Florida’s government is one step closer to guiding the process when it comes to the future Donald Trump Presidential Library.

The Senate passed Senate President Pro Tempore Jason Brodeur’s measure (SB 118) that would preempt local governments and cede control to Tallahassee.

“As the home of the 45th and 47th President of the United States, there is a high likelihood that President Trump will select Florida to be the site of his presidential library,” Brodeur said. “In anticipation of Florida’s first presidential library, we should roll out the welcome mat and offer our President maximum flexibility to construct this historic landmark in Florida.”

The eventual library is expected to be in South Florida, near where the Trump family makes its base. The Associated Press says Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University are among the sites being explored for construction.

Senate President Ben Albritton hailed the passage of the legislation.

“Florida is proud to be the home state of President Donald Trump, and we would be honored to welcome our state’s first presidential library in celebration of President Trump’s historic tenure. The Florida Senate stands with President Trump and is committed to protecting his legacy as the first Floridian in the White House.”

NBC’s Matt Dixon reports that Eric Trump and Steve Witkoff have scouted out potential sites, and Trump has met with Gov. Ron DeSantis to discuss the project.

Pensacola Republican Rep. Alex Andrade’s bill (HB 69) has cleared all House committees. It is likely the House takes up the Senate version as soon as the next floor session.

The bill reserves to the state “all regulatory authority over the establishment, maintenance, activities, and operations of presidential libraries.” It blocks “counties, municipalities, or other political subdivisions from enacting or enforcing any ordinance, resolution, rule, or other measure regarding presidential libraries unless authorized by federal law.”

Central to the legislative premise is the idea that such libraries are “unique national institutions designated to house, preserve, and make accessible the records of former presidents.”

The bill uses the definition of a presidential library adopted federally in 1986 by an act of Congress when Ronald Reagan was the chief executive, encompassing “research facilities and museum facilities,” and enshrining them as part of the National Archives system.

The federal legislation actually applied to Presidents after Reagan, such as George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, as it took effect for Presidents inaugurated for their first terms after 1985, which was when Reagan’s second and final term as President began.

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A House panel has advanced a bill reversing a 2023 law over later middle and high school start times.

Democrats chided Republicans for needing the do-over just two years after the original law.

“This is not an I-told-you-so moment,” said Democratic Rep. LaVon Bracy Davis before House Education Administration Subcommittee’s 16-0 vote for HB 261. “This is a great bill, but I really think we need to listen to the people that know best because we wouldn’t have to be here, kind of fixing what we did.”

The 2023 legislation required public middle schools to start by 8 a.m. and high schools to begin by 8:30 a.m. starting July 1, 2026.

However, with the deadline approaching, school leaders warned that they face huge busing costs with the new schedule mandated by Tallahassee and not enough bus drivers. Davis, an Orlando Democrat, warned that her district could get hit with a $4 million expense, for instance.

Having middle and high schools start later could force some elementary students to start school earlier and also affect parents’ work schedules if they rely on older children to watch the younger ones.

Lawmakers originally supported the 2023 legislation to help middle and high school students get more sleep.

“We all understand the science, and the science makes sense, but this is a logistical nightmare,” said Rep. Jeff Holcomb, a Spring Hill Republican, during Wednesday’s debate. “At the end of the day, are we going to send our elementary school students to school at 7 a.m.? There really isn’t a good answer at all to that other than kind of going back to the status quo. We’re listening to our School Boards. We’re listening to our parents.”

The Orange County and Manatee County School Districts and the Greater Florida Consortium of School Boards were among the groups supporting the bill at Wednesday’s hearing.

Rep. Anne Gerwig, who sponsored the bill, had a solution to fix the problem.

“I would suggest, as a parent, that kids could get more sleep if they went to bed earlier,” said the Wellington Republican.

Gerwig’s bill says Florida schools are in compliance with the law if they submit a report to the state that give the start times of schools and the financial impact of later start times, as well as “documentation of strategies the school district considered to implement a later school start time for middle schools and high schools within the school district, including the number of board meetings and public hearings held to discuss the strategies and any parent input the school district received.”

The Senate companion (SB 296) sponsored by Sen. Jennifer Bradley cleared two committee stops already and is scheduled to be brought up Thursday morning at the Fiscal Policy Committee.

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Last Call – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.

First Shot

LGBTQ lawmakers are celebrating at least a temporary defeat of two bills seen by critics as furthering assaults on gender and sexual minorities.

At an Equality Florida press conference, advocates for LGBTQ Floridians said they see fewer direct attacks on rights this Session.

“We see it as a hopeful sign that far fewer bills specifically targeting the LGBTQ community have been filed this year,” said Stratton Pollitzer, Deputy Director of Equality Florida. “Maybe, just maybe, more legislators are growing tired of the cruelty, the distractions and the endless culture wars pushed by these extremists.”

The tabling of legislation critics maligned as the “Don’t Say Gay or Trans at Work” bill (SB 440) and the “Banning Diversity and Equity in State Agencies” bill (SB 1694) at the Senate Government Oversight and Accountability Committee further bolstered the sentiment. Upward of 1,000 public comment cards were submitted at the meeting, which coincided with Pride Days at the Capitol.

Importantly, Senate President Ben Albritton’s Office stressed that the fact the bills were not heard at a Tuesday hearing does not mean the bills are dead. The committee can take the bills up at a later date.

Florida Politics reached out to Sens. Stan McClain and Randy Fine, the respective sponsors of SB 440 and 1694, about whether they intend to pursue the policies. Fine said he expects his bill to come up again before the committee as soon as next week.

But Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, an Orlando Democrat who is gay, noted that both bills are marked on the Senate website now as “Not Considered.” The same goes for a bill restricting union negotiation power (SB 1328), also tabled from the agenda.

Read more on Florida Politics.

Evening Reads

—”‘Have you seen our Congressman?’ Angry voters press GOP for answers.” via Hannah Knowles of The Washington Post

—”Donald Trump’s tariffs have sown uncertainty. That might be the point.” via Alan Rappeport of The New York Times

—“The Trump right’s pro-Israel antisemitism” via Zack Beauchamp of Vox

—”War-torn Congo has a deal for Trump: Kick out rebels, get minerals” via Benoit Faucon, Nicholas Bariyo and Alexander Ward of The Wall Street Journal

—”The DEI Catch-22” via Rose Horowitch of The Atlantic

—“Can a DeSantis ever win another election?” via David Catanese of Too Close To Call

—”It’s time once again for insurers vs. attorneys in Florida’s Legislature” via Ron Hurtibise of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

—”Eyeball wars: Ophthalmologists say optometry scope of practice bill is shortsighted” via Drew Wilson of Florida Politics

—“Claims bill clearing $1.7M to Broward man wrongly imprisoned for 34 years advances” via Jesse Scheckner of Florida Politics

—”For Ukrainian sisters in Gulfport, Trump sparks fears of deportation” via Lane DeGregory of the Tampa Bay Times