Background and Timing
The 2025 Florida Legislative Session will officially begin on Tuesday, March 4. Even before that date, elected officials begin laying the groundwork for the 60-day session during committee weeks in the fall.
House and Senate Leadership
Speaker Daniel Perez (R-Miami) and President Ben Albritton (R-Bartow) were elected by their peers to lead the House and Senate this year, respectively, for the upcoming session. Both Speaker Perez and President Albritton gave brief remarks about the importance of early childhood in their upcoming leadership terms at our Built to Thrive Summit this past September.
Below are some key leaders in the House who might have a say in early childhood issues. You can click on each committee to see if your own elected leaders serve on these committees, too.
- Chair Lawrence McClure (R-Dover), Budget Committee
- Chair Jenna Persons-Mulicka (R-Fort Myers), PreK-12 Budget Subcommittee
- Chair Jennifer Canady (R-Lakeland), Education & Employment Committee
- Chair Fiona McFarland (R-Sarasota), Student Academic Success Subcommittee
- Chair Dana Trabulsy (R-Fort Pierce), Education Administration Subcommittee
- Chair Josie Tomkow (R-Polk City), Health & Human Services Committee
- Chair Adam Anderson (R-Palm Harbor), Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee
- Chair Sam Garrison (R-Fleming Island), Rules & Ethics Committee
And in the Senate:
- Chair Ed Hooper (R-Palm Harbor), Committee on Appropriations
- Chair Danny Burgess (R-Zephyrhills), Appropriations Committee on PreK-12 Education
- Chair Jay Trumbull (R-Panama City), Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services
- Chair Corey Simon (R-Tallahassee), Committee on Education PreK-12
- Chair Colleen Burton (R-Winter Haven), Committee on Health Policy
- Chair Erin Grall (R-Fort Pierce), Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs
- Chair Kathleen Passidomo (R-Naples), Committee on Rules
Committee Weeks
In order to prepare for the upcoming session, these House and Senate committees meet a number of times in the weeks leading up to session. Committee weeks began December 2, 2024 and will end February 21, 2025.
Lawmakers use these committee weeks to get information from state leaders, hear from experts on the issues they may address, and workshop proposed bills.
- On Wednesday, Jan 15, the House Education Administration Subcommittee met, with a focus on understanding the current early learning landscape in Florida. Each member of the committee introduces themselves and shares some of their key interests in education policy, then around minute 50 the discussion on early learning begins with a presentation from Division of Early Education Chancellor Cari Miller at the Florida Department of Education. Members also hear from Erin Smeltzer, president & CEO of the Children’s Forum, Evelio Torres, president and CEO of the Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade and Monroe, and Roy Keister, owner of Scottsdale Academy in Tallahassee. You can watch the committee meeting here.
Updates
Throughout each legislative session, we send weekly updates on early childhood bills filed and moving (or not) through the process. Sign up for our newsletter to receive these updates.