A Florida lawmaker is considering legislation that would cut funding for school districts that implemented mask mandates despite a recent executive order, the Tampa Bay Times reported Monday.
Rep. Randy Fine, who chairs the PreK-12 Appropriations subcommittee, proposed a move that would punish the dozen districts that mandated masks, the Times reported. He said the school districts should have $200 million taken away and given to the 55 other districts that adhered to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ order.
DeSantis passed an executive order banning mask mandates in schools as part of a “Parent’s Bill of Rights” that he signed into law in June. The order gave parents the right to choose whether or not to mask their kids for school.
“In Florida, there will be no lockdowns, there will be no school closures, there will be no restrictions and no mandates in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said in July.
Fine said the $200 million would come from the salaries of over 1,600 district-officials, including grant directors, budget managers and chief financial officers who make more than $100,000 per year in some of Florida’s largest counties, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
“Next time a school district is considering taking the money that we gave them so that they can sue us over a law that we passed, maybe they’ll think twice,” Fine said, the Times reported.
Ad: Save every day with Amazon Deals: Check out today's daily deals on Amazon.
DeSantis threatened to withhold superintendent and school board salaries over mask mandates in August.
In October, the Florida Board of Education sanctioned eight school districts for imposing mask mandates without opt-out options in violation of DeSantis’ executive order. Board of Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran penalized the districts by withholding funds equivalent to 1/12 of school board members’ salaries.
Read the latest school and education headlines
- Mikie Sherrill Just Changed Her Story on Navy Cheating Scandal: I Did Take the Stolen Test, But Didn’t Know
- Latino History Could Soon be a Mandated Part of New Jersey Public School Curriculum
- Judge sides with Mantua schools in fight over special education evaluation costs
- Teacher charged in $55,000 fart spray prank that sent students to hospital
- Ciattarelli vows to defend parental rights on LGBTQ studies while Sherrill supports forced curriculum
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org. Read the full story at the Daily Caller News Foundation