FL S1216

District school boards may provide cost-of-living salary adjustments to employees with direct student contact, including instructional personnel, prekindergarten teachers, noninstructional personnel, and school administrators

Removes the previous limitation that cost-of-living adjustments could not exceed 50% of the annual adjustment provided to instructional personnel rated as effective

Expands criteria for using advanced degrees in salary schedules to include degrees in the individual's area of certification, a field related to their teaching assignment, or an advanced degree in another field with at least 18 graduate semester hours related to their certification or teaching assignment

Eliminates specific percentage requirements for performance salary schedule adjustments (previously required highly effective employees to receive at least 25% more than other schedules, and effective employees to receive 50-75% of the highly effective adjustment)

Annual salary adjustments under the performance salary schedule will only be provided to employees rated as highly effective or effective