2022 State Legislative Platform
School Board of Orange County, Florida
State Platform
Objective
Advocate for policies that provide an equitable, high-quality, and accessible education for all district students.
Principles
•
Local and state revenue streams must provide sufficient operating funds for the delivery of Pre-K — 12 public education.
•
Provide sufficient resources to keep students safe, enhance student social, emotional well-being and ensure a positive school climate.
•
Ensure state education initiatives are collaboratively developed with local school districts.
•
Protect local control of school district operations and school board policy decisions made under the authority of the Constitution of the State of Florida.
•
Full funding of state regulations and mandates.
•
Same accountability system for all educational entities directly or indirectly receiving state tax dollars.
•
Effective dates of all major state educational proposals that allow adequate time for data analysis and implementation.
•
Adequately fund workforce education through career and technical education, industry certifications and credentials.
Priorities
•
Increase Florida Education Finance Program non-categorical funding.
•
Support efforts to enhance safety measures that allow districts to adjust to local community needs and/or crises.
•
Support an approach to accountability that focuses on student growth and suspends punitive measures for students, teachers, schools and districts.
•
Support funding measures that have an equal impact on employees in similar job classifications.
•
Support legislation that would bring Federal Medicaid funding match to Florida to offset reductions in revenue in the state budget.
•
Support direct funding for workforce education and career pathways for K-12 and post-secondary students.
Federal Platform
Objective
Advocate for policies that provide an equitable, high quality and accessible education for all district students.
Priorities
• Support educational funding for all public districts equal to the decrease in tax revenues and collections at the state and local level and distribution of such funding for all eligible students pursuant to the existing Title I formula.
• Support increasing the cap on E-Rate funding and additional funding opportunities that enhance education and provide equal access in the areas of technology integration in the classroom, converting to digital curriculum, enhanced delivery of instruction and online assessments and adjust the funding annually to keep pace with inflation.
• Support existing Title I formula and distribution that gives the flexibility to local school districts to determine the best use of federal and Title I funds for the planning and implementation of school improvement initiatives.
• Support increasing the federal investment in IDEA to the guaranteed level of 40% in order to provide the resources necessary to deliver the mandated educational services under current federal law.
• Support the continuation of Medicaid reimbursements to school districts and additional funding to provide mental health services to address the increased need due to the effects of COVID-19.
• Support an increase in USDA reimbursement for “free” lunch in order to pay for the escalating costs of healthy food, transportation and labor which has not kept pace with the current reimbursement.
• Oppose any change in law that would allow or require portability of Title I and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) funding.
• Support legislation that would allow states to collect state sales tax due on Internet purchases of goods and services that are currently taxable offline.