Florida’s Special Session beginning May 12 to reconcile the state budget will draw particular attention from state employees.

The 18-day Session aims to hammer out a spending plan for the Fiscal Year 2026-2027, which begins July 1. While the House and Senate were unable to reconcile their spending plans during the Regular Session, pay raises for state workers are on the line in the upcoming Special Session.

“I think it’s critical,” said Tallahassee Democrat Rep. Allison Tant. “They’re not getting adequate pay. Employees leave state jobs because they’re not being paid enough.”

At issue is a 3% across-the-board pay hike for state employees, according to a Senate budget proposal (SPB 2500). Workers such as state park rangers, prison guards, law enforcement and firefighters would get an additional 2% raise.

Tant represents House District 9, which encompasses the state capital Tallahassee and surrounding areas. She said for her constituents, many of whom are state employees, the pay issue has a major impact.

“This is the backbone of the economy of Tallahassee with the state capitol and state employees,” Tant said. “They’re headquartered here and this is home base.”

She said pay increases for state employees are needed amid rising concerns about affordability in general in Florida.

“We need to make sure that people who work here can afford to live here by paying them adequately for their educational background and for their experience and for what they contribute to the well-being of the state. It’s hand-in-glove for me,” Tant said.

She added that she’s aware of some potential criticism from taxpayers about the government feathering the nest of their own workers. But she said there’s already a lack of adequate personnel in many state services.

“I get complaints all the time from constituents who call me that they can’t get a call back from an agency,” Tant said. “The reason you can’t is because there’s not enough employees.”

While Tant worries about the lack of state workers serving agencies, Gov. Ron DeSantis bragged two years ago on CNN about having among the lowest number of employees per-capita among all states.

That comes out to about 165,000 total state employees, or about 96 for every 10,000 residents.