House Bill 899 and Senate Bill 1018 both died in committee on March 11, 2016, when the Florida legislature adjourned. Ostensibly aimed at empowering taxpayers to object to the use of specific instructional materials in the public schools, the bills were promoted by groups with a record of objecting to the treatment of evolution and climate change in textbooks, as NCSE previously reported.
"We're fortunate and happy that these bad bills didn't get out of the starting gate," Florida Citizens for Science's Brandon Haught told NCSE. "The good thing to come out of this brief fight is that a clear anti-science motivation behind these bills is now documented. The bills' sponsors and supporters aren't likely to give up, though. But we'll be ready, just as we have been for a full ten years now."