DeSantis signs bills that create a path to decertify partisan teacher unions and speed pay increases

Governor DeSantis on Monday signed two education bills at Fort Myers High School he said will reduce the influence of partisan teachers unions and speed salary increases to classroom teachers.

The measures — described in remarks at the event as Senate Bill 1296 and House Bill 1279 — create a process for decertifying teachers unions that do not show “clear, meaningful support” from their members and expand district flexibility to provide immediate pay incentives to teachers in persistently low-performing schools, DeSantis said.

"One of the things we did better than anyone was make a stand early on and saying, you know, during COVID, kids need to be able to go to school in person," DeSantis said, citing his administration's approach during the pandemic as part of a broader argument that some unions had prioritized politics over students. "So the first piece of legislation I'm going to sign is Senate Bill 1296, to provide, once and for all, for the decertification of partisan teacher unions." (Governor DeSantis)

Why it matters: State officials and local leaders said the laws aim to ensure that state dollars earmarked for teacher pay go to teachers promptly and that districts can recruit and retain educators for hard-to-staff classrooms. Education Commissioner Stasi Kamutsis described the bills as increasing transparency for union representation and preventing collective-bargaining impasses from delaying pay.

"If teachers think their union is worth keeping, a majority can show up for the vote," Kamutsis said, citing what she argued were examples of low voter turnout in union elections and calling the reforms a bipartisan step toward ‘‘true representation.’’ (Stasi Kamutsis)

What the bills do: Speakers at the event said SB 1296 requires unions to demonstrate membership support before remaining the recognized representative, and HB 1279 lets districts provide bonuses to teachers who take roles in persistently low-performing schools, with a separate provision to make teachers in newly established Florida Advanced Courses eligible for bonuses. The measures also include parental-notification provisions for missed individualized education plan (IEP) services, according to remarks by Kamutsis.

Local impact: Lee County Superintendent Dr. Denise Carlin said the authority to declare an educational emergency and offer targeted incentives helped the district reduce a reported 575 vacancies to nearly zero by January after filling 94% of positions by the first day of the school year. "By incentivizing our teachers, we did not just recruit, we retained them," Carlin said, attributing improved staffing and test results to the district’s use of the new tools. (Dr. Denise Carlin)

Claims and challenges: Event remarks repeated state officials’ assertions that some unions delayed raises through bargaining or legal action. Kamutsis said union litigation and bargaining impasses had, in some cases, delayed pay that districts sought to provide when state funds became available. The officials noted ongoing legal appeals in some districts; those legal matters remain under litigation and were described as the reason for continued disputes over incentive pay.

A concrete example cited at the event: Kamutsis said that at one university’s graduate-assistant election "3 people showed up to vote" to decide representation for 202 graduate assistants; she used that example to argue the threshold rules did not reflect broad support. (Stasi Kamutsis)

Numbers reported in remarks: speakers referenced state teacher-pay programs and appropriations that were described variously in the event as about $1.38 billion and as $1.4 billion in recent budgetary allocations. The transcript records both figures.

What’s next: DeSantis said he would sign the bills at the event and the administration and local officials expect implementation by districts; some districts’ decisions and ongoing legal appeals, however, could affect timing. The superintendent and school board chair said they would continue to use the new authorities while litigation continues.

The ceremony concluded with thanks to bill sponsors, local school leaders and legislative allies.