Senate Finance Committee discusses TEA, TRS budgets; TCTA testifies

The Senate Finance Committee met Monday, Feb. 10, to discuss the budget for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 biennium. TCTA testified to advocate for a significant across-the-board salary increase for educators, additional funding to provide increases for paraprofessionals, and enhanced contributions for health insurance. 

As the longest bill of every legislative session, the budget is separated into articles to sort the various agencies and programs for which the state appropriates funds. This committee hearing considered testimony regarding Article III: Education.

State agencies submit requests to the Texas Legislature for adjustments to their budget from the previous biennium and send officials to explain their proposed budget to the committee. During Monday's hearing, the education-related agencies in the state testified, including the Teacher Retirement System and the Texas Education Agency.

TEA budget request

The longest part of the hearing was Education Commissioner Mike Morath’s testimony and the questions that followed. Morath laid out the state of education in Texas and the looming challenges facing TEA and educators across the state. He also explained projected costs for the public education system and the assumptions TEA made to arrive at its requested budget. 

Notably, Morath’s budget included a request for an additional $750 million for the Teacher Incentive Allotment program (TIA) due to projected increased participation in the next two years. Committee members spent hours peppering Morath with questions, including multiple senators mentioning student discipline and the growing number of uncertified teachers as concerns.

TCTA's priorities for 2025 session

After Morath’s testimony concluded, public testimony began and TCTA’s Director of Governmental Relations, Pamela McPeters, appeared before the committee to highlight TCTA’s priorities for the budget this session. (Click here for TCTA's submitted written testimony.)

She began by thanking senators for making teachers a priority by favoring a direct, across-the-board pay raise while cautioning that TIA should be viewed as a bonus, not a vehicle for pay increases. She also highlighted that, according to TEA, teachers are the most important school-based factor affecting student outcomes, so investing in teachers will benefit students, too.

McPeters continued by citing an informal survey of TCTA members asking whether a $5,000 raise would be enough to make a positive impact in light of inflation and other factors; a majority of members polled said $5,000 would not be enough. She also asked that more funding be provided to allow school districts to hire campus behavior specialists to assist classroom teachers with chronically disruptive students. 

Regarding TRS, she expressed appreciation for the legislature keeping its commitment to capping TRS-ActiveCare premium growth at no more than 10%, but encouraged them to increase the state’s contribution to active employee health insurance. Finally, McPeters recommended that the state restore funding to the TELL working conditions survey to provide insight into the teaching environment and highlight areas for improvement for school districts and the legislature alike. 

As the budget develops, TCTA will remain vigilant in advocating for the best possible outcomes for educators and will keep you updated on the latest.