HB 743 Summary

• Amends Florida Statutes Section 775.085 to expand hate crime provisions by adding gender and gender identity to existing protected classes (race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, homeless status, and advanced age).

• Defines "gender identity" as a person's gender-related identity, appearance, or behavior, regardless of whether it differs from what is traditionally associated with the person's physiology or assigned sex at birth.

• Modifies Section 775.0863 to broaden the definition of "disability" from "mental or physical disability" to include a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of a person's major life activities.

• Establishes a reclassification scheme for felonies and misdemeanors committed with prejudice, raising penalties one degree level (e.g., second-degree misdemeanor becomes first-degree misdemeanor; first-degree felony becomes life felony).

• Takes effect October 1, 2019.