Amendment
Bill No. 0006C
Amendment No. 156805
CHAMBER ACTION
Senate House
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1Representative(s) Pickens offered the following:
2
3     Amendment (with title amendment)
4     Remove everything after the enacting clause and insert:
5     Section 1.  Subsection (2) of section 1012.225, Florida
6Statutes, is amended to read:
7     1012.225  Merit Award Program for Instructional Personnel
8and School-Based Administrators.--
9     (2)  PAY SUPPLEMENTS STRUCTURE.--Merit Award Program plans
10shall provide for the annual disbursement of merit-based pay
11supplements to high-performing employees in the manner described
12in this subsection. Merit Award Program funds shall be
13appropriated in the General Appropriations Act that is effective
14on July 1 of the fiscal year in which the merit-based pay
15supplements are distributed pursuant to paragraph (a). These
16funds shall be released and distributed to eligible school
17districts on or before July 31 for distribution to eligible
18recipients by October 1 of that fiscal year.
19     (a)  Each Merit Award Program plan must designate the top
20instructional personnel and school-based administrators to be
21outstanding performers and pay to each such employee who remains
22employed by a Florida public school or who retired after
23qualifying for the award, by October September 1 of the
24following school year, a merit-based pay supplement of at least
255 percent of the average teacher's salary for that school
26district not to exceed 10 percent of the average teacher's
27salary for that school district. The amount of a merit award may
28not be based on length of service or base salary. Pay
29supplements shall be funded from moneys appropriated by the
30Legislature under this section and from any additional funds
31that are designated by the district for the Merit Award Program.
32School districts are not required to implement this section
33unless the program is specifically funded by the Legislature. By
34November October 1 of each year, each school district shall
35provide documentation to the Department of Education concerning
36the expenditure of legislative appropriations for merit-based
37pay, and shall refund undisbursed appropriations to the
38department. If such undisbursed funds are not remitted to the
39department by November 1, the department shall withhold an
40equivalent amount from the district's allocation of
41appropriations made under s. 1011.62.
42     (b)  A Merit Award Program plan may include additional pay
43supplements under this section for employees who manifest
44exemplary work attendance.
45     (c)  Merit-based pay supplements shall be awarded in
46addition to any general increase or other adjustments to
47salaries which are made by a school district. An employee's
48eligibility for or receipt of merit-based pay supplements shall
49not adversely affect that employee's opportunity to qualify for
50or to receive any other compensation that is made generally
51available to other similarly situated district school board
52employees.
53     Section 2.  Subsection (2) of section 1012.72, Florida
54Statutes, is amended to read:
55     1012.72  Dale Hickam Excellent Teaching Program.--
56     (2)  The Dale Hickam Excellent Teaching Program is created
57to provide categorical funding for monetary incentives and
58bonuses for teaching excellence. The Department of Education
59shall distribute to each school district or to the NBPTS an
60amount as prescribed annually by the Legislature for the Dale
61Hickam Excellent Teaching Program. If the appropriation is
62insufficient to fund the monetary incentives and bonuses as
63described in this subsection, such incentives and bonuses shall
64be prorated so that total program expenditures equal the
65appropriation. For purposes of this section, the Florida School
66for the Deaf and the Blind shall be considered a school
67district. Unless otherwise provided in the General
68Appropriations Act, each distribution shall be the sum of the
69amounts earned for the following incentives and bonuses:
70     (a)  A fee subsidy to be paid by the Department of
71Education to the NBPTS on behalf of each individual who is an
72employee of a district school board or a public school within
73the school district, who is certified by the district to have
74demonstrated satisfactory teaching performance pursuant to s.
751012.34 and who satisfies the prerequisites for participating in
76the NBPTS certification program, and who agrees, in writing, to
77pay 10 percent of the NBPTS participation fee and to participate
78in the NBPTS certification program during the school year for
79which the fee subsidy is provided. The fee subsidy for each
80eligible participant shall be an amount equal to 90 percent of
81the fee charged for participating in the NBPTS certification
82program. The fee subsidy is a one-time award and may not be
83duplicated for any individual.
84     (b)  A portfolio-preparation incentive of $150 paid by the
85Department of Education to each teacher employed by a district
86school board or a public school within a school district who is
87participating in the NBPTS certification program. The portfolio-
88preparation incentive is a one-time award paid during the school
89year for which the NBPTS fee subsidy is provided.
90     (c)  An annual bonus equal to 10 percent of the prior
91fiscal year's statewide average salary for classroom teachers to
92be distributed to the school district to be paid to each
93individual who holds NBPTS certification and is employed by the
94district school board or by a public school within the school
95district. The district school board shall distribute the annual
96bonus to each individual who meets the requirements of this
97paragraph and who is certified annually by the district to have
98demonstrated satisfactory teaching performance pursuant to s.
991012.34. The annual bonus may be paid as a single payment or
100divided into not more than three payments.
101     (d)  An annual bonus equal to 10 percent of the prior
102fiscal year's statewide average salary for classroom teachers to
103be distributed to the school district to be paid to each
104individual who meets the requirements of paragraph (c) and
105agrees, in writing, to provide the equivalent of 12 workdays of
106mentoring and related services to public school teachers within
107the state who do not hold NBPTS certification. Related services
108must include instruction in helping teachers work more
109effectively with the families of their students. The district
110school board shall distribute the annual bonus in a single
111payment following the completion of all required mentoring and
112related services for the year. It is not the intent of the
113Legislature to remove excellent teachers from their assigned
114classrooms; therefore, credit may not be granted by a school
115district or public school for mentoring or related services
116provided during student contact time during the 196 days of
117required service for the school year.
118     (e)  The employer's share of social security and Medicare
119taxes and Florida Retirement System contributions for those
120teachers who qualify for NBPTS certification and receive bonus
121amounts.
122
123A teacher for whom the state pays the certification fee and who
124does not complete the certification program or does not teach in
125a public school of this state for at least 1 year after
126completing the certification program must repay the amount of
127the certification fee to the state. However, a teacher who
128completes the certification program but fails to be awarded
129NBPTS certification is not required to repay the amount of the
130certification fee if the teacher meets the 1-year teaching
131requirement. Repayment is not required of a teacher who does not
132complete the certification program or fails to fulfill the
133teaching requirement because of the teacher's death or
134disability or because of other extenuating circumstances as
135determined by the State Board of Education.
136     Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.
137
138======= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ==========
139     Remove the entire title and insert:
140
A bill to be entitled
141An act relating to employee incentive programs for public
142school personnel; amending s. 1012.225, F.S., relating to
143the Merit Award Program for Instructional Personnel and
144School-Based Administrators; providing requirements for
145the appropriation, release, and distribution of funds;
146revising dates relating to administration of the program;
147amending s. 1012.72, F.S., relating to the Dale Hickam
148Excellent Teaching Program; providing for the proration of
149monetary incentives and bonuses for teaching excellence in
150certain circumstances; providing an effective date.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.