By Skyla CarterCorrectional officers at Holmes Correctional Institution and Northwest Florida Reception Center will not receive a proposed pay increase after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed legislation that included correctional officer raises and prison construction funding.
The governor signed Florida’s 2026-27 state budget on June 29, but vetoed HB 5403-E, which would have provided a $2-per-hour pay increase for correctional officers and authorized funding for prison construction and renovation projects through long-term financing.
Because the pay increase was included in the vetoed legislation, it will not take effect.
DeSantis said during the budget signing that he supports increasing correctional officer pay but did not support the structure of the bill, which combined pay increases with prison construction funding.
A separate proposal earlier in the year included increasing starting pay for correctional officers from $22 an hour to $28 an hour, though that proposal was not included in the final state budget passed by the Legislature.
The veto also removed funding associated with planned prison construction and renovation projects, including new housing units and a proposed prison hospital.
Holmes Correctional Institution in Bonifay and the Northwest Florida Reception Center in Chipley are state prisons in the area that employ correctional officers and support staff.
Lawmakers may consider correctional officer pay during the 2027 legislative session.
Staff Report 