As we move toward the May 8 crossover deadline, the deadline for bills to pass a full vote from one chamber and move to the other, over 130 K12 education bills have been filed this session in the NC General Assembly. As the legislative session continues, we will track bills that align with our Top Education Issues and highlight several policy areas each week.
This week, the National Education Association (NEA) released its annual Report on Educator Pay in America. In this latest ranking, North Carolina fell to 43rd nationally for average teacher pay– falling five spots from last year. With the average salary coming in at $58,292, North Carolina’s public school teachers make $13,738 less than the national average of $72,030. For beginning teacher pay, North Carolina ranks 39th with an average starting salary of $42,542– $4,000 lower than the national average.
As we discussed last month, a number of proposals have been introduced in NC this year to increase teacher pay. H192– Raise Teacher Pay & Allotment Study, S659– Investing in North Carolina Act, Governor Stein’s budget proposal, and most recently the Senate budget proposal, all propose increases ranging anywhere from 2.3% to 22% over the biennium. Some also include reinstating master’s pay for teachers. However, none of these bills have yet moved, and it remains to be seen what the House and subsequent conference budget proposals will entail.
One piece of legislation, H767 (Market Rate Teacher Pay Study), did see some movement this week. While this bipartisan bill does not directly propose pay increases, it does establish a legislative study commission that would investigate salaries and benefits of NC teachers as compared to other states, the impact of state-funded salary supplements, bonuses, and loan forgiveness programs, attrition rates of public school teachers, and the wage gap between teachers and their similarly-educated peers.
The Forum advocates for increasing base salary pay for teachers significantly, with the goal of reaching the national average by 2030. We remain hopeful that these conversations continue and significant raises are passed as the budget cycle progresses.
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