Resistance Report Week 4: Anti-LGBTQ bills are on track to become law — unless we stop them now!

This was a grueling week in Tallahassee, with nearly as many hearings on anti-LGBTQ bills this week alone as there were during all of last legislative session. Unless we stop them, they're on track to become law.

Lawmakers advanced bills that would expand Florida’s notorious “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” law into government workplaces and certain private businesses — effectively making it legal for employees to harass their transgender co-workers. Other proposals would enable massive lawsuits against teachers and mental health providers, making it harder — and in some cases impossible — for transgender youth to access the mental health care they need to survive.

Additionally, outside the Capitol, the Department of Children and Families has proposed a rule that would strip protections for LGBTQ youth in foster care, opening the door for these vulnerable children to be placed with families that reject who they are or may even attempt discredited and harmful conversion therapy.

These attacks are not theoretical. They are happening right now. And as we head into Week #5, stopping them will require an immediate, all-out mobilization.

Still, there is real reason for hope.

One of the anti-LGBTQ bills we were tracking this session, Penalizing Local Diversity and Inclusion Spending, was amended in a House committee this week. All of its anti-DEI language was removed. That bill has now been officially NEUTRALIZED. And, the Police State Bills were amended to lessen some of their serious dangers. This happened because YOU showed up, spoke out, and refused to back down. It is proof that our voices matter — and that resistance works.

But the fight is far from over. We are heading into at least six critical bill votes next week, with more likely to follow. This is truly an all hands on deck moment.

We need to pack committee hearings, flood the Capitol, and make it impossible for lawmakers to ignore the harm these bills would cause. If you can join us in Tallahassee, please sign up and be part of this moment.

Now, let’s break down what happened this week.

Pride at the Capitol advocates meet with lawmakers about key bills before committee hearings.

We had the honor of presenting three workshops for the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Florida Chapter’s Legislative Education Advocacy Day (LEAD). This annual event educates social work students and professionals about legislative issues, explains how to advocate for policy changes, and provides opportunities to meet with lawmakers to support legislation benefiting the social work profession and the people they serve.

Our Director of Health Equity, Dr. Noelle DeLaCruz, joined our Public Policy Director Jon Harris Maurer and Public Policy Manager Quinn Diaz to discuss legislative priorities, that would greatly impact the health and well-being of LGBTQ Floridians, and share ways that social workers and students could get involved in LGBTQ advocacy.

A strike team of South Florida business and community leaders, including Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis, joined Executive Director Stratton Pollitzer to meet with legislative leadership in the Capitol on preserving the state's AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) and LGBTQ legislative priorities.

Our ongoing Pride At The Capitol program is a crucial element of our work to stop or minimize the impact of bad bills and prepare for legal challenges against any that become into law.

But this effort relies heavily on pro-equality supporters like YOU taking action. Your presence in Tallahassee, your stories, and your participation in committee hearings are crucial. Equality Florida will be in the Capitol through all 60 days of the legislative session — join us on the frontlines by signing up to support our effort in-person during any of the remaining days and weeks ahead.

We will be in the Florida Capitol every single day of Florida’s 60-day session. Help keep the frontline fueled with a donation today. Every dollar counts!

This week’s WINNER is Senator Tina Polsky. With so many bad bills being heard in the Capitol, champions like Rep. Mitch Rosenwald, Rep. Daryl Campbell, and Rep. Wallace Aristide earned honorable mentions for pulling double-duty, doing defense in multiple committees, but no one had to step up to the plate as many times as Senator Tina Polsky. This week, she leveraged her sharp legal skills to expose the deep harms and unsound logic of “Don’t Say Gay or Trans at Work,” the “Police State Bills,” and the “New Barriers to Voting,” each in a different committee. (And next week, she’s taking on “Anti-Diversity in Local Government” in yet another committee.) We’re grateful to consistently have such a fierce and effective ally in our corner!

This week’s LOSER is Representative Dean Black. When asked if his Anti-Diversity in Local Government bill would allow white supremacists to sue cities and counties for recognizing a major holiday like Yom Kippur, he outrageously shrugged it off with, “Everyone deserves their day in court.” Empowering that kind of hate reflects poorly on the legislature as a whole. It doesn’t belong in our Capitol or our state. Representative Black was forced to acknowledge multiple additional carve-outs that would need to be added to his bill to avoid its harsh and unreasonable consequences. With a dozen carve-outs already added to the bill, it proved that the sponsor’s underlying idea is fundamentally flawed.

Now, let’s take you through exactly what happened this week, what's still coming, and how you can take action.

🚨OPPOSE: Don’t Say Gay or Trans at Work (HB 641/SB 1642)
Sponsors: Rep. Rachel Plakon and Sen. Stan McClain

• What it does: This is grievance legislation, rooted in legitimizing deeply offensive and hostile anti-transgender speech in the workplace. It brings Florida’s culture wars directly into public and some private workplaces. It would shield employees from accountability for intentionally misgendering transgender coworkers, and even prohibits job applicants from identifying as transgender or nonbinary on job applications. The bill also seeks to block LGBTQ-inclusive cultural competency training in certain workplaces, making environments less safe and less inclusive. This bill undermines basic dignity and professionalism in the workplace.
• What happened: Numerous lawmakers, including Senators Arrington, Bracy-Davis, and Polsky and Representatives Campbell, Rosenwald, and Young, spoke out passionately against this bill during what became a heated hearing and highlighted the intent and harm of this legislation. SB 1642 PASSED out of the Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee by a 6-3 vote. HB 641 also PASSED out of the House Government Operations Subcommittee by an 11-4 vote. These bills are moving quickly through the legislature. It’s all hands on deck to help slow them down!

• How you can help: Contact members in the next House and Senate committees right away and urge them to vote NO on SB 1642/HB 641.

🚨OPPOSE: Anti-Diversity in Local Government (HB 1001/SB 1134)🚨
Sponsors: Rep. Dean Black and Sen. Clay Yarborough

• What it does: This bill is a state sledgehammer to stop cities and counties from any action that recognizes and responds to differences based on race, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation, with limited exceptions. It would repeal existing programs, ban their funding, and threaten city and county officials with removal from office for anything vaguely labeled “diversity, equity, or inclusion.” It would effectively ban local governments from a range of actions like hosting or supporting Prides, offering LGBTQ+ cultural competency training, recognizing Black History Month, or having women and minority-owned business programs.
• What happened: This week SB 1134 PASSED in the Senate Community Affairs Committee by a 6-2 vote, and HB 1001 PASSED in the House Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee by a 10-5 vote, despite excellent debate and questions from bill opponents in committee. It's now scheduled for a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee this coming Tuesday, February 10th at 12:00pm ET, and heads to the House Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee for consideration.

How you can help: Send a message to the members of the next Senate and House Committees and urge them to vote NO on SB 1134/HB 1001.

🚨OPPOSE: More Lawsuits for Teachers & Doctors (HB 743/SB 1010)🚨
Sponsors: Rep. Lauren Melo and Sen. Clay Yarborough

• What it does: These bills hand the Attorney General sweeping authority to investigate and sue school staff and health care providers under vague and undefined standards, intensifying Florida’s attacks on transgender youth and LGBTQ+ communities. The bills weaponize state government to intimidate and punish public servants, pile new felony penalties onto care that is already prohibited, and turn Florida’s classrooms into legal minefields. Instead of protecting children or families, these bills will reduce access to healthcare for everyone, drive providers and educators out of the state, saddle taxpayers with new costs, and erode public trust.
• What’s happening: HB 743 PASSED out of the House Health Professions & Programs Subcommittee by a 12-4 vote. Next, it heads to the House Judiciary Committee for consideration. This is the last committee stop in the House before it reaches the floor for a full vote.

How you can help: Rush a message to the committee members and tell them to vote NO on HB 743.

🚨OPPOSE: Book Ban Expansion (HB 1119/SB 1692) 🚨
Sponsors: Rep. Doug Bankson and Sen. Stan McClain

• What it does: These bills would supercharge book banning and censorship in Florida’s K-12 schools by discarding long-standing constitutional standards and by clearing the way for new challenges and removals of educational materials. Florida already leads the nation in book bans. This bill doubles down on authoritarian censorship practices and disproportionately targets books about LGBTQ+ people, race, and history. Denying students access to books doesn't protect them; it leaves them less informed, less prepared, and less able to think critically.
• What happened: HB 1119 has been scheduled for a full vote on the House floor this coming Wednesday, February 11th at 4:00pm ET.
• How you can help: Send a message to your Representative telling them to oppose HB 1119.

🚨OPPOSE: Police State Bills (Outlawing Activism) (HB 1471/SB 1632) 🚨
Sponsors: Rep. Hillary Cassel and Sen. Erin Grall

• What it does: This legislation is an outrageous escalation of state terror for disagreeing with the government. It creates a vague, new designation of “domestic terrorist organization” for organizations engaging in allegedly dangerous activities intended to “coerce” the public or influence government policy “by intimidation or coercion.” Felony penalties apply for donating to, advising, or volunteering with an organization that one knows is a domestic terrorist organization or engages in such activity would constitute a felony, and for becoming a member of such organization with intent to further its allegedly illegal activity.
• What happened: SB 1632 PASSED out of the Senate Judiciary Committee by an 8-3 vote. A positive amendment heightens the criteria for designating “state domestic terrorist” organizations, but still fails to remedy the bill’s unconstitutional vagueness and overbreadth. Next, it heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice for consideration. HB 1471 is scheduled for a vote in the House Education & Employment Committee on Tuesday, February 10th at 9:00am ET.

• How you can help: Send an email to lawmakers urging them to oppose HB 1471/SB 1632.

🚨OPPOSE: New Barriers to Voting (HB 991/SB 1334)🚨
Sponsors: Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, Rep. Dana Trabulsy and Sen. Erin Grall

• What it does: The onerous new proof of citizenship requirements for voter registration and verification in the New Barriers to Voting bills are rooted in a false narrative about voter fraud and introduce an expensive and burdensome new requirement that will lead to more eligible voters being disenfranchised. These pose particular risk for voters who have changed their names for marriage or other reasons, whose legal name no longer matches proof of citizenship documents like a birth certificate, or don’t have a Florida driver’s license or state ID.
• What’s happening: SB 1334 PASSED out of the Senate Ethics & Elections Committee by a 5-2 vote. Next, it heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development for consideration. HB 991 also PASSED out of the House Government Operations Subcommittee by a 11-5 vote. It now heads to its final House committee of reference, State Affairs.

How you can help: Email the committee members and urge them to vote NO on SB 1334.

🚨OPPOSE: Endangering Our Kids Act (HB 173/SB 166)🚨
Sponsors: Rep. Kim Kendall and Sen. Erin Grall

• What it does: This legislation would put young people at risk by restricting minors’ access to birth control, STI treatment, and other essential healthcare without parental consent. In the real world, not all young people can safely involve a parent in sensitive health decisions. Public health policy should empower youth to take responsibility for their wellbeing, not punish them for seeking care when they are vulnerable or afraid. This bill prioritizes control over safety and will lead to worse health outcomes for young Floridians.
• What’s happening: HB 173 is scheduled to be heard in the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, February 10th at 9:00am ET.
• How you can help: Tell your lawmakers to oppose HB 173/SB 166.

🚨OPPOSE: The Education Package (HB 1071/SB 1090) 🚨
Sponsors: Rep. Dana Trabulsy and Sen. Erin Grall

• What it does: This legislation contains several concerning provisions, including a ban on school districts using state or federal funding for “social and political activism” activities by students and a revision to sexual health education content, which could introduce biased and anti-abortion information about fetal development. The Senate version would make Florida’s already limited sexual health education opt-in only, creating a new hurdle to important information.
• What’s happening: HB 1071 has been scheduled for a vote in the House Education & Employment Committee on Tuesday, February 10th at 9:00am ET.
• How you can help: Tell the committee members of the House Education & Employment Committee to oppose this bill.

NEUTRALIZED in the House: Penalizing Local Diversity and Inclusion Spending Bill (HB 1329/SB 1566)
Sponsors: Rep. Yvette Benarroch and Sen. Nick DiCeglie

• What it did: In its original form, this bill was state overreach that would have fined local government for funding programs and services addressing diverse communities’ needs by differentiating based on race, color, sex, or ethnicity, as well as any programs or services advancing “social justice” or addressing implicit bias or antiracism. It extended even beyond the Anti-Diversity in Local Government bill, threatening nondiscrimination ordinances and specialized community health programs.
• What happened: During its hearing in the House Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee, the bill was amended, removing the anti-DEI provisions from the legislation. With these changes, the bill is officially NEUTRALIZED.

As we continue over the next 33 days, we must remember that our voices matter, our actions matter, and our movement matters.