DeSantis announces ‘record’ teacher pay raises, with funding totaling $1.25 billion

HIALEAH, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that the state would be further increasing teacher salaries to the tune of hundreds of millions in through the 2024-25 fiscal budget that is soon to be signed.

“It’s going to be a strong budget for education,” DeSantis said during a press conference on Monday. “This is the most we’ve ever done in Florida history in terms of a teacher categorical. We’re proud that we’re able to do that.”

The total for this year is $1.25 billion, the governor announced, a spike of nearly $200 million from last year’s budget.

The governor said that the state is putting its money where its mouth is when addressing the issue of teacher pay.

He explained how the state has invested around $4.6 billion since 2020 in salary increases.

“We now have the average minimum teacher salary over $48,000. So that’s up from about $39,000 five years ago,” he said.

DeSantis emphasized how Florida has led the way in education throughout his administration, being marked number one for K-12 learning by U.S. News and World Reports and the Heritage Foundation multiple years in a row.

The governor explained how he fought teachers unions to keep schools open and provide kids the opportunity to learn during the coronavirus pandemic.

“One of the things I noticed in that fight was, you had some of these entrenched interests pushing to say kids should not go to school, but most of the teachers themselves wanted the kids to come back into class,” he said.

He added how teachers unions tend to take advantage of salary increases by getting much of the funds tangled up in bureaucracy and not in the hands of educators.

DeSantis also mentioned the Teachers Bill of Rights that he signed during a previous session, protecting the rights and freedoms of educators.

Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. thanked the governor and the legislature for their work in prioritizing Florida’s teachers and students.

“In just the last two years, we have put parental rights back in education, we have removed dangerous and divisive rhetoric like Critical Race Theory, Diversity Equity and Inclusion, and we have made tremendous investments, like you have heard today, in teacher pay,” he said.

He argued that the reason Florida ranks number one in so many education ratings is because the state has an “incredible leader” who is determined to stand for educational advancement and a legislature who continues to invest in schools.

Diaz echoed DeSantis’ criticisms of teachers unions who aren’t able to get salary increases directly in the hands of teachers due to bureaucracy.

“I think the unions need to get out of the way, they need to do a better job of getting these dollars into the pocket books of teachers and not waiting for money that was appropriated and effective in July to be in teachers pocket books in May,” he said.

Rep. Alex Rizo, R-Hialeah, also complimented the governor on his work of advocating for teacher salary increases.

“I have had four years, four blessed years in the legislature and at every step, this governor, the lieutenant governor, the commissioner of education, and the House and the Senate have stepped up when it comes to supporting teachers and students,” he said.