Florida SB 814: Emergency Alerts

Bill Text

814 
Emergency Alerts 
2025-12-09T06:08:32Z 
Requiring a local law enforcement agency to activate the emergency alert system and issue a Ya Ya Alert to public and private schools and child care facilities under certain circumstances; requiring local law enforcement agencies to create and maintain a list of such schools and facilities within their jurisdictions; providing immunity from civil liability to certain persons for damages for complying in good faith with specified provisions; requiring the Department of Law Enforcement, in cooperation with specified departments, to activate the emergency alert system and issue an Imminent Threat Alert at the request of a local law enforcement agency under certain circumstances, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-10-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 814 

 By Senator Jones 

 34-00191A-26 2026814__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to emergency alerts; creating s. 
 3 784.072, F.S.; defining terms; requiring a local law 
 4 enforcement agency to activate the emergency alert 
 5 system and issue a Ya Ya Alert to public and private 
 6 schools and child care facilities under certain 
 7 circumstances; requiring local law enforcement 
 8 agencies to create and maintain a list of such schools 
 9 and facilities within their jurisdictions; providing 
 10 requirements for the maintenance of such list; 
 11 providing immunity from civil liability to certain 
 12 persons for damages for complying in good faith with 
 13 specified provisions; providing a presumption of good 
 14 faith; providing construction; requiring the 
 15 Department of Law Enforcement, in cooperation with 
 16 specified departments, to activate the emergency alert 
 17 system and issue an Imminent Threat Alert at the 
 18 request of a local law enforcement agency under 
 19 certain circumstances; providing requirements for the 
 20 issuance of Imminent Threat Alerts; providing immunity 
 21 from civil liability to certain persons for damages 
 22 for complying in good faith with specified provisions; 
 23 providing a presumption of good faith; providing 
 24 construction; providing an effective date. 
 25 
 26 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 27 
 28 Section 1. Section 784.072, Florida Statutes, is created to 
 29 read: 
 30 784.072 Notification of imminent threat to schools and 
 31 child care facilities or the public; Ya Ya Alert; Imminent 
 32 Threat Alert.— 
 33 (1) As used in this section, the term: 
 34 (a) “Child care facility” has the same meaning as in s. 
 35 402.302. 
 36 (b) “Imminent Threat Alert” means a notification issued 
 37 pursuant to subsection (3) which informs the public that an 
 38 imminent threat exists such that the lives and safety of people 
 39 are endangered, including, but not limited to, instances in 
 40 which a person suspected of killing or causing serious bodily 
 41 injury to another person or assaulting another person with a 
 42 deadly weapon has fled the scene of the offense. 
 43 (c) “Private school” has the same meaning as in s. 1002.01. 
 44 (d) “Ya Ya Alert” means a notification issued pursuant to 
 45 subsection (2) which informs public schools, private schools, 
 46 and child care facilities that an imminent threat exists, 
 47 including, but not limited to, instances in which a person 
 48 suspected of killing or causing serious bodily injury to another 
 49 person or assaulting another person with a deadly weapon has 
 50 fled the scene of the offense, and which advises the schools and 
 51 facilities to lock their doors and encourages persons in those 
 52 schools and facilities to remain in lockdown and be vigilant in 
 53 watching for and reporting any suspicious activity. 
 54 (2)(a) If a local law enforcement agency that has 
 55 jurisdiction over the scene of an incident determines that the 
 56 scene gives rise to an imminent threat to the public, the agency 
 57 must activate the emergency alert system and issue a Ya Ya Alert 
 58 to all public and private schools and child care facilities 
 59 within a 3-mile radius of the incident location and may activate 
 60 the system and issue the alert to any other public or private 
 61 school or child care facility the agency determines is at risk, 
 62 given its proximity to the incident, including an incident in 
 63 which all of the following conditions are satisfied: 
 64 1. A person has been killed or has suffered serious bodily 
 65 injury, or a person has been assaulted with a deadly weapon by 
 66 another person. 
 67 2. The person suspected of committing the offense has fled 
 68 the scene of the offense. 
 69 3. The law enforcement agency investigating the offense has 
 70 determined that the suspect poses an imminent threat to the 
 71 public safety. 
 72 (b) For purposes of complying with this subsection, each 
 73 local law enforcement agency shall create and maintain a list of 
 74 all public schools, private scho