New:
New Education Funding Bill Filed
Representative Manny Diaz has filed HB 3A that does the following:
- decreases local required effort from property taxes by over $1.5 million.
- increases the state’s base student allocation from sales taxes by $43.24 from the 2016-17 allocation.
Allocations for other programs are similar to the prior measures. This bill does very little to help public schools and less than Governor Scott requested.
Mostly this bill appears to borrow from Peter to pay Paul. While the state portion of the per student funding (FEFP) that Governor Scott vetoed would increase slightly, the local funding would decrease. FEFP covers school operational activities like instruction, but it does not cover the capital outlay funds for building construction and maintenance.
Keep up the pressure!
Have you told Governor Scott to Veto HB 7069?
The revisions Governor Scott proposed to the 2017 budget fall short. Our public schools have to maintain their air conditioning, roofs and science labs. We cannot divert money to privately owned charter facilities. As Governor Scott has said in his other veto messages this year,
“The following is vetoed because there is not a clear statewide return on investment for the renovation (or construction) of a facility not owned by the state.”
Charter schools are not owned by the state. Ask Governor Scott to veto sharing local property taxes for public schools with privately owned charters. Dividing the same amount of money among more schools only ensures no school is adequately funded.
SEND YOUR MESSAGE TO: [email protected]
Veto List Has Some Bright Spots but HB 7069 Not On It
Some specific items on Governor Scott’s veto list include:
- KIPP charter schools in Jacksonville special allocation of $500,000 plus $724,000
- School funding FEFP ( to be renegotiated during the special session to increase by $200 million or about $100 per student.)
- HB 2877 Teach for America $1,403,750
- Principal autonomy Pilot Project
There are also several special programs that made the veto list. All of these items will be reviewed during the special session. As of now, HB 7069 has not been vetoed.
Charter Takeover of Jefferson County Schools: Why?
Jefferson County schools in the Florida Panhandle, will become the State’s first charter district. The takeover by the Florida Department of Education was the result of a decade long struggle to improve the schools that simply made things worse. This latest move is a disaster for the teachers and staff. One half will lose their jobs for reasons that have little to do with their competence.
What happened in Jefferson County, Florida to cause the State to turn the district over to Somerset, a privately run school board that is part of the for-profit Academica charter school chain?
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- League Members visit the office of Senator Marco Rubio
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- League Members wait to see Senator Bill Nelson
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- Education Team at the Department of Education
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