WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed three bills into law on Wednesday afternoon during a news conference in Winter Haven.
The three bills signed on Wednesday address school safety, swatting and the arrest of people with “significant” health conditions.
Press play above to watch DeSantis’ remarks
Here’s a breakdown of the bills signed into law during the news conference:
SB 1470 – School Safety
This bill expands Florida’s Guardian Program, which allows firearm-trained school staff to carry weapons on campus.
The program will now authorize childcare facilities to partner with local sheriff’s offices to have teachers and other personnel trained with firearms. It will also allow employees to implement other school safety measures aimed at protecting students in case of an emergency.
Click here to read the full legislation.
HB 279 – False Reporting
This bill addresses false reporting, also known as swatting, which is when someone calls 911 and fakes an emergency that draws a response from law enforcement, usually a SWAT team.
“It’s taking resources and time and manpower away from actually doing the job that we want our law enforcement and first responders to do,” DeSantis said.
In 2021, DeSantis signed a bill that established felonies for swatting offenses that lead to damage, injury or death. It also requires restitution to be paid by offenders. However, he said those efforts have not been “sufficient.”
HB 279 will increase penalties for people behind those fake calls, and even more for repeat offenders. It also lowers the threshold on what would be considered a “habitual felong offender,” making it a felony after two or more convictions for unauthorized use of emergency communication services.
Click here to read the full legislation.
HB 1099 – Arrest and Detention of Individuals with Significant Medical Conditions
This bill focuses on the arrest and detention of individuals with “significant” health conditions.
HB 1099 supports law enforcement officers across the state by giving them more discretion in determining whether to make an immediate arrest of a person with a significant medical condition.
“We want to make sure we’re protecting the police officers as they’re doing jobs in very difficult circumstances,” DeSantis said.
Click here to read the full legislation.
Wednesday’s news conference came a day after News4JAX learned prosecutors have opened an investigation related to the Hope Florida Foundation, the nonprofit behind the welfare program that has been touted as the signature achievement of first lady Casey DeSantis.
A public records custodian in the office of Second Judicial Circuit State Attorney Jack Campbell confirmed the existence of “an open, on-going investigation” Tuesday in response to a records request from The Associated Press. The investigation was first reported by the Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times.
RELATED | Prosecutors open investigation related to Hope Florida Foundation
When asked about the investigation on Wednesday, DeSantis defended the initiative and called the probe a “political agenda to try to smear” the program and his wife.
“She has led an initiative to help people, and you have one jackass in the legislature, I’m sorry, it’s true, who’s trying to smear her, smear good people,” DeSantis said.
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