House, Senate Agree To $480 Million School Pay Raises

April 22, 2013

Gov. Rick Scott will get the $480 million he wanted for education pay raises. But barring a last-minute change of heart by legislative negotiators, he will not get an across-the-board, $2,500 increase for classroom teachers.

The House and Senate agreed to set aside the $480 million during as part of a Sunday negotiating session on the education budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

The fine print guiding how the pay raises are provided still has to be worked out, but the lead negotiators for both sides said that any pay increases would be decided based on merit.

The House had been pushing for more money without as stringent a requirement that the funds go to teacher pay raises — even though lawmakers would have made it very clear that they should. Rep. Erik Fresen, the Miami Republican lead negotiations for the House, said Sunday the final language would make sure the money wound up in the right place.

“I think at the end of the day, regardless of how you look at it, it’s going to be used for teacher salary increases, and it will have a methodology that includes merit to make sure that that commitment to merit recognition stays in place,” he said.

Not only have lawmakers long championed the idea of basing the pay raises on merit, lawmakers said the fact that all instructional personnel would be included in the House and Senate raises — instead of just classroom teachers — means a $2,500 across-the-board raise wouldn’t be covered with the $480 million.

Scott has openly touted the pay raise as one of his two priorities for this year’s legislative session, the other being a sales tax exemption for manufacturing equipment. The governor’s office issued a terse statement following the meeting.

“The governor has priorities. The Legislature has priorities. There’s still enough time left to determine how successful this session will be for all of us,” said Scott spokeswoman Melissa Sellers.

Scott has said repeatedly that he believes that the increase should be across the board, though he dodged a question Wednesday on whether he would sign a budget that used merit as basis for the increase.

“Well, I’m confident the House and the Senate will do the right thing,” he said. “I’ve never talked about what type of budget I will and won’t sign.”

Districts have complained, most recently at a meeting with Scott on Wednesday, that merit increases could complicate efforts to negotiate contracts with local unions in time for the school year.

But Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton and lead negotiator for his chamber, brushed those gripes aside — noting that merit pay will be required in the 2014-15 school year.

“There’s legislation that’s been enacted,” Galvano said. “It’s out there. This is not something new for the districts.”

By The News Service of Florida

Comments

3 Responses to “House, Senate Agree To $480 Million School Pay Raises”

  1. Sorry for not home schooling on April 24th, 2013 8:48 am

    People will stick up for the teachers when parents are not put down and made to feel like its all on the parents why is it that every time teachers always seem to have to put down the parents? If teachers feel so sick about everything maybe a job change should be made.

  2. sickened on April 23rd, 2013 8:11 am

    This is awful. Teachers work hard enough and we can’t get any raises at all. I have been teaching 4 years and I have not had a raise. I work day in and day out and spend so much out of my own pocket and no one cares to give us a raise. All they do is throw more mandates on us and expect us to live at school only getting paid 7.5 hours. They took tenure away so you have to go through the stress every year of getting cut when numbers get cut. WHEN are people going to start SUPPORTING teachers rather than cutting them down! I am sick at this issue! Should have known it was too good to be true!!!!!!!! Parents don’t even support teachers so why should law makers huh? Ridiculous!!! Take the good ones away, then what will happen to education and the world?!!??!

  3. bb on April 22nd, 2013 11:53 am

    its almost election time again, rick snott is finally doing something to help taxpayers – its a shame, people only want to do right when its time to get back into office

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News