In response to HB 1259 – Education passing in the Senate today, Senator Rosalind Osgood (D-Tamarac) released the following statement:
“HB 1259 will cause great financial hardship on our traditional public schools. I support all schools, traditional, public, charter public and private schools. However, I believe we can fund educational opportunities in the State of Florida without taking money from one and giving it to the other.
Capital funds are neither collected nor spent on a per student basis but based on facility needs. This bill is regressive and problematic in many ways. HB 1259 will make it impossible for school districts to fund five-year facility plans required by State statute. School districts will not be able to meet debt obligations for new construction.
Broward County Schools will lose approximately $56,023,741 over the next five years. I encourage the Governor to veto this bill and allow a task force of Traditional Public School Superintendents and Charter School Operators to work together to propose a more fiscally appropriate solution.”
About Senator Rosalind Osgood
A proud Broward County native and Fort Lauderdale High School graduate, Dr. Osgood serves as a member of the Florida State Senate, representing District 32. To date, Dr. Osgood has over 22 years of background in non-profit management where she has served as CEO of the Mount Olive Development Corporation (MODCO), Associate Minister at New Mount Olive Baptist Church, Former Adjunct Professor at Nova Southeastern University Huizenga School of Business, and member of the Broward County School Board’s District 5 representative where she served as Chair twice, her leadership advances to the Boards of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Fort Lauderdale Chapter of the Links, Inc., and the Broward Behavioral Health Coalition Board. Her motto remains, “Overcome Obstacles by Optimizing Opportunities.”
