TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The Florida Legislature passed Senate Bill 256 Wednesday after a 72 to 44 vote in the House.

The bill which, in part, requires unions representing public employees to have at least 60% participation, now heads to Gov. Ron DeSantis' desk

What You Need To Know

  • The bill now heads to Governor DeSantis' desk. He's expected to sign it into law, as his office expressed support of the proposal back in January

  • If signed into law, 64% of Florida teachers unions will either need to up participation levels or risk decertification

  • Back when participation requirements were upped to 50%, Florida teachers unions were able to rise to the challenge and gain more members

Numbers from the 2021-2022 school year show five out of nine Central Florida teachers unions — those in Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties — did not meet the 60% threshold.

Lake and Seminole had the lowest numbers with only about 50% of eligible employees paying dues to be a member of their local union.

Florida Republicans argue that the bill will ensure unions are meeting the needs of the public sector employees they’re meant to protect.

“You can’t listen to what the majority of the union members want unless there are more union members involved in their process,” said the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, during a floor discussion.

Several years ago, a similar measure was passed to increase participation requirements to 50%. Under pressure, many teachers unions were able to increase their membership numbers.

Opponents, meanwhile, say it is a union-busting bill, and say they worry some unions won’t be able to meet the threshold required to stay active. Some local teachers say without unions, the future of their profession is in jeopardy.

“It means that teachers lose their voice. It means educators in general lose their voice,” said Emily Gorentz, who was interviewed ahead of the bill's passage. Gorentz is a fourth grade teacher and instructional vice president at the Osceola County Education Association.

According to last year’s data, 64% of Florida teachers unions do not meet the participation levels that would be required under SB 256.

The bill applies to unions representing public employees, but offers exemptions to unions representing police and firefighters.

Celeste Springer is the education beat reporter for Spectrum News 13. If you have a story idea or concern, you can email her at celeste.springer@charter.com.