Florida Senate - 2014                                     SB 138
       
       
        
       By Senator Ring
       
       
       
       
       
       29-00058-14                                            2014138__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to meetings of district school boards;
    3         amending s. 1001.372, F.S.; requiring district school
    4         boards to convene at least one regular meeting during
    5         the evening hours each quarter during the school year
    6         and to establish written criteria for convening such a
    7         meeting; providing that a district school board is
    8         deemed to be in compliance under certain
    9         circumstances; revising requirements for calling a
   10         special meeting; providing an effective date.
   11          
   12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   13  
   14         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 1001.372, Florida
   15  Statutes, is amended to read:
   16         1001.372 District school board meetings.—
   17         (1) REGULAR AND SPECIAL MEETINGS.—
   18         (a) The district school board shall hold at least not less
   19  than one regular meeting each month for the transaction of
   20  business according to a schedule arranged by the district school
   21  board. The board shall convene at least one regular meeting
   22  during the evening hours each quarter during the school year and
   23  shall establish written criteria for deciding when to convene
   24  the required evening meetings. A district school board is deemed
   25  to be in compliance with this paragraph if it maintains, and
   26  operates in accordance with, a policy that requires the portion
   27  of a regular meeting which is open to public comment to begin no
   28  earlier than 4:30 p.m.
   29         (b) The district school board and shall convene in a
   30  special meeting sessions when called by the district school
   31  superintendent or by the district school superintendent on
   32  request of the chair of the district school board, or on request
   33  of a majority of the members of the district school board. An
   34  action; provided that actions taken at a special meeting has
   35  meetings shall have the same force and effect as if taken at a
   36  regular meeting, and; and provided further that in the event the
   37  district school superintendent should fail to call a special
   38  meeting when requested to do so, as prescribed herein, such a
   39  meeting may be called by the chair of the district school board
   40  or by a majority of the members of the district school board by
   41  giving 2 days’ written notice of the time and purpose of the
   42  meeting to all members and to the district school
   43  superintendent, in which event the minutes of the meeting must
   44  shall set forth the facts regarding the procedure in calling the
   45  meeting and the reason the meeting was called. The minutes must
   46  therefor and shall be signed either by the chair or by a
   47  majority of the members of the district school board.
   48         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.