Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General James Uthmeier announced Tuesday that the state is suing two textbook publishers, alleging they鈥檝e overcharged schools and Florida鈥檚 taxpayers.
The lawsuit, filed in the state Circuit Court in Tallahassee, accuses McGraw Hill and Savvas Learning Co. of 鈥渟ystematically overcharging Florida school districts for instructional materials.鈥�
The governor listed examples in Osceola County, where he alleges overcharging has amounted to more than $279,000, and in Miami-Dade, where a book was sold at a discount but at a higher price in nine other counties.
鈥淭his is a clear indication that Florida law was not being followed,鈥� DeSantis said during a news conference at Voyager K-8 school in St. Cloud.
DeSantis alleged at least 5,900 instances of overcharges, saying civil penalties could amount to as much as $60.5 million between both publishers.
requires textbook publishers to charge the lowest price offered to any state or district to every other district in the state.
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The state, which intervened in the lawsuit after a whistleblower filed an initial suit, claims the book publishers 鈥渨ithheld cost reductions required by statute.鈥�
The state is seeking up to three times the damages caused plus civil penalties to deter future violations.
鈥淭hese two companies, McGraw Hill and Savvas, they got discounts as they cut deals in other places, and they saved money,鈥� Uthmeier said. 鈥淯nfortunately for them, Florida law requires the lowest price to be given to our school systems. They did not do that so we have sued them and we will hold them accountable.鈥�
The governor and other lawmakers are pushing to eliminate property taxes in the state. Foregoing that tax revenue would increase the strain on local governments to fund schools, among other public services.
鈥淓very taxpayer dollar matters, and we will not allow publishers to exploit these taxpayer dollars. I, in conjunction with the attorney general and the governor, will hold every one of these publishers accountable on both content and cost,鈥� Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas said.
鈥淚f you want to provide these textbooks in Florida, you鈥檙e going to follow our laws, you鈥檙e going to respect our parents, you鈥檙e going to treat every school district equally,鈥� he added.
Kamoutsas鈥� reference to content alongside costs refers to a Florida law that limits what content can be included in school library materials, and which has been subject to several lawsuits.
When asked by a reporter about a last week striking down part of the school library book ban law, DeSantis said, 鈥淢ore often than not we get it rectified on appeal, so I absolutely anticipate that that will be rectified on appeal.鈥�
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