HB 725 Florida House · 2026 Regular Session

Political Activity at Public Institutions of Higher Education

Summary

Political Activity at Public Institutions of Higher Education; Requires public institutions of higher education to inform students & employees of Campus Free Expression Act through specified means; requires BOG & SBE to adopt regulations & rules, respectively, describing limitations of state universities & FCS institutions relating to certain political campaign activities; requires boards of trustees of such universities & institutions to publish on their official websites & provide to employees certain information relating to permissible & prohibited political activities, state law, & disciplinary actions.

Bill status died 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Dec 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Dec 10, 2025 Last action Mar 13, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

H 725 Filed → H 725 c1 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was completely rewritten from a 10-page version to a 3-page version. The original version created new statutes requiring universities to host political debates and restrict political activities, while the new version focuses on informing students and employees about existing free expression laws and clarifies limitations on political campaign activities at public institutions.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from creating new political activity requirements to primarily informing the campus community about existing laws and clarifying permissible and prohibited political activities at public institutions.

REQUIREMENT

Removed requirements for universities to actively promote political discussions and debates, and removed provisions requiring prior approval for political activities on campus.

Added requirement for universities to inform students and employees about the Campus Free Expression Act through orientation and their official website.

Changed the focus from creating new political activity statutes to clarifying limitations on political campaign activities for tax-exempt entities like universities.

DEFINITION

Removed the creation of new statutory definitions for 'public institution of higher education' and related terms.

TIMELINE

The effective date remains July 1, 2026, but the bill was shortened from 10 pages to 3 pages.

Floor votes · House Mar 4, 2026

How they voted

82–30

Passed · 6 other

Total votes 118

Mar 4, 2026

D Democratic34

1 Yea 30 Nay 3

88% Nay

R Republican84

81 Yea 3

96% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 4, 2026

Committee

Referred to Rules

upper

Mar 4, 2026

Lower · Passed

CS passed; YEAS 81, NAYS 30

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Education & Employment Committee

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable by Education & Employment Committee

lower

Feb 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

Added to Education & Employment Committee agenda

lower

Feb 13, 2026

Lower · Passed

Now in Education & Employment Committee

lower

Feb 13, 2026

Committee

Referred to Education & Employment Committee

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Education Administration Subcommittee

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable with CS by Education Administration Subcommittee

lower

Feb 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

PCS added to Education Administration Subcommittee agenda

lower

Dec 16, 2025

Lower · Passed

Now in Education Administration Subcommittee

lower

Dec 16, 2025

Committee

Referred to Education & Employment Committee

lower

Dec 16, 2025

Committee

Referred to Government Operations Subcommittee

lower

Dec 16, 2025

Committee

Referred to Education Administration Subcommittee

lower

1 primary · 6 co-sponsors