Senate committee approves 4 percent teacher raise for Alabama teachers, education budget

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Teacher in classroom_education

An Alabama Senate committee has approved a 4 percent pay raise for most public school teachers, administrators and employees.

The Senate Finance and Taxation Education Trust Fund Committee approved a $6.327 billion Education Trust Fund budget, a 5 percent increase over this year, which funds pay raises for teachers and provides additional money to hire new educators and fund transportation. The House unanimously approved the budget early last month.

The budget provides for a wide-array of increases for state education, including $14.5 million to Alabama’s top-ranking Pre-K program — a bump from the House-approved $14 million. Further, the budget will fully fund the Public Education Employees Health Insurance Plan (PEEHIP) and bump the funding for teacher supplies from $373.79 to $405.05 per unit, and technology from $63.79 per unit to $169.34 per unit.

The Committee also approved a proposal that dictates teachers and employees making less than $75,000 a year would see a four percent pay raise, while those above would see a two percent raise, making this the first take-home pay increase in years for Alabama public school teachers.

The committee adopted an amendment offered by Senate budget chairman Arthur Orr (R-Decatur), that included principals and assistant principals in the pay raise.

“Principals are the backbone of the schools, and make the trains run on time and we need to attract good leaders to our individual schools,” Orr said.

The budget now moves to the full Alabama Senate, where it is expected to be considered as early as Wednesday.

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