New Florida fiscal budget will increase teacher salaries: What we know about the 2026-27 budget proposal

ORLANDO, Fla. - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he's committed to supporting the state's education system by allocating over $1.5 billion in this upcoming fiscal budget to increase teachers' salaries. 

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks about the 2026-27 budget proposal in Orlando on Dec. 10. 

What we know:

In a Dec. 10 press conference in Orlando, DeSantis spoke on budget recommendations for the 2026-2027 fiscal year. 

DeSantis specifically highlighted portions of the budget involving further funding education – from early childhood to collegiate levels. 

"In education, this is as robust as we’ve ever done," DeSantis said. 

By the numbers:

• $1.56 billion: Teacher pay increases
• $30.6 billion: K-12 education budget
• $1.7 billion: Early childhood education
• Nearly $2 billion: State college system
• $4 billion: State University system

Florida’s public education system ranks high in affordability.

According to U.S. News and Report, Florida ranks first in the state with the lowest tuition and fees. 

Florida's Bright Future Scholarship program will remain fully funded, DeSantis said. Although Florida in-state tuition isn't comparatively high, he said, it's a "big plus" to have scholarship assistance. 

DeSantis said college in-state tuition has not been raised since he’s been governor. Every time tuition goes up, loans go up, he said. 

"I think the university should be responsible for the loans, ultimately. If someone can’t pay it, that was a failure of the university. … They should have some risk in this," DeSantis said. 

Tripling the ‘rainy day’ fund

Before DeSantis became governor, he said the state’s "rainy day" fund had around $1.3 billion, but now, the new budget triples the state’s "rainy day" fund. In the budget submitted on Dec. 10, there’s $17 billion in reserves, he said. 

In comparison, Florida has 23.5 million people. The budget proposal is less than New York City’s budget, which has 8 million people, DeSantis said. 

"l’m proud of that," DeSantis said. "I think Florida’s really led the way with fiscal responsibility," saying that the state is going into this next budget from an area of "fiscal strength." 

What’s included in this reserve fund? 

• General revenue
• "Rainy Day" fund
• Trust funds
• Surpluses

‘Retiring debt’

That state has also created a program to accelerate payment of Florida’s outstanding debt, DeSantis said. 

More than half of the state’s debt has been "retired," since DeSantis took office, he said. 

"I’ve vetoed more than any governor but, by and large, the budgets have been good," he said.