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Read. Follow. Verify.Florida Senate authorizes marching band and Special Olympics substitutions for high school physical education and fine arts credits
Last action · March 5, 2026: Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/HB 453 (Ch. 2026-70), CS/CS/HB 1279 (Ch. 2026-59) -SJ 589Sponsors: Lori Berman and 1 other
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What This Bill Proposed
The Florida Legislature permits high school students to substitute marching band experience for physical education and performing fine arts credits, and allows students with disabilities to participate in the Special Olympics to fulfill the physical education diploma requirement. These course substitution rules apply to standard high school diploma requirements beginning July 1, 2026.
High school students and students with disabilities gain alternative ways to fulfill mandatory graduation credits without taking traditional physical education or fine arts classes.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
High school students
Students can use marching band, dance classes, ROTC, or the Special Olympics to fulfill physical education and performing arts credit requirements.
Students with disabilities
Students with disabilities gain specific options to satisfy diploma requirements through Special Olympics participation, portfolios, course substitutions, or employment plans approved by their IEP teams.
District school boards
School boards must adhere to new course substitution rules and are prohibited from requiring physical education to be taken during the 9th grade year.
State Board of Education
The board must adopt administrative and emergency rules to implement high school graduation requirements and standards for students with disabilities.
Key Facts
- Students may complete 2 years of marching band to satisfy the one-credit physical education requirement and the one-credit performing arts requirement.
- Students with disabilities may participate in the Special Olympics for one school year as a course substitution for the physical education requirement, as determined by their IEP team.
- Completing one semester with a grade of 'C' or better in a marching band class, a related physical activity class, or a dance class satisfies one-half credit in physical education or performing arts.
- Marching band and ROTC credits cannot be used to satisfy the personal fitness requirement or adaptive physical education under an IEP or 504 plan.
Show all 8 facts
- Two years in a Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) class with a significant drill component satisfies both the physical education and performing arts one-credit requirements.
- Students with disabilities may satisfy diploma requirements using alternative options specified in their individual education plan, such as a portfolio of quantifiable evidence or documented successful employment.
- Any change to a high school graduation option in a student's IEP must be parent-approved and is subject to verification by an independent reviewer.
- The State Board of Education is directed to adopt rules, including emergency rules, to implement the provisions for students with disabilities.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can marching band replace both physical education and performing arts credits?
How can students with disabilities use the Special Olympics to fulfill graduation requirements?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Tabled in the Senate.
Procedural history
18 actions- Mar 5, 2026SenateLaid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/HB 453 (Ch. 2026-70), CS/CS/HB 1279 (Ch. 2026-59) -SJ 589
- Mar 5, 2026SenateSubstituted CS/HB 453 -SJ 589
- Mar 5, 2026SenateFloorRead 2nd time -SJ 589
- Mar 2, 2026SenatePlaced on Special Order Calendar, 03/05/26
- Feb 18, 2026SenatePlaced on Calendar, on 2nd reading
- Feb 17, 2026SenateCommitteeFavorable by- Rules; YEAS 24 NAYS 0
Show 12 earlier actions
- Feb 12, 2026SenateOn Committee agenda-- Rules, 02/17/26, 12:00 pm, 412 Knott Building
- Feb 10, 2026SenateCommitteeNow in Rules
- Feb 10, 2026SenateCommitteeFavorable by Children, Families, and Elder Affairs; YEAS 6 NAYS 0
- Feb 5, 2026SenateOn Committee agenda-- Children, Families, and Elder Affairs, 02/10/26, 12:00 pm, 301 Senate Building
- Jan 14, 2026SenateIntroducedCS by Education Pre-K - 12 read 1st time
- Jan 14, 2026SenateCommitteeNow in Children, Families, and Elder Affairs
- Jan 14, 2026SenatePending reference review under Rule 4.7(2) - (Committee Substitute)
- Jan 13, 2026SenateIntroducedIntroduced
- Jan 13, 2026SenateCommitteeCS by Education Pre-K - 12; YEAS 6 NAYS 0
- Jan 8, 2026SenateOn Committee agenda-- Education Pre-K - 12, 01/13/26, 1:30 pm, 412 Knott Building
- Dec 9, 2025SenateCommitteeReferred to Education Pre-K - 12; Children, Families, and Elder Affairs; Rules
- Nov 18, 2025SenateIntroducedFiled
Version history & redline
4 versions on fileOfficial version history is partial: 2 linked texts are unavailable or incomplete. Source links remain available below.
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official version host penalty: 429 Retry-After 300 s
Voting Record
Rules: Favorable on S 556 c1
Total
24
- Yes
- 24
- No
- 0
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 0
- Abstain
- 0
How they voted (19)
Show 2 earlier roll calls
Children, Families, and Elder Affairs: Favorable on S 556 c1
Total
6
- Yes
- 6
- No
- 0
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 0
- Abstain
- 0
Education Pre - K - 12: Favorable with Committee Substitute on S 556 Filed
Total
7
- Yes
- 6
- No
- 0
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 1
- Abstain
- 0
Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Expansion of Physical Education Substitutions
The bill broadens traditional physical education and fine arts credit pathways by formally incorporating Special Olympics participation for students with disabilities and clarifying marching band and ROTC credit rules.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.flsenate.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 35)
- Controversy5Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment2Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz15Current news / social attention level
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