EDUCATION
Second-most expensive part of the budget: $23.4 billion
Per-student funding: Would increase 1.7 percent to $6,958 for the state’s 2.6 million public school students.
Class-size limits: Schools would receive another $2.8 billion to reduce the number of students per classroom. Lawmakers believe they have complied with the strict caps, but will ask voters in the fall to relax the restrictions.
Taking sides: School district officials would be required to hold public hearings to explain steps they have taken or still need to take, such as rezoning or expanding bus routes, to get each and every class to the size required by the class-size amendment by the start of the 2010-2011 school year. The House also wanted districts to publish a report about the benefits of keeping caps at the more relaxed standard of a school-wide average, but the plan was scrapped in budget negotiations.
College tuition: Tuition will go up by at least 8 percent, with each university having the authority to raise its tuition and fees up to 15 percent. That would still leave Florida below the national average.
Bright Futures: Amounts will be reduced and scholarships will be tougher to obtain. The awards will drop by $1 per credit hour to $125 for the top award and $94 for the cheaper “medallion” award. SAT score thresholds will