FORT MYERS, Fla. – On Friday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two more laws, which are expected to impact teachers across the state.
DeSantis signed the two bills — SB 1296 and HB 1279 — during a news briefing in Fort Myers on Friday morning. Both are now slated to take effect on July 1.
They join the list of over 60 new bills that have now been signed this year, though even more are headed to DeSantis’ desk in the future.
During Friday’s conference, the governor touted the state’s high education ranking, claiming that the new laws will “build on this success.”
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“Florida students deserve high-quality education, and great teachers deserve recognition and competitive pay,” he said. “But time and time again, partisan school unions have shown that they do not act in the best interests of the teachers they purport to represent, let alone the best interest of students.”
Below is a rundown of what both new laws do, according to the governor’s office:
HB 1279 — Teacher Funding
House Bill 1279 lets school districts provide immediate pay incentives to high-performing teachers who choose to teach in lower-performing schools, even without collective bargaining.
The law also allows bonuses for districts and teachers who offer Florida Advanced Courses (FACTs), in line with bonuses offered for other advanced courses like AP, AICE and IB.
SB 1296 — Union Crackdown
Senate Bill 1296 provides for the decertification of partisan school unions, fast-tracking salary increases that some unions have stalled.
The law requires at least 50% participation in union certification elections, meaning that unions can no longer be recertified through elections with just a handful of voters.
Furthermore, SB 1296 increases penalties for illegal strikes, raising the maximum fine from $20,000 per day to $40,000 per day for such organizations.