This morning we passed a Sense of the Senate declaring our commitment to finding ways to get more money to the classroom teachers. There was applause from the balcony as it was full of teachers from across this state.
Less than an hour later there was an amendment offered that would send 100’s of millions of dollars to the classroom. Unfortunately, the Senate did not have the opportunity to vote on this amendment because of technical objections while our kids aren’t having their classroom needs met. We weren’t even allowed to vote on the amendment. I’m disappointed that the sense of the Senate resolution seems to be mostly an empty promise.
I offered an amendment transferring $231,777,139 in funds from agencies to EFA (Education Finance Act). The EFA is the funding formula that goes directly to the classroom. Here’s what this amount of funds could do. The average teacher salary including benefits is $58,922. This adds up to 3,933 teachers! The sources included Inovista, Endowed Chairs, and the Budget & Control Board. All of these agencies had more than enough funds to absorb these cuts.
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