Parents and school leaders are rallying against a comprehensive bill that funds Florida’s public education system over the next year.
Lawmakers are scheduled to make a simple yes or no vote on House Bill 7069 Monday.
The bill dictates how to spend more than $400 million and has an impact on every public school student in some way.
But teachers organizations and parents say lawmakers built it without public comment and are rushing it through the last day of the legislative session without time to make amendments.
The bill establishes new rules for how districts distribute federal money at Title I schools.
It guarantees teacher bonuses for years to come, but it also extends the Best and Brightest program that gives teachers bonuses based on the scores they received on the ACT or SAT.
The bill makes recess mandatory for students in kindergarten through fifth grade, but not at charter schools.
It also creates a “Schools of Hope” program to encourage charter schools to open near traditional schools with a history of poor academic performance.
The session reconvenes at 1 p.m. Monday and is supposed to end before midnight.
