Unions argue governor's quarter-billion-dollar teacher pay raise won't do much for individuals
Governor Ron DeSantis is asking the Florida Legislature to boost the dedicated fund for teacher pay raises by 20 percent this year.
DeSantis announced his request for a $246.7 million increase to the fund in this year's budget on Monday.
'And that's not just for district teachers. That also applies to our charter school teachers,' said DeSantis.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
But despite the quarter-billion-dollar top line figure, unions representing teachers in the state argue it would have very little impact on individual educators.
The state's largest teachers' union, the Florida Education Association, estimated the funding would raise annual teacher salaries by just $1,400, or a little less than three percent of the state's $53,098 average teacher salary.
Read: St. Johns County report points to struggle to retain teachers, create jobs
'It's just embarrassing that this is what we have coming for us for bargaining for our salaries with the increase in our insurance, increase in just everyday living,' said Tammie Brooks-Evans, President of Duval Teachers United.
Brooks-Evans argued the proposed increase not only fails to keep up with inflation but also fails to improve Florida's 50th place ranking in average teacher pay.
'Which is a very sad place to be. We would hope that we would get more support from the Governor, some additional funds to move us up in those rankings,' said Brooks-Evans.
Additionally, she noted the roughly $1.5 billion total teacher pay fund proposed by the Governor is less than half of the $3.3 billion the Governor wants to spend on the state's private school scholarship program.
Read: 'Prime targets': St. Johns County students' information stolen in PowerSchool cyberattack
'Their focus with this amount seems to be on the voucher programs and not on public schools,' said Brooks-Evans.
Unlike some prior years, which prioritized raising starting teacher pay, the proposed increase this year would apply to all teachers.
Florida currently ranks 16th in the nation for starting teacher pay.
Read: Duval charter schools fall behind traditional public schools in new graduation rate report
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
‘A nightmare': Critics blast Jacksonville's new limits on aid for undocumented immigrants
Local activists are urging supporters to boycott businesses owned by Jacksonville City Council members who voted in favor of a new immigration ordinance passed Tuesday night. The bill, which restricts the use of taxpayer dollars for services to undocumented immigrants, passed 11 to 7 after hours of heated debate and multiple amendments. While supporters say it's about fiscal responsibility, critics say it unfairly targets vulnerable communities. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< 'We passed Jacksonville's first ever prohibition of spending taxpayer money on illegal immigrants for services,' said Councilman Rory Diamond, who sponsored the bill. 'My colleagues wanted some exceptions… emergency services, military members, and others to prevent unintentional consequences.' Among the changes made before passage: carveouts for pregnant women, children, military families, and victims of sex and labor trafficking. Still, the measure drew emotional responses from community advocates. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Cuban-American community leader Clara Sowers said the bill could have a negative effect on immigrants in crisis. 'It's a nightmare,' said Sowers. 'Do you call JSO when you get beat up? Do you get in the ambulance if you're hurt? This bill stokes fear.' Now, the Jacksonville Immigrant Rights Alliance is calling for a boycott of any business tied to council members who voted yes. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] The bill also requires the mayor's office to report on the number of undocumented immigrants receiving city-funded housing, as well as disclose data on DEI programs and federal grants. Mayor Donna Deegan has not yet signed the measure. 'She's in a tough situation,' said Sowers. 'No matter what she does, she'll be criticized.' Councilman Diamond had a message for the mayor: 'Have some guts, have some courage… sign it or veto it. Don't just play games with it.' Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Chick-fil-A launches new BBQ sandwich for a limited time in Jacksonville
Chick-fil-A's Creamy BBQ Sandwich comes to Jacksonville for a limited time starting June 9 through July 19. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE << >> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< The Creamy BBQ Chicken Sandwich can be delivered on the Chick-fil-A® App or online. However, it cannot be catered. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Also, members will not be able to redeem points for this sandwich, but can still receive points with their purchase. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Florida beefs up laws against deepfake porn, luring children, sex trafficking. What to know
Florida has taken some big steps in the fight against sexually explicit deepfakes. On June 10, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed five bills designed to protect children against sexual crimes. The bills expand Florida laws against luring or enticing children, add more registration and reporting requirements for sexual predators and offenders and mandate minimum terms for subsequent offenses, add harsher penalties — including the death penalty — for anyone convicted of human trafficking for sexual exploitation of children under 12 or individuals who are mentally incapacitated, and provide an enforceable framework to remove deepfake material from online platforms. The bill against deepfakes is called "Brooke's Law" after Brooke Curry, the daughter of former Jacksonville mayor Lenny Curry, who was 16 when a teenage boy she didn't know used a picture from her Instagram account to create an image she later described as 'embarrassing, vulgar, rude and against everything I stand for.' Curry, now 18, testified at a Florida House of Representatives committee hearing for passage of House Bill 1161 and was on hand when DeSantis signed the bill. 'Florida has zero tolerance for criminals who exploit children,' DeSantis said. 'Throughout my time in office, we've worked with the legislature to strengthen penalties for child abuse, hold predators accountable, and ensure that Florida remains a safe place to raise a family.' Here's what to know. "Deepfakes" are fake images or video created through graphics software or AI generators of real people. Faces taken from social media posts or other pictures available online are photoshopped onto adult movie actresses or models or used to generate explicit AI-generated content without consent, which is then shared around school, sent to family members or employers, or uploaded to websites for millions to see. Software to create convincing deepfake nudes has become increasingly accessible and the content it produces is often indistinguishable from real images and video. It's used as a tool of abuse, humiliation and harassment that disproportionately targets teenage girls and women. Celebrities such as Taylor Swift, Jenna Ortega and Megan Thee Stallion have seen false sexual imagery of themselves spread across the web, and women politicians are frequent targets. One in eight teens age 13 to 17 personally know someone who has been victimized by deepfake nudes, according to a report from Thorn, a nonprofit company focused on childhood safety online. One in 17 said they were a direct victim. Deepfake penalties: Students used AI to create nude photos of their classmates. For some, arrests came next. Law enforcement was slow to address the problem as they worked out how to address the everchanging murky world of cybercrime, and many websites refused to remove images or video after they were reported. If they were removed, offenders would share them somewhere else, further traumatizing the victim. In May, President Donald Trump signed the bipartisan Take It Down Act to federally criminalize publication of non-consensual intimate imagery, also known as NCII. The law requires social media platforms and similar websites to remove nonconsensual intimate imagery — defined as including realistic, computer-generated pornographic images and videos that depict identifiable, real people — within 48 hours of notice from a victim. Florida's HB 1161, Removal of Altered Sexual Depictions Posted without Consent, provides victims with a legal mechanism to fight deepfakes by requiring specified websites and online services to establish a process for victims to request removals, with a clear and conspicuous notice of the process in easy-to-understand language. Once a victim makes a written request for removal, the platform must remove the content and any copies within 48 hours. Failure to reasonably comply will be considered an unfair or a deceptive act or practice under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, subject to cease and desist orders and civil penalties of up to $10,000 for each violation, plus actual damages and attorney's fees and costs. The bill provides liability protections for platforms that act in good faith. The platforms are required to establish a clear and prominent process for reporting such content. Email providers, information services and websites whose content is not user-generated are not included. The bill is effectively immediately. HB 777 expands the laws on luring and enticing children: Expands the age of the victim involved to be any child under 14 (previously it was a child under 12) Prohibits a person 18 years of age or older from intentionally luring or enticing, or attempting to lure or entice, a child under the age of 14 into or out of a structure, dwelling, or conveyance for other than a lawful purpose 1st violation: Bumped up from a first-degree misdemeanor to a third-degree felony 2nd or subsequent violation: Bumped up from a third-degree felony to a second-degree felony If committed by an offender with a previous violation of certain offenses: Bumped up from a third-degree felony to a second-degree felony Expands the scope of the offense by including "or out of" buildings and vehicles, not just into one Prohibits ignorance of the victim's age, misrepresentative of the victim's age by another person, or what the defendant sincerely believed the victim's age as a legal defense This bill takes effect Oct. 1, 2025. HB 1351 adds sexual predator and offender reporting requirements to block some reporting loopholes, including: Requires registrants to report their occupation, business name, employment address, and employment phone number Requires sexual offenders and predators to report in-state travel residences within 48 hours either online through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE)'s online system or in person with the sheriff's office, removes a requirement to report it to the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Requires local law enforcement agencies to conduct address verifications of sexual offenders at least one time per calendar year and sexual predators four times per calendar year to ensure the accuracy of the information Clarifies that 'permanent residence,' as far as sexual predator and sexual offender registration and reporting requirements go, means the person's home or other place where the person primarily lives This bill takes effect Oct. 1, 2025. HB 1455 provides mandatory minimum sentences for certain sexual offenses when committed by registered offenders or predators: Requires a court to impose a mandatory minimum sentence if a person who has previously been convicted of a specified sexual offense is convicted of committing a subsequent specified sexual offense, even if the mandatory minimum exceeds the maximum authorized sentence 10 years for: Lewd or lascivious molestation of a victim under 16 years of age Lewd or lascivious molestation of an elderly or disabled person Online solicitation of a minor, traveling to meet a minor, or prohibited computer usage Possession or transmitting of child pornography 15 years for possession of child pornography with the intent to promote 20 years for: Use of a child in a sexual performance Promoting a sexual performance by a child Buying or selling minors Specifies that except in the case of a pardon or conditional medical release, a person sentenced must serve the full minimum sentence This bill takes effect Oct. 1, 2025. SB 1804 establishes a new felony offense, "Capital Human Trafficking of Vulnerable Persons for Sexual Exploitation," and makes it a capital offense punishable by life imprisonment without the possibility of parole or death. Under the law, Capital Human Trafficking of Vulnerable Persons for Sexual Exploitation is committed by a person 18 years or older who knowingly initiates, organizes, plans, finances, directs, manages, or supervises a venture that has subjected a child less than 12 years of age, or a person who is mentally defective or mentally incapacitated. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that death sentences are limited to murder cases with at least one aggravating factor. "No one has been executed for a non-murder offense in this country since 1964," an analysis of the bill states, and life imprisonment without the possibility of parole is the current maximum sentence for capital sexual battery due to a string of court cases in both the U.S. and Florida Supreme Courts. According to six other states — Georgia, Louisiana, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas — and the U.S. military allow for death sentences for various specifications of underage rape. There have been no executions under those laws so far, and two people sentenced in Louisiana had their sentences overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. This bill takes effect Oct. 1, 2025. Steve Patterson, Florida Times-Union, contributed to this story. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida strengthens laws against deepfake nudes, sex trafficking
