Are high school coaches in line for a big raise? Here's what we know so far

The Florida Coaches Coalition is working with state Rep. Adam Anderson, R-Palm Harbor, on a bill that could see high school coaches paid $15 per hour for a minimum number of hours.

Football head coaches would be required to work a minimum of 1,500 hours a year, which would mean a $22,500 stipend. Baseball, basketball, soccer, softball and volleyball head coaches would be required to work 1,000 hours a year for a $15,000 stipend. Head coaches in other sports, as well as football assistant coaches, would be required to work a minimum of 750 hours, which would be an $11,250 stipend.

That number would mean a huge raise for a lot of coaches. In Broward County, where football head coaches make little more than $3,000 a year, it would be almost a 650% pay bump. The number also would make Florida more competitive with coach compensation in state such as Texas, Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina.

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Here's what we know so far.

How much would this cost?

A lot. But keep in mind that part of the issue with the price tag though is that it's been a very, very long time (if ever) since coaches have seen a pay raise.

So, back to the question of how much, If the current plan was to go through the state legislature and immediately put into place, just paying the head coaches in the primary sports would annually cost $240,000 per school. Again, using Broward County as an example, it currently pays its head coaches less than $39,000. That's a 517% increase per school.

For Broward County as a whole, the 29 high schools with sports would mean an annual bill of $6.96 million. Again, that's just for head coaches. The number right now is $1.1267 million.

Who will pay for it?

This is the million dollar — or $6.96 million — question. Not too many people are publicly against a raise for coaches. The question is where the money will come from.

According to Florida Coaches Coalition executive director Dr. Andrew Ramjit, it will be up to each school district to find the funds.

"What we hope to do is have state legislature mandate school district pay for hours worked," Ramjit said. School districts have to allocate the money into that line item for coaches. A lot of school districts are finding innovative ways to raise money. ... It will ultimately fall on the school districts for how they would be able to do this."

When do the Florida Coaches Coalition hope to have a bill before the state legislature?

The goal is to have something before the legislature in 2025.

Florida State head football coach Mike Norvell, USF Director of Internal Scouting James Thompson, Venice High School football coach John Peacock and Ramjit met with members of the state Legislature in January. The group in the legislature included state senator Corey Simon, a former NFL defensive tackle who was a star at Blanche Ely High School and Florida State.

What are the chances a bill would pass?

Ramjit said he's hopeful the bill will pass and believes there's real momentum to get something done. He also concedes that it will be an uphill battle with opposition.

Not only is it a bill with a big price tag attached, but there isn't a clear way to fund it. There's also the issue of the teacher's unions, which will walk an interesting line between demanding more pay for teachers first while also recognizing that a portion of their membership are coaches.

There does seem to be real momentum for something to get done for coaches in Florida. Ramjit even thanked Florida High School Athletic Association executive director Craig Damon on social media recently for his behind the scenes help with the issue. What a final bill looks like in 10 months remains to be seen.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida high school sports: Are coaches in line for a big raise?