The Florida Board of Governors was created in 2003 to serve as the statewide governing body for the State University System of Florida, which includes all public universities in the state of Florida and also New College of Florida. Its predecessor, the Florida Board of Regents, was abolished by an act of the Florida state legislature that was signed into law by Governor Jeb Bush on July 1, 2001. Bob Graham, a United States Senator from Florida, objected to the abolition of the statewide body, and responded by leading a ballot initiative to restore it. This initiative succeeded in creating what is now called the Florida Board of Governors. The Board of Governors is now ensconced in the Florida Constitution, and therefore can not be abolished without another constitutional amendment.
The Florida Board of Governors has seventeen members, including fourteen members appointed by the governor, the Florida Commissioner of Education, the Chair of the Advisory Council of Faculty Senates, and the President of the Florida Student Association.