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State budget transparency? How bringing home the bacon can become a sneaky legislative maneuver
Like many lawmakers who work to bring home the bacon for constituents, State Sen. Travis Hutson pushed for $10 million in the new state budget for Manatee County road projects. He secured the funding, even as Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed hundreds of other local projects in the 2020-21 budget. However, Hutson doesn’t represent Manatee County. […]
Not every district can deliver the promise of $47,500 salaries for starting teachers this year
Gov. Ron DeSantis has lauded a half-billion-dollar initiative to bring beginning teacher salaries to $47,500 and boost pay for experienced teachers. But the reality is that not every district will be able to deliver the promise of salaries of $47,500 to starting teachers this year or even the next. The initiative has few details, educators […]
Gov. DeSantis signs ‘Tammy Jackson Act,’ aiding pregnant women in prison, into law
Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a bill that promises pregnant women in prison will receive adequate medical attention and dignity. HB 1259, also known as the “Tammy Jackson Act,” was filed by Rep. Shevrin Jones, a Democrat who represents part of Broward County, and Rep. Amy Mercado, a Democrat representing part of Orange County. The […]
Dems want Gov. DeSantis to apologize over comments about workers and COVID
Democratic state senators demanded an apology Monday from Gov. Ron DeSantis for comments attributing the uptick in COVID-19 cases to “overwhelmingly Hispanic” construction workers and farm laborers. “Some of these guys go to work in a school bus, and they are all just packed there like sardines, going across Palm Beach County or some of […]
As the state budget deadline looms July 1, key organizations ask DeSantis to deliver on long-awaited proposals
As Gov. Ron DeSantis prepares to make state budget cuts, a letter signed by 35 Florida organizations calls on the governor to protect longstanding public services by finding funds from every route possible. “The governor must protect crucial programs and services, or else we will see existing racial and economic disparities exacerbated in Florida,” Sadaf […]
Florida TaxWatch suggests COVID-inspired trims to state budget, including postponing teacher raises
Gov. Ron DeSantis can absorb some of the COVID-19 shock to state tax revenues by trimming next fiscal year’s budget of local projects, reducing travel, and postponing the governor’s teacher pay raises until the pandemic subsides, a government watchdog group said Thursday. During a virtual news conference, Florida TaxWatch also recommended boosting tax receipts through […]
State budget now in Gov. DeSantis’ hands, giving him two weeks to make COVID-related cuts
The Florida House and Senate on Wednesday sent the $93.2 billion state budget to Gov. Ron DeSantis, exactly two weeks before it is scheduled to take effect. The budget was presented to DeSantis on Wednesday at 10:45 a.m. Now he’s free to apply his line-item veto against spending provisions approved by the Legislature. DeSantis has […]
Face masks, staggered classes, outdoor instruction: What lies ahead when the public schools reopen
Student, parents, and teachers won’t recognize what they find when Florida’s public schools reopen this fall. Schools might take advantage of outside spaces to adhere to social distancing practices. That could leave students either enjoying their classes out in the fresh air or sweating in the late-summer Florida heat. Other schools may choose staggered schedules, […]
Report: COVID-19 has traumatized America’s teenagers and they need help to cope
The COVID-19 pandemic, which has forced closure of public schools and imposition of distance learning, has traumatized American teenagers and caused them to fear for their health and family finances, according to a survey released this week. Among the 3,300 teenagers who participated in the Center for Promise’s online survey, almost 80 percent reported participating […]
TaxWatch asks Gov. DeSantis to veto $136.3 million in ‘budget turkeys’
A state budget watchdog organization has identified $136.3 million in spending that it says was added to the $93.2 billion state budget for 2020 outside of the formal rules and urged Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto those projects. Florida TaxWatch identified 180 “turkeys,” which it defines as items placed in the budget “in individual line-items […]
Gov. DeSantis, Ed Commissioner Corcoran, announce millions to help reopen FL’s public schools
After weeks of little to vague guidance from the state, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran announced hundreds of millions of federal dollars to fortify and reopen public schools that have been closed for months. “The message should be loud and clear,” Corcoran said. “What we are saying, with a strong recommendation to […]
Top education officials testify in Congress on racial and academic disparities as states grapple to reopen schools
Two state Education Commissioners and a former U.S. Secretary of Education testified virtually to the U.S. Senate Wednesday on how to safely reopen schools, with academic equity and racial disparity coming to the forefront of the conversation. The education officials told U.S. senators that the COVID-19 crisis coupled by schools shutting down has worsened issues […]