professions as well as some offshoot public health stuff.
LAST UPDATE: 05/06.
Mental Health Specific Bills
SB220/222- Social Work Interstate Compact
STATUS: FAILED. Passed in House, died in Senate.
This establishes the Social Work Compact in our state. This also has a companion bill, likely with drafted language consistent across states, that includes how information is shared during Compact meetings. Basically, similar to the Counseling Compact except this looks like it involves full licenses, rather than privileges to practice, across state lines.
SB122- Mental Health Professions
STATUS: FAILED. Died in Committee
This is the FMHCA bill that re-designated the name "Registered Intern" to "Associate" and removes the provision of requiring a licensed mental health professional on premises when a Registered Intern/Associate is providing therapy services in PP.
HB 1101: Out-of-network Providers
STATUS: WITHDRAWN Passed in House. Senate has requested House recede bill. The House withdrew! This bill is not going through. Thanks to the efforts of everyone voicing their concerns!
This is a bill that will require healthcare providers making a referral to another provider to confirm whether or not the referral provider accepts the referring patient’s insurance, and then to notify the patient in writing. This was pushed through the House very quickly (a matter of 1-2 weeks) and is currently stalled in the Senate. This is one of the bills we may see a different outcome from in this extension period. The Senate has asked the House to recede the bill after struggling to agree on the wording of the bill and passing certain amendments to it. Still awaiting next steps.
SB264- Step-therapy Protocols
STATUS: FAILED. Made it to general Senate floor, died in both Senate and House
An update to a legislative piece managing what kinds of services become available for Medicaid recipients after what previous steps/treatments have been tried. This defines what "serious mental illness" is and, as far as I am aware, is the first time in this state that has legally defined that. It reads as the following:
"(27) “Serious mental illness” means any of the following
24 psychiatric disorders as defined by the American Psychiatric
25 Association in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
26 Disorders, Fifth Edition:
27 (a) Bipolar disorders, including hypomanic, manic,
28 depressive, and mixed-feature episodes.
29 (b) Depression in childhood or adolescence.
30 (c) Major depressive disorders, including single and
31 recurrent depressive episodes.
32 (d) Obsessive-compulsive disorders.
33 (e) Paranoid personality disorder or other psychotic
34 disorders.
35 (f) Schizoaffective disorders, including bipolar or
36 depressive symptoms.
37 (g) Schizophrenia."
HB23- Prescriptive Authority Certification for Psychologists
STATUS: FAILED. Died in Committee.
This establishes the capability for psychologists to pursue additional training to be able to prescribe certain psychiatric medications. This particular wording appears to assume a more broad prescriptive authority compared to other states. For those unaware, a few other states grant prescriptive authority to psychologists who undergo a multi-year post-doc residency and specialized training on psychopharmacology, paired with psychiatrists, to learn how to prescribe basic psychiatric medications. It has been widely debated within the medical community whether or not this is the way to go in managing shortage of psychiatrists.
HB327- Interstate Compact for School Psychologists
STATUS: FAILED. Died in Committee.
This bill introduces the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists, which appears to mirror PSYPACT in structure and setup. It would allow school psychologists to practice over state lines.
General Healthcare Bills
SB76- State Paid Parental Leave
STATUS: FAILED. No bill introduced in House, died in Senate.
This grants state employees the ability for 12 weeks of paid parental leave, both for birth and adoption of newborns. For now relegated to state employees.
HB65- Sale, Transfer, and Storage of Firearms
STATUS: WITHDRAWN. See below for updated bill- it also failed.
This revises already present text requiring background checks and dealing with licensed gun sellers to also include people who are transferring ownership of a firearm to also include the same safeguards.
CS/CS/CS/SB 700: Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
STATUS: PASSED by both House and Senate. Awaiting governor signature (and he has historically been in favor of this)
This bill prohibits agricultural and consumer entities from adding things to the city/county water supplies. Notably, this is the effort to remove fluoride from drinking water across the state. For those unaware, fluoride was federally added to the water decades ago to fight the incidence of cavities and tooth decay, particularly among children and low SES individuals. This will stop that, resulting in worse general oral hygiene for the population. Oral health is widely accepted to be a significant predictor of different health outcomes.
SB196- Foods Containing Vaccines or Vaccine Materials
STATUS: FAILED. Passed in the Senate, died in the House. https://legiscan.com/FL/text/S0196/2025
This bill requires that companies who produce food products with “vaccine or vaccine materials” present to clearly label them and re-defines these products from “food” to “drugs” for the purposes of legislation.
HB6007- Pregnancy Support and Wellness Services
STATUS: FAILED. No bill in the Senate, died in Committee in House
This bill repeals section 381.96 of FL statutes, which is related to establishing and delivering pregnancy and supportive services to expectant mothers.
Civil Rights Measures
SB144- Marriage Between Persons of the Same Sex
STATUS: FAILED. Died in Committee.
This bill repeals the ban on same sex marriage currently present in Florida statutes.
SB208- Agreement Among the States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote
STATUS: FAILED. Died in Committee.
This bill joins other states in abolishing the electoral college as a means of electing a president and vice president and moves to a popular vote ruling.
SB216- Campaign Finance
STATUS: FAILED. Died in Committee.
This bill bans state agencies from using state granted money to “advocate for or against” any matter that is currently being debated in a legislative session for changes, repeals, or enactments.
SB244- Postsecondary Education
STATUS: WITHDRAWN. House partner bill died in Committee.
This bill prohibits undocumented people from applying to college or university in the state of FL to state schools. This further solidifies the position the state has with regard to undocumented peoples, continuing to limit their opportunities for advancement.
SB240- Victims of Domestic Violence and Dating Violence
STATUS: FAILED. Died in Committee.
Establishes a new sub-organization within the Department of Law Enforcement called HAVEN- Helping Abuse Victims Escape Now. It includes wrap-around support from domestic violence orgs and law enforcement and defines dating violence.
Other Measures
CS/CS/CS/HB 1105: Education
STATUS: PASSED in House and Senate. Awaiting signature from the governor
This bill make some changes to various state scholarship programs and also bans the use of cell phones in elementary and middle schools. High schools at present still have the “during classtime” prohibition but the law also allows for pilot programs banning cell phones there too in certain districts.
Other Bills that Failed this Year
CS/CS/CS/HB 1225 - Employment- This was a controversial bill that rolled back protections on child labor and allowed teens to work much longer hours even during schooltimes. This was passed in the House but died in the Senate.
CS/CS/HB 541 - Minimum Wage Requirements- This was a bill that allowed some employers to avoid paying minimum wage to some worker types, as other previously passed legislation over time moves the minimum wage up to $15 per hour over the next few years.
CS/HB 1517: Civil Liability for the Wrongful Death of an Unborn Child- This bill was attempted last year too, and was essentially giving fetus’ personhood, allowing expectant parents to sue providers who was deemed responsible for the death of their unborn child. It encountered heavy backlash after concerns around IVF treatments and classifications would have driven providers out of the state.
HB 759 - Minimum Age for Firearm Purchase or Transfer- This was the bill being protested heavily after the tragedy of the FSU mass shooting. It repealed restrictions on open carrying in certain public spaces (like Universities) and lowered the minimum age to purchase a firearm, along with restricting red flag laws already in place. It was pushed through the House but died in the Senate.
CS/CS/HB 1539: Materials Harmful to Minors- This was another book banning bill. It attempted to push what was classified as harmful to children. It died in both House and Senate.
HB 955: Employment Eligibility- This would have required employers with 25+ employees to use the E-Verify system to confirm legal status of their employees (and provide information to the govt on who is undocumented). It passed in House and died in Senate
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Whew, that was a lot. I will update as more get decided that can impact us.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to post them here. 🙂
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