February 9, 2005
Margaret O’Sullivan Parker
(850) 245-0442
205-0442
05-01
none

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Ms. Jayne Peel, Director of Administrative Services
Washington County District School Board
Daniel J. Woodring, Esquire General Counsel
Teacher compensation for prior year's services

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Question Presented: May a school district compensate a teacher for services performed in the prior school year in order to pay her for teaching without a planning period in excess of the contracted instructional load?

Short Answer: No, a teacher may not be compensated after the fact.

Discussion: As indicated in your letter, you are aware that Section 215.425, Florida Statutes, prohibits extra compensation after the services have been performed. I have found no other statutory provision, interpretation, or opinion that would override that statute and allow the teacher to be paid. In fact, Florida’s Attorney General has opined on several cases that teachers may not receive similar compensation under Section 215.425. See AGO 86-53 (teacher who received teaching certificate at mid-year could not be compensated for the difference between the salary for a substitute teacher and fully qualified teacher); AGO 85-57 (school board could not retroactively pay teacher for time worked in the fiscal year before she earned a masters degree); and AGO 82-28 (teacher who realized that she could have used prior years’ experience for higher salary could not be retroactively compensated for those prior years).

I discussed this issue with the Director of the Department’s Office of School Business Services who agrees that Section 215.425, Florida Statutes, would prohibit the payment.

Please do not hesitate to contact this office if you have any further questions.

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