Florida Senate - 2014                                    SB 1542
       
       
        
       By Senator Bean
       
       
       
       
       
       4-00438A-14                                           20141542__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to faith-based institutions; amending
    3         s. 1005.06, F.S.; exempting a faith-based institution
    4         from the jurisdiction or purview of the Commission for
    5         Independent Education; authorizing the commission to
    6         retain governmental oversight of a faith-based
    7         institution’s compliance with fair consumer practices;
    8         requiring a faith-based institution to submit an
    9         affidavit to the commission; requiring the commission
   10         to provide a faith-based institution a certificate of
   11         authorization; exempting certain faith-based
   12         institutions from complying with fair consumer
   13         practices; providing an effective date.
   14          
   15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   16  
   17         Section 1. Paragraph (f) of subsection (1) of section
   18  1005.06, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   19         1005.06 Institutions not under the jurisdiction or purview
   20  of the commission.—
   21         (1) Except as otherwise provided in law, the following
   22  institutions are not under the jurisdiction or purview of the
   23  commission and are not required to obtain licensure:
   24         (f) A faith-based, degree-granting entity, institute,
   25  college, university, or seminary, hereinafter referred to as a
   26  “faith-based institution,” which is not funded by the
   27  government, offers postsecondary education, and is domiciled in
   28  this state or provides classroom instruction at a physical
   29  location in this state. However, the commission shall retain A
   30  religious college may operate without governmental oversight of
   31  a faith-based institution’s requirement to comply with fair
   32  consumer practices under s. 1005.04. Therefore, a faith-based
   33  institution shall if the college annually verify verifies by
   34  sworn or affirmed affidavit to the commission that:
   35         1. The name of the institution includes a religious
   36  modifier or the name of a religious patriarch, saint, person, or
   37  symbol of the church.
   38         2. The institution offers only educational programs that
   39  prepare students for religious vocations as ministers,
   40  professionals, or laypersons in the categories of ministry,
   41  counseling, theology, education, administration, music, fine
   42  arts, media communications, or social work.
   43         3. The titles of degrees issued by the institution cannot
   44  be confused with secular degree titles. For this purpose, each
   45  degree title must include a religious modifier that immediately
   46  precedes, or is included within, any of the following degrees:
   47  Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, Bachelor of Arts,
   48  Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts, Master of Science, Doctor
   49  of Philosophy, and Doctor of Education. The religious modifier
   50  must be placed on the title line of the degree, on the
   51  transcript, and whenever the title of the degree appears in
   52  official school documents or publications.
   53         1.4. The duration of all degree programs offered by the
   54  faith-based institution is consistent with the standards of the
   55  commission.
   56         2.5. The faith-based institution’s consumer practices are
   57  consistent with those required by s. 1005.04, excluding s.
   58  1005.04(1)(g) and rule 6E-5.001, Florida Administrative Code.
   59  The commission shall may provide the faith-based such a
   60  religious institution a certificate of authorization letter
   61  stating that the institution has met the requirements of state
   62  law and is not subject to governmental oversight.
   63  
   64  A faith-based institution pursuant to this paragraph which
   65  issues only nondegree certificates is exempt from the
   66  requirement to comply with fair consumer practices under s.
   67  1005.04, and such certificates are not transferable to a degree
   68  granting college or university.
   69         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.