House Passes Safe Schools Bill After Sponsor Affirms LGBT Inclusion 

Senate Version Held Hostage by
One Jacksonville Senator 

On Tuesday, the Florida House of Representatives passed a bullying prevention bill by a vote of 110 to 1 after the sponsor affirmed that the bill requires schools to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students.

The bill must now be approved in the Senate before it is signed into law by the Governor.

Click on the link to the right to view an exchange that represents perhaps the first time the words "sexual orientation and gender identity" have ever been uttered together in the House Chamber.

The absence of specific prohibitions in the bill made the statements from the House floor vital to ensure that the legislative intent of protecting LGBT students is clear.

This Bill is on Life Support and Needs Your Immediate Help!

The bill, called the Jeffery Johnston Stand Up for All Students Act, has passed two Senate Committees and Sen. Stephen Wise (R - Jacksonville), who chairs the final committee to hear the bill, is vowing to kill it by refusing to bring the bill up for a vote. This despite a previous commitment to hear the bill that Sen. Wise made to the six-year-old brother of Jeffery Johnston, a Lee County teenager who killed himself in the wake of relentless homophobic bullying.  

Four Things You Can Do

2 - Call Governor Crist:  850-488-7146
Governor Crist has publicly stated his support for this bill and can use the power of his office to allow a Senate vote. 

Tell Gov. Crist:
  A) State leaders must address the epidemic of bullying in Florida schools and the violence it sparks. 
   As Governor, he must do everything in his power to allow a vote on the Jeffery Johnston Stand Up for All Students Bill.

3 - Call Senate President Ken Pruitt:  850-487-5088
The Senate President has the power to withdraw a bill from a committee and bring it to the Senate floor for an up-or-down vote by the full Senate. 

  Tell Senate President Pruitt:
  A) One person should not be allowed to subvert the democratic process by killing the school safety bill, SB-114.
   As Senate President, we call on him to ensure that the Jeffery Johnston Stand Up for All Students Bill receives a vote by the full Senate.