Law Enforcement

Eligible workers include law enforcement officers, firefighters, 911 operators, teachers, daycare workers and all manner of healthcare workers.

Sheriffs will also see their base salaries increase by $5,000 a year.

House and Senate negotiators finished reaching agreement Thursday, though a missed deadline will force the legislative session to extend until Monday for the votes.

The bill includes a signing bonus worth up to $5,000 for new officers, and it increases the base salary for each county sheriff by $5,000.

A report issued by the Ruderman Family Foundation found a third to half of all fatal police interactions involve a person with a disability.

"This is a huge, huge budget. This is a huge deal," DeSantis said of his proposal, which also includes pay raises and bonuses for teachers and law enforcement. It would need to be approved by the Florida Legislature.

His budget proposal would increase minimum pay for entry-level officers at various agencies by 20% while salaries of veteran officers would go up 25%.

The officers who left New York and applied at the Lakeland Police Department include a fired security guard and a defendant in a federal police brutality suit.

Gov. Ron DeSantis says police recruitment will be one his priorities in the next legislative session.

COVID-19 is killing more Florida law enforcement officers than gunfire, vehicular assault, and automobile accidents combined. 14 of the state's officers have succumbed to the virus so far this year.

It's part of a proposal DeSantis said he will present to the Florida Legislature for consideration during its upcoming session.

The bipartisan bill was a compromise supported by House leadership. It passed 113 to 0.