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A proposed local property tax increase could generate almost $180 million that would go mainly towards increasing teacher and staff pay.
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Across the state, educators and school district leaders call for increased funding.
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The one millage property tax would cost the average homeowner about $1 a day, and close a wage gap that Superintendent Van Ayres said is causing employees to leave the district.
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Last school year, the county received $60 million in local property tax revenue. About 80% of that went toward increasing teacher pay.
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Florida teachers are leaving the state and their profession. They blame unrealistic workloads, restrictive laws and stagnant pay.
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The Hillsborough County School Board delayed a vote on a tax referendum that would raise money for teacher salaries.
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State level data shows that Florida teachers are being paid 20.4% less than other college-educated workers.
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The tentative deal would raise wages for more experienced teachers and lift a salary cap, priorities that the teachers union stressed throughout negotiations.
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As school districts in the area work to fill bus driver vacancies, some are experiencing a greater shortage than usual. Manatee County needs to fill about 20% of its bus driving staff. Like surrounding districts, Manatee officials hope a wage increase will attract more employees.
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The vetoes included $100 million for Conservation And Rural Land Protection easements. "Agriculture was harmed today," Republican Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson said.
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DeSantis also signed a bill that places an eight-year term limits for school board members.
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There are about 16,000 empty positions in a state that already has one of the smallest government workforces in the country.