ST. CLOUD, Fla.— Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced action to hold textbook publishers accountable for exploiting taxpayers by overcharging school districts for their materials. At the direction of Governor DeSantis, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has filed a lawsuit against McGraw Hill and Savvas Learning for violating state law and taking away valuable resources from Florida’s schools.
“Florida continues to lead in education because we stand up for schools, students, and taxpayers,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Textbook publishers that exploit Florida school districts must be held accountable, and I commend Attorney General Uthmeier for bringing this action.”
When textbook publishers apply to be placed on the state’s adopted textbook list, they agree in writing to automatically reduce the price of instructional materials to match reductions that have been made in other places in the U.S. This was not being done by these two textbook companies.
The complaint filed by the Attorney General states there have been at least 5,900 instances of overcharges by these textbook publishers. One example is an overcharge to Osceola County School District of more than $279,000. Another example is one textbook title that was sold at a discount to Miami-Dade County Public Schools but sold at higher prices in nine other school districts—the aggregate overcharge totals more than $250,000.
“Our lawsuit exposes a textbook case of corporate greed—companies charging Florida schools more than law allows, pocketing the difference, and sticking taxpayers with the bill,” said Attorney General James Uthmeier. “Florida will not be a playground for deceitful profiteers who think they can cheat our students and teachers. We will make sure they pay back every dime and face the full consequences under the law.”
The lawsuit filed by the state guarantees fair textbook pricing, millions returned to schools and taxpayers, and stronger protections for Florida students.
“Florida districts, teachers and students deserve better than textbooks filled with ideological content sold at inflated costs,” said Commissioner of Education Anastasios Kamoutsas. “That’s why we’re building an English language arts curriculum developed in Florida, for Florida’s students with a focus on lower costs, foundational learning, academic integrity, and factual content.”
Florida leads the nation in education, and is currently ranked:
- #1 for Higher Education by U.S. News & World Report for the 9th consecutive year.
- #1 in overall Education Freedom by the Heritage Foundation for the third consecutive year
- #1 in Education by the ALEC Index of State Education Freedom.
- #1 in the Parent Power Index by the Center for Education Reform, reflecting its robust school choice options, including charter schools, private school scholarships and virtual education programs.
- #1 on the 2025 EdChoice Friedman Index for having the most robust school choice options in the nation.
Under Governor DeSantis’ leadership, Florida has held institutions, unions, and corporations accountable for putting politics above students. Florida continues to set the standard for the nation in safeguarding educational offerings. Examples include:
- House Bill 1069, signed into law in 2023, ensures students in grades prekindergarten through grade 8 do not receive classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity and that the instruction must be age- or developmentally appropriate for grades 9 through 12.
- In 2022, Governor DeSantis signed House Bill 1467 into law which increased transparency around materials, including requiring school districts to post a searchable list of instructional materials.
- House Bill 7, signed into law in 2022, reinforces parents’ rights by ensuring that classroom instruction, required topics and instructional materials do not include indoctrinating concepts like Critical Race Theory.
Florida is always taking proactive steps to improve classroom materials, including a recent state investment of $3 million to develop a new English Language Arts curriculum for elementary schools that is aligned with Florida’s State Academic Standards and free from ideological bias.
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