As Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida Republicans amplify local school board politics in the lead-up to the 2022 midterms, GOP-backed measures that would slash the pay of the vast majority of elected school board members are gaining traction in the Florida Legislature.
On Tuesday, the Senate Education Committee approved a bill that would set the pay of school board members at $18,000 a year. The move would reduce the pay of school board members in 49 of Florida’s 67 school districts, according to the bill’s analysis.
Members who were elected to serve the state’s five largest school districts – including Miami-Dade, Broward and Hillsborough – could see their salaries cut by roughly $17,000 a year under the proposal, Senate Bill 1300. School board members in 18 school districts could see a boost to their salaries, according to the bill analysis.
Senate Education Committee chair Joe Gruters, a Sarasota Republican who doubles as the chair of the Republican Party of Florida, said his bill would align school board members’ salaries to the amount state legislators make. He said it is a “fair” offer, compared to a House proposal that would turn all school board members into volunteers.
Read more from the Tampa Bay Times.
