Des Moines, Iowa — Republican leaders in the state legislature say they’re open to moving a key deadline for local school officials who are developing budgets for the next school year.
Those budget plans must be done by April 15th, but the House and Senate have not agreed yet on how much state funding schools will get or whether to raise the mandatory minimum salary for teachers. House Speaker Pat Grassley says the legislature’s unresolved debate over Area Education Agencies is also a factor.
SSA is legislative lingo for the general level of state funding for schools that’s calculated on a per pupil basis. Four weeks ago, the House voted for a three percent boost in per pupil funding for students in public and private schools, but the Senate has not advanced its own bill. Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver says some initial decisions may be made next week.
Senate Republicans may debate their combined plan to restructure Area Education Agencies AND raise the minimum salary for first-year teachers to around 46-thousand dollars a year. A week ago the House passed a bipartisan plan that addressed teacher pay. It would set a 50-thousand dollar minimum salary, give public schools money to raise pay for veteran teachers with salaries below 50-thousand dollars, AND raise hourly wages for other school staff to 15 dollars an hour. Democrats say Republicans have failed to follow the state law that requires the legislature to make its decision on general per-pupil spending on schools over a month ago.
