The 2022 Florida Legislative Session came to an end on Monday, one day later than scheduled. The legislature passed the new state budget with record high PreK-12 funding thanks in large part to money provided by the American Recovery Act. Lawmakers also passed a number of bills that will bring sweeping changes to public schools across the state mainly to the testing and assessment system. Budget This year, the Florida Legislature passed one of the largest PreK-12 budget increases in state history. Your persistent advocacy for public school funding had a tremendous impact. The PreK-12 Budget was $13.5 billion, up $1.5 billion from 2021. The budget includes: - Per pupil funding, known as "unweighted Full Time Equivalent", is $8,142.85 – an increase of $384.55
- Base student allocation (which determines the base level of funding for a district) is $4,587.40 – or an increase of $214.49.
- The state maintained the Required Local Effort (RLE) of 3.606 mills, generating a revenue increase of $633 million. RLE is the local revenue derived from property taxes.
- The budget specifies that $100 million in nonrecurring funds will be used to provide increases for VPK providers who raise all employee salaries to at least $15 per hour.
- The Teacher Salary Increase Allocation (TSIA) is $800 million – an increase of $250 million.
- Advocates successfully prevented the original bill language that cut $200 million from 12 of the state's largest districts. Instead, the Florida School Recognition Program, known as “A School Money”, will only be granted to schools that were “not found in violation of emergency rules promulgated by the Department of Health related to face covering mandates during the 2020-21 or 2021-22 school year.” Although not taking funding away from districts was less punitive, this means that 12 districts with some of the states’ neediest students will not be eligible for supplemental funding.
Bills Some of the bills that passed this session and are headed to the governor for his signature to take effect July 1st: SB 1048, Student Assessment replaces the Florida Standards Assessment (FSA) and creates the new progress monitoring and testing standards. Prior to session, the governor stated he wanted to eliminate the FSA and reduce the amount of time students spend testing. Unfortunately, the bill has the potential to increase time spent on testing by adding progress monitoring testing throughout the school year nor have the high stakes tied to state tests changed and still include mandatory third grade retention, school grading and funding, and teacher evaluations. Advocates should stay tuned for opportunities to influence decision makers at the state and local level as policies are developed. HB 7, Individual Freedoms passed on a party line vote. This bill eliminates some mental health programs for students and restricts how race-related issues can be taught in public schools and in workplace training sessions. This bill is the governor's attempt to eliminate the teaching of so-called "critical race theory". Critics note that this bill was a purely political exercise as critical race theory has never been taught in Florida's K12 public schools and is only a graduate level framework used predominantly in law schools. HB 1467, K-12 Education creates requirements for school districts when selecting instructional materials and other materials which are placed in library and media centers. Your advocacy helped mitigate some of the more harmful aspects of this bill. The bill also sets term limits for school board members allowing them to serve for 12 years. These limits begin following the November 2022 general election. CS/HB 461: Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program Student Service Requirements revises the prerequisites to qualify for the Bright Futures Scholarship. Currently, volunteer service hours are required to achieve the scholarship but going forward, paid work experience may be used to qualify, as well. Alliance advocates successfully fought for this bill that makes the scholarship more equitable for students who need or want to use valuable work experience in addition to their rigorous academic requirements. Read more about the legislative session on our blog. We appreciate all of you who advocated for Florida's children and their public schools. We will continue to monitor education policy and educate and inform you about the changes occurring in public education. Together, we can advocate for policies that invest in children and support their future. | |
