Manny Diaz and Anitere Flores File Bill to Provide Transparency to Education Spending

Rep. Manny Diaz, R-Hialeah, and Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami, filed legislation on Tuesday to allow parents and others to see how well school districts in Florida are using their financial resources to improve student achievement.

The bill, HB 875, wouldcall for the education commissioner to create a return on investment (ROI) index by January 2015 to give parents the opportunity to view school districts' financial allocation to improve student achievement. The ROI index for each school will then be required to be posted to the Department of Education's website so that parents and others can make comparisons among similar public schools and school districts.

On top of that, HB 875 also provides for a schoolhouse funding pilot program that would evaluate whether giving principals more authority over school budgets and personnel decisions could provide a greater return on investment based on student achievement.

The pilot program would include 14 schools. Participating schools would be included in the ROI index and their principals would be provided with additional professional development to help them best manage their school and drive student achievement.

This bill brings some much-needed transparency to our education spending and allows Florida taxpayers to see which schools and districts are providing the best return on investment for our state, said Rep. Diaz on Tuesday. It will allow schools and districts to see what is working and whats not, and make the best decisions on how to prioritize their budgets.

The primary function of our schools is to educate our children and we should be giving schools every possible tool to help them do that successfully, said Sen. Flores. Our kids deserve the best education system we can give them. By connecting the financial and academic data the state already collects at the school level, we can gain a better understanding of what programs make the biggest impact on student achievement and then allow schools to make budget decisions accordingly.

Tim Melton, Vice President of Legislative Affairs for StudentsFirst weighed in on the bill, praising Diaz and Flores for taking the initiative to file the legislation.

Parents, education policymakers, and frankly, all Floridians should know how education dollars are being spent at the school level and what kind of an impact those programs are having.Representative Diaz and Senator Flores are great leaders and allies for parents and students in the Sunshine State and continually demonstrate their commitment to improving education."