New Florida Bill Could Force FAU to Rename University Drive for Charlie James Kirk

BOCA RATON, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2026) — A bill filed in the Florida House would require Florida Atlantic University to rename one of its campus roads and would punish universities and state colleges that do not comply by withholding state funding.

The proposal is House Bill 113, titled “Redesignations of State University and Florida College System Institution Roads.”It directs boards of trustees for Florida’s state universities and Florida College System institutions to redesignate specific roads or portions of roads with new names tied to “Charlie James Kirk.”The bill will start its operation right after Congress passes it into law and all organizations need to fulfill its requirements during the first 90 days of the law’s enforcement period.

For Boca Raton, the bill calls out Florida Atlantic University by name. Under the measure, FAU’s board of trustees would be required to redesignate “University Drive” as “Charlie James Kirk Drive.”University Drive serves as a well-known identifier which students and staff members and visitors to the campus and delivery services use to navigate through the university boundaries. A name change for University Drive would create a chain reaction which would affect all signs and directions and maps and wayfinding systems that help people locate buildings and university services.

The bill’s reach also lands in Palm Beach County on the Florida College System side. It requires Palm Beach State College to redesignate “Ersey Street” as “Charlie James Kirk Street.”Palm Beach State is not a single-campus institution, but it is governed by a board of trustees and receives state support through the Florida College System structure. The bill requires all roadway name changes to occur through official administrative procedures which do not offer any choice in the matter.

HB 113 sets out a list of road names for multiple state universities across Florida, along with multiple Florida College System institutions. The instructions are framed as obligations placed on each board of trustees, with university boards acting under authority delegated by the Board of Governors of the State University System, and Florida College System boards acting under authority delegated by the State Board of Education.

The enforcement system operates directly through the process of withholding state funding from any state university or Florida College System institution which fails to redesignate their listed roadway within 90 days after the bill takes effect. The system of accountability depends on institutional penalties to stop the requirement for official disciplinary actions. Campuses need to determine if they can fulfill the deadline requirement while handling their administrative work and signage and mapping responsibilities at a pace which prevents funding disruptions.

The current situation for people who live in the area and their neighbors focuses on following official procedures. The bill was last recorded as being in the House Education Administration Subcommittee as of Oct. 14, 2025. The bill starts its process after committees review it and both chambers of the legislature pass it because the time period begins at this stage. The government needs to complete all system updates within a brief 90-day period which proves challenging because it involves simultaneous modifications to physical signs and internal campus maps and public websites and emergency response locations and mail and package delivery systems and third-party mapping applications that require time to update their information.

The board of trustees at each institution would maintain responsibility for enforcing this new law. The university board at FAU needs to take action as the required entity for this situation. The board at Palm Beach State College would need to fulfill this responsibility. The bill contains no information about how to obtain approval or what to name the bill. It lists the roadway and the required new name.

The bill advancement requires residents to monitor how institutions will define the extent of their renaming process. The campus features roads which function as main transportation routes where commuters and rideshare users and vendors and students travel every day. The moment signage changes and people begin receiving GPS directions for new routes the change becomes tangible even when it holds only symbolic value. Schools need to inform both local law enforcement agencies and fire rescue teams and all other emergency responders about any changes which affect their ability to use stable location identifiers.

The bill HB 113 received its introduction from Rep. Steele who included Rep. Plasencia as his co-introducer. The bill exists as a formal legislative document which lacks any language that suggests or acknowledges anything. It is drafted as a requirement with a financial penalty attached, and it names the Boca Raton campus roadway directly.

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