Florida’s State Board of Education approved new rules requiring public colleges to verify that incoming students are U.S. citizens or lawfully present before enrollment, extending requirements to adult education programs like English language instruction and GED preparation. Institutions that cannot demonstrate lawful presence will become ineligible to enroll. The policy is part of a broader Florida immigration framework that followed the Legislature’s repeal of an in-state tuition waiver for undocumented students. Additional changes are also under consideration for the State University System with potential admission standards beginning in fall 2027. For higher education boards, this moves the immediate workload to operational governance: admissions systems, documentation collection, staff training, student communications, and internal controls for compliance. Trustee focus is likely to shift from the public policy debate to implementation risk and audit-readiness. Campuses are expected to build comprehensive plans with timelines and reporting mechanisms to avoid enrollment processing failures and downstream compliance exposure.