One day before thousands of public school teachers from across the state are expected to rally at the legislature for more state support, Republican House leaders on Tuesday rolled out their proposed budget for the coming year, announcing more raises for teachers and principals.
The spending plan, which is expected to be on the House floor for approval Thursday and Friday, would total $23.9 billion for 2019-20, an increase of 3 percent over the current budget. The budget would grow by another 4 percent in 2020-21, to $24.9 billion.
Other WRAL Top Stories
"What you have before you is a budget that's sustainable. It's one that looks into the future but also pays for our current-day needs," said Rep. Jason Saine, R-Lincoln, senior chairman of the House Appropriations committee.
Teachers would get an average raise of 4.8 percent next year under the plan, while principals would see an average 10 percent increase and assistant principals 6.3 percent.
House Speaker Tim Moore said raises in recent years have been focused on younger teachers, but the plan for next year provides more for veteran educators, with a top base salary of more than $60,000 a year.
"Teachers that have been in the profession that long have been promised for years, 'We will get you to the national average,'" said Rep. Jeff Elmore, R-Wilkes, co-chairman of Education Appropriations. "Those teachers that have been promised that for basically their entire career will now see that in their base pay."
Elmore, a teacher himself, said the state is finally fulfilling what he and his colleagues viewed for years as "empty promises."
Meanwhile, most other state workers will get a raise of either 1 percent or $500, whichever is greater. State retirees would get a one-time 1 percent pension supplement.
Rep. Donnie Lambeth, R-Forsyth, another senior chairman of the House Appropriations, said corrections officers and trial court coordinators would get 5 percent raises in the budget, and some university personnel also would get increases larger than the 1 percent set aside for state workers.
Last year, lawmakers included 2 percent pay bumps for many state workers and even larger raises to get others to a $15-an-hour level.
The State Employees Association of North Carolina called the proposal "a slap in the face" and urged House members to vote it down.
"Closing prisons, shuttering hospitals or abandoning road projects to take to the streets is not an option for state workers," SEANC Executive Director Robert Broome said in a statement, alluding to Wednesday's teacher rally. "Our members deserve equitable pay and benefits. We’ll be at work [Wednesday], but make no mistake, our voices will be heard loud and clear on our own time."
Gov. Roy Cooper called for raises of 9.1 percent over two years for teachers; the greater of 1.5 percent or $500 for most other state workers each year; an extra $500 for some state workers, such as corrections officers and teaching assistants; and a one-time 2 percent bump for retirees in his proposed $25.2 billion budget.
Overall education spending in the House plan would be $14 billion in 2019-20, up $270 million, or 2 percent, over the current budget. The increase in the following budget year would amount to an increase of only 1.4 percent.
Moore said it includes funds to fully restore extra pay for teachers with advanced degrees, which lawmakers had eliminated in recent years.
Rep. Craig Horn, R-Union, co-chairman of Education Appropriations, said the Teaching Fellows program would be expanded to more universities and that $15 million per year would be used for "teacher-directed classroom supplies." Each teacher would get an annual allotment of $145 to buy supplies from an online vendor, which would be in addition to existing classroom supply funding.
Superintendent of Public Instruction Mark Johnson recently proposed a program that would redirect state money now sent to school districts for classroom supplies to individual teachers.
Other education provisions in the House budget include another $30 million for school safety grants, the creation of a behavior threat assessment team to head off potential incidents at schools, career coaches to assume some of the duties now borne by high school guidance counselors and summer school funding at University of North Carolina campuses.
The state also will match local funds up to $1,000 for signing bonuses to recruit teachers to small districts and up to $2,000 if that district is also considered low-wealth, Elmore said.
The budget would also add about $20 million over two years to funding for textbooks and resources, and there's a $1 million grant to develop an online pre-kindergarten curriculum for at-risk preschoolers.