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State public universities and colleges either rename streets after Charlie Kirk or face loss of state funding.
That is the message to all higher institution facilities in Florida, according to House Bill 113, filed Oct. 7 by Rep. Kevin Steele for the 2026 legislative session.
Steele, R-Dade City, would mandate that all 40 public institutions rename designated streets after Kirk, who was fatally shot Sept. 10 during an event at Utah Valley University in Utah.
In Florida, Rep. Juan Carlos Porras, R-Miami, filed House Bill 33 to rename a portion of Southwest 107th Avenue in Miami-Dade County as "Charlie Kirk Memorial Avenue."
Kirk, founder of the conservative student organization Turning Point USA, frequently appeared on college campuses for public debates.
With the famous phrase “prove me wrong” often posted on the tents he would speak out of, Kirk would debate with local students and unapologetically share his views.
Tragically, Charlie Kirk was shot during his first stop on “The American Comeback tour, a morbid scene which has left his wife Erika a widow, and his infant children without their father.
"My goal with this bill is to continue his legacy through generations of students that will attend our schools and will be faced with many differing ideas," Steele posted on X.
Text of HB 33, effective July 1, 2026
Steele, a Republican representative for District 55, proposed a five-page bill that designates the street each university must comply with. Steele proposed "to redesignate specified roads or portions of roads to certain names relating to Charlie James Kirk," according to the bill.
For Tallahassee, the bill directly affects Florida State University (FSU) and Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), renaming Stadium Road and West Osceola Street as Charlie James Kirk Road and Charlie James Kirk Street, respectively.
The proposed bill would deny funding to schools refusing to change designated street names once the bill goes into effect, giving universities 90 days to comply. No precedent exists for state legislation mandating all public universities to rename streets after a single individual.
While streets across the country bear Martin Luther King Jr.'s name, those changes occurred through local municipal decisions over decades, not state mandate.
The bill is unique and unprecedented, as 2026 House Bill 113 is the first state bill to mandate renaming streets after a figure, especially with a short compliance period.
Many other assassinated public figures have been similarly commemorated, but not through state legislation.
House Reps Yvette Benarroch and Meg Weinberger passed HB125, making Oct. 14 the Charlie Kirk Day of Remembrance.
“This bill reminds us that courage still matters, free speech must always be protected, and the values that built this nation are worth defending,” the bill reads.
The bill has been controversial to say the least, with students across Florida varying in reaction to the recently filed bill. Where many are enthusiastic to ensure his courage and legacy live on, others are disgruntled by his comments and are not as welcoming of his name on campuses.
Unlike MLK, Kirk's recognition has been proposed by the state in sweeping legislation, rather than decades of municipal legislation and remembrance.
Kevin Steele's proposed bill is not the first remembrance bill for Charlie Kirk, as Oklahoma has proposed a similar one. Oklahoma Senate Bill 1187 would take it a step further than street names by requiring each Oklahoma university to create a plaza for the late figure.
Kirk left a polarizing legacy, which may create different levels of receptiveness to the bill. One example comes from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who called his ideas “ignorant."
Will Universities be forced to pay for the street change? More importantly, will each university readily comply, given that online protests have spread across social media?
The 2026 legislative session meets Jan. 13, meaning the bill may not go into effect until spring.
How do you feel about the article? Be sure to contact me at jason.f@lead4earth.org for any updates you may have for the story.
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