updated March 27, 2026
Legislators adjourned the 2026 legislative session without passing a final budget. As of now, no date has been set for a special session on the budget.
Despite the uncertainty around the timing, there are a few things we do know from the proposed budgets each chamber released in mid-February. The bottom line is budget keeps Florida at the #50 nation in average teacher pay.
In both chambers, the proposed budget currently:
Doesn't improve educator pay in meaningful ways
$101 million has been allotted for teacher salaries in the Senate, which would work out to roughly $20 more per paycheck per teacher.
The House has a similar amount of money, but comes with big strings that would exclude the vast majority of Florida's teachers.
favors voucher schools over public schools
Both chambers budget $4.5 billion for vouchers with zero strings attached.
The Senate budget follows the recommendation of Florida's Auditor General to create a separate silo for voucher funding in the FEFP. The House's proposed budget ignores the findings of the Auditor General.
Doesn't provide a BSA that keeps up with inflation
The less than 1% raise fails to keep pace with inflation or increasing operating costs, putting districts under more pressure to do more with less.
Despite the talk of "historic investment" in teacher salaries, when adjusted for inflation the average teacher salary in Florida fell by more than $3,000 during Gov. DeSantis' two terms .
Supporting educators and public education isn’t just a talking point.
Lawmakers say they support educators, communities and students. But that takes:
Maintains current career and college prep funding
The budget proposals keep current funding for courses that prepare students for college and careers. New mechanism for allocations may reduce transparency.
What is the impact of the budget?
Thanks to engagement from parents, community, and educators across the state, programs like Dual Enrollment, Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE), and Career & Technical Education (CTE) will maintain current funding levels.
However, these programs have been shifted out of the FEFP’s weighted formula and into a separate categorical allocation, reducing transparency and potentially restricting district flexibility in how those funds are used.
These programs allow students to take part in:
- After-school tutoring and Saturday school sessions that help them succeed,
- Early access to IB and AICE strategies that build critical thinking skills starting in elementary and middle school,
- New career and technical programs aligned with student interests and local workforce needs, and
- Access to updated technology, equipment, curriculum, and prep materials, and
- The growth and quality of CTE programs, already strained by rising operational costs
Florida currently ranks #42 in per-student spending.
The Senate and House proposals originally called for an increase of $135 and $62 respectively. The chambers agreed to allot $5,372.60 to Base Student Allocation funding. This is a 0.78% increase, or roughly just $41.62 per student compared to last year.
This fails to keep up with inflation and means that once again, districts and educators will be forced to do more with less.
Is a $20 per paycheck raise enough for you? With more than 200,000 educators shaping the minds of our future, $101 million has been allotted for teacher salaries, which would work out to roughly $20 more per paycheck per teacher. This does nothing to move Florida from #50 in the nation for average salary to the top ten.
Is $20 enough of a raise to cover rent hikes, rising insurance premiums, student loan payments or childcare, or recognize the value of our teachers?
Highlights include continued performance-based funding, major investments in capital outlay projects, and $110 million in student financial aid through Florida’s Student Assistance Grants. Nursing programs across colleges and universities received over $110 million in support.
Bright Futures remains fully funded, and a new $5 million EASE Plus incentive supports students pursuing high-demand careers.
Total FCS Funding $1,808,479,003 (4.31% increase from last year)
- $20 million for performance-based incentives
- $17 million for 2+2 Student Success Incentive Fund
- $13 million for Work Florida Student Success Incentive Fund
- $113.9 million for Capital Outlay projects
- $64 million for Nursing Education funds (PIPELINE and LINE)
Total SUS funding $4,736,460,371 (3.27% decrease from last year)
- $46 million for Nursing Education funds (PIPELINE and LINE)
- $427.7 million for Capital Outlay Projects
- $645,000,000 for Performance Based Incentives ($350 mil from the state and $295 mil from the institutions)
- $18.4 million for Programs of Strategic Emphasis
- $10 million for New College of Florida Educational Enhancements
- Funding for Centers
- $10 million for the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at FSU
- $10 million for the Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education
- $250,000 for the FSU Florida Center for Reaching Research
Tell Your Story
How does living and working in a state where teachers rank #50 in the nation impact your students or your job? How will this budget impact your local community? Let us know by sending us your comments today!
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Resources and Data
Florida Policy Insitute: How much will your district lose?
School districts, because the size of their student population and participation rates, differ in the amounts that are allocated to them. The interactive map below shows how much funding each school district currently receives and what it would receive if funding were cut for programs like AP, IB, CAPE and more. Find the full data set and more at the Florida Policy Institute.
