- In an effort to protect kids with disabilities, a panel of Florida lawmakers are advancing a bill letting parents of special needs students to monitor school classrooms.
- If passed, House Bill 257 would allow cameras to be installed in classrooms for special needs students.
- Read on to find out why one Florida parent supports the measure.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Dina Justice stood in front of lawmakers in support of a bill that would have allowed her to witness the abuse her daughter, Emily, took when she was just eight years old.
Emily is autistic and non-verbal.
Dina said it wasn’t until a school staff member came forward that she discovered her daughter was being verbally and physically abused at school by a teacher.
“The teacher would place her in a chair in the middle of the room and have one of the aids pin her arms behind her back," Dina explained to House PreK-12 Budget Subcommittee.
"The teacher would get directly in her face and tell her she was bad. 15 years, and some traumas never fade anyway. This bill is way overdue.”
Emily is now 24.
The panel of House lawmakers approved Miami Dade Democratic Representative Kevin Chambliss’ measure.
The bill (HB 257) requires all public and charter schools in Florida— except those in fiscally constrained counties—to install video cameras and audio recording devices inside their special-ed classes.
“There have been instances where we have found that they were unexplained abuse," said Chambliss. "That is every parent’s nightmare. This bill seeks to address that."
Cameras will not be placed in restrooms and changing areas. School districts will need to have them installed in classes that have at least one nonverbal student with a disability. And the recordings must be kept for at least three months and be readily available to the parents, law enforcement, and the Department of Children and Families.
Brevard Republican Representative Chase Tramont said the bill is necessary to ensure parents of special needs students, have the proof they need in case their child is abused or neglected.
Please @csime90 put Cameras in classrooms on the agenda of the Senate Education Committee https://t.co/luSYV4dE2J
— Autism Society of Florida (@AutismFlorida) March 31, 2025
“This bill is going to get passed one way or another at some point, so I congratulate you on being on the right side of history," said Rep. Tramont.
The bi-partisan measure needs to pass one more committee before it can be taken up on the House floor.
Its Senate companion (SB 1006) has yet to have a hearing.