As of the 2022-23 school year, the Florida K-12 system had

• 3,687 traditional public schools (including university research schools) and 740 charter schools.

 As of the 2021-22 school year, the Florida K-12 system had 

• 179,551 classrooms, 117,437 of which were standard classrooms; other classroom types include Skills Labs, ESE classrooms, and  Science, Art, Music, and Vocational Education classrooms.

Information on the number of K-12 schools by type and by district can be found on the Florida Department of Education website here, and information on the number of K-12 classrooms by type and by district can be found on the department website here.

Section 1013.02, Florida Statutes, establishes the State Board of Education's and Board of Governors' responsibilities related to the educational facilities program. In general, the department is responsible for providing oversight and accountability of the facilities programs for school districts and the Florida College System. The Board of Governors provides oversight and accountability for the State University System's facilities programs. Department staff also provide technical assistance and training to school districts and colleges, including training on the State Requirements for Educational Facilities (SREF) and the Florida Building Code.  

In addition, the Department of Education allocates and distributes capital outlay funds for K-12 projects and is responsible for reviewing and approving the individual school district five-year work plans, which contain funding requests for construction and maintenance projects. Other state responsibilities include establishing building codes and standards, providing training and technical assistance on building code interpretation, and maintaining state space inventories.

The Board of Governors has adopted guidelines for universities to enter into public-private partnerships for the construction of facilities to serve the needs and purposes of the university. The board uses these guidelines as a framework to review proposals for public-private partnerships involving a university or direct support organization (DSO).

Section 1001.03, Florida Statutes, requires the State Board of Education to develop a prioritized list of capital projects that identify the top two priority projects for the Florida College System. In addition, the board must develop a points-based prioritization method, requiring weighted values within the point scale to rank projects based on specified criteria. The board must maintain a list of capital outlay projects for which state funds have been appropriated but which have not been completed. The board is also required to review its space need calculation methodologies and present summary and preliminary recommendations to the Legislature every three years, beginning October 31, 2019.

Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) is the primary state funding source for educational facilities. Established in article XII, section 9(a)(2) of the Florida Constitution, PECO includes revenue from the state gross receipts tax, specifically the tax on the gross receipts from the sale of electricity, gas, and communications services (cable, cell phones, and land lines). PECO revenues have historically funded construction and maintenance of educational facilities for the State University System, Florida College System, and the K-12 System.

As shown below, K-20 capital projects to construct, maintain, repair, renovate, and remodel educational facilities are funded through a mix of local, state, and federal sources. The Legislature appropriates state funding to the K-20 system for capital projects in the General Appropriations Act.

• K-12. In Fiscal Year 2020-21, local funding sources (including property taxes, local sales taxes, and impact fees) accounted for approximately 94% of school districts' capital project expenditures. During the period, state funding accounted for approximately 6% and federal funding accounted for less than 1% of school districts' capital project expenditures. Sources of state funding for the K-12 system include Charter School Capital Outlay, Capital Outlay and Debt Services (CO&DS) funds, Pubic Education Capital Outlay (PECO) funds, and other miscellaneous state revenues.  The primary local source of funding for the K-12 system is the non-voted local capital improvement 1.50 millage levy on real property. Other sources of local funding require voter approval and include local bond referendums and the half-cent sales surtax. Other local funding sources for capital outlay projects include impact fees and county local sales taxes. 

• Florida College System and State University System. The Legislature appropriates funding for capital projects at postsecondary educational institutions from a variety of sources including the Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) Trust Fund, Debt Service Trust Fund, Capital Improvements Fee Trust Fund, and General Revenue.

Funding for Charter School Capital Outlay. The 2023 Legislature enacted Ch. 2023-69, Laws of Florida, that addresses capital outlay funds for charter schools. Among its provisions, the law

• clarifies that charter school capital outlay funding shall consist of state funds, when such funds are appropriated in the GAA, and revenue resulting from the discretionary 1.5 millage authorized in s. 1011.71(2), Florida Statutes;
• clarifies that the calculation of school district enrollment for purposes of calculating proportionate share of school capital outlay surtax shall be based on capital outlay full-time equivalent enrollment;
• removes the state funding threshold from the calculation methodology used by the Department of Education (DOE)  to determine the amount of the discretionary 1.5 millage revenue a school district must distribute to each eligible charter school and prescribes a five-year glide path, stipulating the percentage of such funds each year a school district must distribute to each eligible charter school beginning in Fiscal Year 2023-24 (20%) through Fiscal Year 2027-28 (100%);
• revises the calculation methodology used by the DOE to allocate state funds appropriated for charter school capital outlay on the basis of unweighted full-time equivalent (FTE) students and removes the additional weight for FTE based on students that are eligible for free and reduced lunch and students with disabilities;
• revises eligibility and allowable expenditures for charter school capital outlay funds; and
• requires charter schools attest in writing to the DOE that, if the charter school is nonrenewed or terminated, any unencumbered funds and all equipment and property purchased with public funds will revert to the state.

Other Reports
Review and Adjustment for Florida's Cost Per Student Station, Florida Department of Education and Florida Legislative Office of Economic and Demographic Research, January 2020
Fact Books, State University System of Florida

Websites of Interest
University Plant Surveys and Current Projects
Five-Year School District Educational Work Plans
Florida Educational Facilities Planners' Association
State Requirements for Educational Facilities
PECO Revenue Estimating Conference

Performance Information
Performance measures and standards for universities may be found in the Board of Governor's strategic plan and accountability reports

Board of Governors, Office of Finance and Facilities, 850-245-0466
Board of Governors

Department of Education, Office of Educational Facilities, 850-245-0494
Department of Education