Bill Text: FL S0136 | 2024 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Minimum Base Salary for Full-time Classroom Teachers

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2024-03-08 - Died in Governmental Oversight and Accountability [S0136 Detail]

Download: Florida-2024-S0136-Introduced.html

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       Florida Senate - 2024                                     SB 136
       
       
        
       By Senator Berman
       
       
       
       
       
       26-00235-24                                            2024136__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to minimum base salary for full-time
    3         classroom teachers; providing a short title; amending
    4         s. 1011.62, F.S.; increasing the minimum base salary
    5         for full-time classroom teachers and certain
    6         prekindergarten teachers; providing an effective date.
    7          
    8  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
    9  
   10         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Save Our Teachers
   11  Act.”
   12         Section 2. Subsection (14) of section 1011.62, Florida
   13  Statutes, is amended to read:
   14         1011.62 Funds for operation of schools.—If the annual
   15  allocation from the Florida Education Finance Program to each
   16  district for operation of schools is not determined in the
   17  annual appropriations act or the substantive bill implementing
   18  the annual appropriations act, it shall be determined as
   19  follows:
   20         (14) CLASSROOM TEACHER AND OTHER INSTRUCTIONAL PERSONNEL
   21  SALARY INCREASE.—The Legislature shall annually apportion an
   22  amount of funds provided in the Florida Education Finance
   23  Program to assist school districts and charter schools in their
   24  compliance with the requirement that the minimum base salary for
   25  full-time classroom teachers, as defined in s. 1012.01(2)(a),
   26  and certified prekindergarten teachers funded in the Florida
   27  Education Finance Program is at least $65,000 $47,500 or to
   28  provide salary increases to instructional personnel, as defined
   29  in s. 1012.01(2)(a)-(d), in a manner that best meets the needs
   30  of the school district or charter school. This subsection does
   31  not apply to substitute teachers. The amount and distribution
   32  methodology for the funding shall be specified in the General
   33  Appropriations Act.
   34         (a) The term “minimum base salary” means the lowest annual
   35  base salary reported on the salary schedule for a full-time
   36  classroom teacher. A full-time classroom teacher may not receive
   37  a salary less than the minimum base salary as adjusted by this
   38  subsection.
   39         (b) A school district or charter school shall maintain the
   40  minimum base salary achieved for classroom teachers provided in
   41  the prior fiscal year and may not reduce the salary increases in
   42  any subsequent fiscal year.
   43         (c) Before distributing any additional funds received over
   44  the prior fiscal year, each school district and each charter
   45  school shall develop a salary distribution plan that clearly
   46  delineates the planned distribution of funds in accordance with
   47  modified salary schedules, as necessary, for the implementation
   48  of this subsection.
   49         1. Each school district superintendent and each charter
   50  school administrator must submit its proposed salary
   51  distribution plan to the district school board or the charter
   52  school governing body, as appropriate, for approval.
   53         2. Each school district shall submit the approved district
   54  salary distribution plan and the approved salary distribution
   55  plan for each charter school in the district to the department
   56  by October 1 of each fiscal year.
   57         (d) Beginning August 1, 2024, and each year thereafter, in
   58  a format specified by the department, each school district shall
   59  provide a report to the department that includes a detailed
   60  summary explaining the school district’s prior year’s
   61  expenditures pursuant to this subsection. The report must
   62  include the amount of the increase to the minimum base salary
   63  for classroom teachers and the school district’s salary schedule
   64  for the prior fiscal year and the fiscal year in which the base
   65  salary is increased. Each charter school governing board shall
   66  submit the information required under this subparagraph to the
   67  district school board for inclusion in the school district’s
   68  report to the department.
   69         (e) Although district school boards and charter school
   70  governing boards are not precluded from bargaining over wages,
   71  the classroom teacher and other instructional personnel salary
   72  increase must be used solely to comply with the requirements of
   73  this subsection. A district school board or charter school
   74  governing board that is unable to meet the reporting
   75  requirements in paragraph (d) due to a collective bargaining
   76  impasse must provide written notification to the department or
   77  the district school board, as applicable, detailing the reasons
   78  for the impasse with a proposed timeline and details for a
   79  resolution.
   80         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.