Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed two education measures—Senate Bill 1296 and House Bill 1279—aimed at changing how teacher unions operate, speeding up pay increases, and expanding incentives for educators.
State officials said the legislation is intended to increase transparency in union representation, streamline salary adjustments, and provide districts with more flexibility to reward teachers and place them in high-need schools.
“Today’s bills build on Florida’s recent education policies and focus on teacher pay and student outcomes,” DeSantis said during the bill signing in Fort Myers.
Florida Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas said the measures are designed to “remove barriers, reward excellence, and increase transparency,” while also requiring unions to maintain support from educators to continue representing them.
Changes to union certification and teacher pay
SB 1296 includes several provisions affecting teacher unions and compensation:
- Requires at least 50% participation from eligible members in union certification or recertification elections.
- Increases penalties for illegal teacher strikes, raising the maximum fine from $20,000 to $40,000 per day.
- Establishes a faster process for implementing teacher salary increases, which state leaders say is intended to prevent delays tied to negotiations.
Incentives for teachers and expanded eligibility for bonuses
HB 1279 focuses on teacher placement and compensation flexibility at the district level:
- Allows districts to offer direct financial incentives to high-performing teachers who choose to work in lower-performing schools, outside of traditional collective bargaining structures.
- Expands bonus eligibility to teachers who deliver Florida Advanced Courses, aligning them with incentives already available for Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) instructors.
- Includes provisions related to parental rights in special education, according to state officials.
Supporters say the legislation gives districts more tools to address staffing challenges and reward performance, while critics have raised concerns in past debates about changes to collective bargaining requirements and union participation thresholds.
The new laws take effect as Florida continues to implement a series of education policy changes enacted in recent years.
