ORLANDO, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference at an elementary school in Orlando Monday morning, where he discussed the benefits of the Florida Prepaid college program.
He was joined by Florida Department of Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr., State University System of Florida Chancellor Ray Rodrigues and Florida Prepaid College Board Chairman John Rood.
DeSantis announced that $850 million in refunds have been issued this year to families enrolled in Florida Prepaid college savings plans. In total, Florida has returned nearly $1 billion to Florida families through Prepaid Florida refunds, according to a news release from the governor’s office.
The rollback also means that current plan prices are at the lowest rates in 10 years, starting at just $34 a month for a newborn.
In the Miami area, 84,973 student plans will see reductions worth $436 million. In addition, 37,671 students will get a total of $112 million in refunds on their existing plans.
The refunds will go to parents or guardians if their child decides not to attend college or a technical school.
DeSantis urged families on Monday, especially those with young children, to start planning for college and highlighted the benefits of opening a Florida Prepaid policy.
While DeSantis praised Florida’s stable tuition rates, he acknowledged that future market conditions are uncertain, making it valuable to lock in rates now.
The governor reminded current policyholders that due to Florida’s steady tuition rates, they might already have refunds available. He noted that millions, if not billions, of dollars are waiting to be claimed.
DeSantis also revealed that Florida Prepaid is offering a $50 gift card to families who open an account before Oct. 2.
DeSantis’ news conference on Monday comes a day after he announced that state law enforcement will be investigating the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump in Palm Beach County.
A suspected would-be assassin was in the custody of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. The Republican presidential candidate was not injured during the shooting at about 1:30 p.m., as he played golf at the Trump International Golf Club, in West Palm Beach.
“The people deserve the truth about the would-be assassin and how he was able to get within 500 yards of the former president and current GOP nominee,” DeSantis wrote on X.
The FBI, the agency leading the investigation into the “apparent” assassination attempt had yet to release the suspect’s identity. Law enforcement sources told ABC News and The Associated Press the suspect in custody was Ryan Wesley Routh. CNN reported Routh, 58, of Kaawa, Hawaii, has a minor arrest record and lived in Greensboro, North Carolina.
DeSantis also said as of 11 a.m. Monday, he had not yet spoken to Trump about the assassination attempt, the second in just two months on the former president.
To find out if you have an unclaimed refund, please log in to your Florida Prepaid account.
Local 10 viewers can watch the news conference in the video below.
Local 10 Digital Journalist Andrea Torres contributed to this story.
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