JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Water is everywhere in Florida — oceans, pools, retention ponds and backyard water features. With so much water comes an increased risk of drowning, lawmakers and safety advocates say.
The Florida Department of Health lists drowning as the leading cause of unintentional death for children ages 1-4, and state lawmakers in Tallahassee are considering two bills aimed at reducing those deaths.
One proposal would change the state’s swim voucher program, widening the age range eligible for free lessons. The current law applies to children ages 0 to 4; the proposed change would expand eligibility to ages 1 to 7.
The second bill focuses on residential and vacation-rental properties. Sponsors want to require safety measures for bodies of water near dwellings and at short-term rental properties that have pools.
Under the proposal, any body of water not classified as a pool within 150 feet of a dwelling would trigger a requirement for exit alarms or self-closing exterior doors. Vacation-rental properties with pools would have to install at least one pool safety feature, the bill says.
The swim voucher program pays for eight lessons for qualifying families at partner facilities, including many YMCAs. To qualify, families must meet income limits tied to federal poverty guidelines.
Delonyx Cortez, vice president of operations at Winston Family YMCA, emphasized the urgency of teaching children to swim.
“Drownings can happen in a matter of seconds,” he said.
The YMCA is one of the bill’s strongest advocates.
“It is done at an age where they can really retain the information, the skills and really learn,” Delonyx said.
Aquatics Programs Director Mayumi Teensma said even her own childhood swim lessons set a foundation that led her to swim teams, lifeguarding and long-term water safety.
“I learned how to swim at a YMCA in California from the earliest you can sign in, which is 6 months old,” Teensma.
Teensma outlined some of the basic survival skills taught in lessons, like turning and finding the pool wall after an accidental fall-in.
“Jump, push, turn, grab,” she said. “That’s in case they fall into the pool, they can turn around and grab the wall themselves.”
She also stressed safe rescue behavior for adults.
“Reach or throw, don’t go,” Teensma said.
Parents who use local swim programs say the lessons change attitudes and build confidence.
“We went from sitting on the side of the pool crying to eager to get into the pool,” said Dawn Moore, who has put her daughter in swim classes since she was a year old.
Moore urged other parents to start lessons early.
“Get your child swimming as soon as possible,” Moore said. “Stick them in there early. It may be a little uncomfortable for you, but think about the bigger goal.”
The YMCA also urges parents and caregivers to supervise children closely around water and minimize distractions like phones, because drownings can happen quickly.
If the bills pass, they would take effect this summer.
Copyright 2026 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.