The Florida Coaches Coalition is celebrating a win this week, after two bills that seek to increase funds for coaching salaries were unanimously approved in the state legislature’s subcommittees.
According to Yahoo Sports, House Bill 731 and Senate Bill 538 were both passed unanimously. Both bills will move forward for review by the entire Florida House of Representatives and Senate by early March.
“All the information that we could have possibly put together is now in front of both Senate and the House,” said Florida Coaches Coalition executive director Dr. Andrew Ramjit. “It’s also in front of the DOE and in front of the governor’s office. Everyone that needs to have all the information has the information and we’re talking years of research, all there in front of them. All of that has also been vetted by the state government, so the information is there.”
If passed by the legislature and signed into law, the bills would set head coach’s pay at minimum wage, $15 per hour, starting in September. This would result in football head coaches receiving $22,500, assuming a minimum of 1,500 hours worked. Head basketball, baseball, and volleyball coaches would receive $11,250, assuming a minimum of 750 hours worked.
As of the 2025 season, the Florida Coaches Coalition reported that most high school football coaches in the state earned only $3,000 to $6,000.
HB731 proposes allowing school booster clubs to fund the extra pay, and it would prohibit using booster club funds for severance pay. Meanwhile, SB538 is written with a stronger focus on student-athlete eligibility. This bill would prohibit schools from imposing additional fees on students who participate in extracurricular activities.
Both bills also include language that would limit student-athletes’ opportunity to transfer schools within an academic year and compete on two different teams. According to Yahoo Sports, several notable high school student-athletes transferred schools during the 2025 football season. These proposed changes would include exceptions for students who relocated due to a parent’s military service, court-ordered custody changes, or the governing association’s pre-approval.
