Florida legislators are moving forward with two bills aimed at reducing child drowning deaths as the state enters spring break season.

Florida recorded 119 fatal child drownings in 2025 — the highest number ever reported in the state and the highest rate in the nation.

One of the bills, which passed unanimously in the Florida Senate, would require vacation rental homes with a swimming pool or a body of water within 150 feet to install at least one approved safety feature, such as a pool fence, a pool safety cover, exit alarms on doors or windows leading outside, or self-closing and self-latching doors. The measure is now headed to the Florida House.

State Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, who represents Orange County and sponsored the legislation, said tourists are particularly at risk. He noted that visitors to Florida are often less familiar with the dangers that pools and waterfront properties pose to young children.

A second bill sponsored by Smith would expand state swim lesson vouchers for children from ages 1–4 to ages 1–7, and would also require hospitals and birth centers to provide water safety information to new parents before discharge.

Smith noted that 68% of the fatal child drownings in Florida last year involved children ages zero through three, underscoring the importance of educating new parents early.

Water safety advocate Nathalie Martin, founder of the Swim Global Project, said that mandatory swim lessons for third-grade children would be a significant step toward preventing drowning deaths.

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