Latest news with #FamilyEmpowermentScholarships
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Clay County Schools faces $10M budget hole ahead of new school year
Clay County Schools Superintendent David Broskie says the district is facing a $10 million budget shortfall heading into the 2025-2026 school year. 'Right now, the county's costs are more than the money that we make,' the superintendent shared. In a May workshop meeting, the county leader named inflation, uncertainty with the state budget, and decreased enrollment as some reasons the county is facing a loss. The superintendent's budget presentation showed 500 fewer students enrolled in the county, resulting in millions of dollars in losses. 'So if you look at it... The difference of about 500 students... you're looking at about 4 million dollars just there,' Broskie said. The report also detailed the millions of dollars in local and state funds going towards Family Empowerment Scholarships (FES), or private school vouchers. Related: Mayor Deegan signs resolution calling on Florida to continue funding advanced courses It's something the superintendent named as another contributor to the county's budget deficit. In fiscal year 2024- 2025, over $24.3 million in aid went towards the vouchers. That's a jump from the $16.8 million that local and state governments paid out in FY 2023-2024. By the next fiscal year, the superintendent said that early estimates show that number will increase to $30 million. To better manage the county's budget, district leaders are reviewing all district and school allocations. The move will affect hundreds of school employees. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Clay County Spokesperson, Terri Dennis, sent Action News Jax this response: 'To proactively manage our resources and align with our projected budget, we have made adjustments to approximately 200 employee allocations. We want to assure our community that all employees impacted by these shifts have been offered new positions for which they are certified or qualified. These opportunities span a variety of roles, including instructional, support, and administrative positions, ensuring that we continue to leverage the talents of our dedicated staff. Superintendent Broskie also says the county is making other adjustments to better manage its resources during this financial challenge, like; Renegotiating district contracts Evaluating the profitability of all district programs Pausing all travel expenses Initiating a hiring freeze Florida lawmakers continue their state budget negotiations in Tallahassee. The legislative session was supposed to end on May 2nd. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Where's the money? Florida seeks to better track school voucher funds at private schools
Students enrolled in the state's Family Empowerment Scholarships are bouncing back to public schools, but the funding isn't following the students, public school officials say. It's caused confusion and budget discrepancies, and district funds have been stretched thin, complicating the collective bargaining process with teachers' unions, for instance. Now, the Florida Senate has a plan to clamp down, improving tracking to ensure the money follows the student and splitting the scholarship funds from the state money for public K-12 schools. The scholarships were made possible under a law makes all Florida students eligible for taxpayer-financed vouchers to attend private schools. But problems arise when private schools keep the money but lose the students. This year's bill, "Educational Scholarship Programs" (SPB 7030), will require a "Florida Education Identification number" for all students receiving state funds; will end open enrollment throughout the entire year and limit it to once in the fall and once in the spring; and will require background checks to be eligible to provide services and receive funds, among other things. "This is a big deal, and I really believe that what we have before us is an attempt to make sure that we save this program so that it lasts and that it fulfills its promise for families that want to take advantage of it," said Sen. Danny Burgess, R-Zephyrhills, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee on PreK-12 Education. The bill was given bipartisan approval, with all but one Democratic senator voting no. The Family Empowerment Scholarships are funded by taxpayers and the Florida Tax Credit program, which is privately funded by corporate donors. House Bill 1, the legislation that created Family Empowerment Scholarships in 2023, dictates the state use the tax credit money first before the money allocated by the Legislature. In 2023, scholarships varied by grade level and county, with the average between $7,430 and $8,120. As of March 2025, 494,238 students were funded in the scholarship program for the 2024-25 school year through Step Up for Students, a state-approved scholarship funding organization. Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Pensacola, said the bill isn't aimed to address "wasteful spending" but to make sure the money follows the students. "The question about whether or not we're going to have universal school choice and whether or not there are Family Empowerment Scholarships, that ship sailed," said Gaetz, the sponsor of the bill. Burgess called universal vouchers "amazing" and said there would be growing pains and hiccups as the program grows, but said he was happy with the proposed changes. "Boy, does this take a big bite (out) of a lot of the problems and constraints that we've been hearing," Burgess said. Currently, Family Empowerment Scholarships are not tracked at the district level, and the funds do not follow the student in a timely manner, critics say. The scholarships are dispersed every quarter, not every month, which can cause discrepancies in budgets if a student changes from public to private school within that quarter. "Families that are getting paid in August and October and then showing up in our schools, it's not like we're going to get that money back," said St. Lucie County Schools Superintendent Jon R. Prince in early February at a House PreK-12 Budget Subcommittee meeting. Also last month, Polk County Schools Superintendent Frederick Heid said his district's budget forecast varies greatly from the beginning of the school year to the third quarter recount, partly because of the lack of tracking Family Empowerment Scholarship students. Heid said that, in an internal investigation, the district found 750 students who are attending Polk County Schools who are also receiving the scholarship. It was an estimated $1.5 million in funds the school district is losing. "I always think that Murphy's Law – whatever can go wrong, will go wrong – is kind of where we are right now," Prince said. "Good intentions have caused a lot of confusion." Ana Goñi-Lessan, state watchdog reporter for the USA TODAY Network – Florida, can be reached at agonilessan@ This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida lawmakers ask: Why isn't school voucher money following kids?
