---
type: "Bill"
title: "Higher Education"
description: "Higher Education; Revising the duties of the Board of Governors relating to the mission of each state university; requiring the Board of Governors Accountability Plan to annually report certain research expenditures of a specified amount; prohibiting specified educational institutions from expending funds for certain purposes; revising how general education core courses are established; specifying a one-time limit on the requirement to change accrediting agencies, etc."
jurisdiction: "us/states/fl"
legislature: "Florida Legislature"
session: "2023"
identifier: "SB 266"
citation: "Florida SB 266 (2023)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
chapter_law: "2023-82"
primary_sponsors: ["Education Postsecondary", "Fiscal Policy", "Grall"]
version_count: 6
action_count: 53
vote_count: 5
first_action: "2023-02-28"
last_action: "2023-05-16"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/6ba7544b-4c58-4a4e-9342-998dd785172d"
source_url: "https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/266/ByCategory"
source_hash: "568a768ce4d49cef07c6ae06c6ce85f925eac82fbf01c71f2d7e9f7718105f4b"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-fl"]
---

# Florida SB 266 (2023) — Higher Education

Higher Education; Revising the duties of the Board of Governors relating to the mission of each state university; requiring the Board of Governors Accountability Plan to annually report certain research expenditures of a specified amount; prohibiting specified educational institutions from expending funds for certain purposes; revising how general education core courses are established; specifying a one-time limit on the requirement to change accrediting agencies, etc.

**Enacted** — Laws of Florida, Chapter 2023-82.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **S 266 Filed** (filed) — [source](https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/266/BillText/Filed/HTML)
2. **S 266 c1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/266/BillText/c1/HTML)
3. **S 266 c2** (committee substitute) — [source](https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/266/BillText/c2/HTML)
4. **S 266 c3** (committee substitute) — [source](https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/266/BillText/c3/HTML)
5. **S 266 e1** (engrossed) — [source](https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/266/BillText/e1/HTML)
6. **S 266 er** (enrolled) — [source](https://flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/266/BillText/er/HTML)

## Votes

- Favorable with Committee Substitute — **7–3** (pass) · upper
- Third Reading — **27–12** (pass) · upper
- Favorable with Committee Substitute — **14–6** (pass) · upper
- Favorable with Committee Substitute — **8–4** (pass) · upper
- Passage, Third Reading — **81–34** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Appropriations Committee on Education — primary (organization)
- Education Postsecondary — primary (person)
- Fiscal Policy — primary (person)
- Grall — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-02-28** Filed `filing`
- **2023-03-01** Referred to Education Postsecondary; Appropriations Committee on Education; Fiscal Policy `referral-committee`
- **2023-03-07** Introduced `introduction`
- **2023-03-10** On Committee agenda-- Education Postsecondary, 03/15/23, 1:00 pm, 110 Senate Building
- **2023-03-15** CS by Education Postsecondary; YEAS 7 NAYS 3
- **2023-03-16** Pending reference review under Rule 4.7(2) - (Committee Substitute)
- **2023-03-17** Now in Appropriations Committee on Education
- **2023-03-21** CS by Education Postsecondary read 1st time
- **2023-04-06** On Committee agenda-- Appropriations Committee on Education, 04/12/23, 11:30 am, 412 Knott Building
- **2023-04-12** CS/CS by Appropriations Committee on Education; YEAS 8 NAYS 4
- **2023-04-14** Pending reference review under Rule 4.7(2) - (Committee Substitute)
- **2023-04-14** Now in Fiscal Policy
- **2023-04-17** On Committee agenda-- Fiscal Policy, 04/20/23, 9:30 am, 412 Knott Building
- **2023-04-17** CS/CS by Appropriations Committee on Education read 1st time
- **2023-04-20** CS/CS/CS by- Fiscal Policy; YEAS 14 NAYS 6
- **2023-04-24** Pending reference review -under Rule 4.7(2) - (Committee Substitute)
- **2023-04-24** Placed on Calendar, on 2nd reading
- **2023-04-24** Placed on Special Order Calendar, 04/27/23
- **2023-04-25** CS/CS/CS by Fiscal Policy read 1st time
- **2023-04-27** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2023-04-27** Amendment(s) failed (229550, 304282, 380552, 624452)
- **2023-04-27** Amendment(s) adopted (213146, 424694)
- **2023-04-27** Ordered engrossed
- **2023-04-27** Placed on 3rd reading `reading-3`
- **2023-04-28** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2023-04-28** CS passed as amended; YEAS 27 NAYS 12 `passage`
- **2023-04-28** In Messages
- **2023-05-01** Bill referred to House Calendar
- **2023-05-01** Bill added to Special Order Calendar (5/2/2023)
- **2023-05-01** 1st Reading (Engrossed 1) `reading-1`
- **2023-05-02** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 901207 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 786363 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 499863 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 746441 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 105477 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 433959 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 528961 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 358283 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 402961 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 497493 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 051409 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 780349 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 553605 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Amendment 775507 Failed
- **2023-05-02** Placed on 3rd reading `reading-3`
- **2023-05-02** Added to Third Reading Calendar
- **2023-05-03** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2023-05-03** CS passed; YEAS 81, NAYS 34 `passage`
- **2023-05-03** Ordered enrolled `enrolled`
- **2023-05-15** Signed by Officers and presented to Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2023-05-15** Approved by Governor `executive-signature`
- **2023-05-16** Chapter No. 2023-82, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/HB 1035 (Ch. 2023-38)

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/6ba7544b-4c58-4a4e-9342-998dd785172d`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Florida legislature records).