TCTA testifies on school finance before House Public Education Committee

The House Public Education Committee met March 4 to hear invited testimony on HB 2, a comprehensive school finance bill authored by Chairman Rep. Brad Buckley (R-Salado). Anticipating significant interest in public testimony, he scheduled only invited testimony for March 4; public testimony will occur March 6. Almost 30 people were invited to testify, and TCTA was the only teacher group represented.

TCTA’s Director of Policy and Advocacy, Paige Williams, appeared before the committee. Since the bill is just under 150 pages, Williams focused on a handful of points of praise and improvements to be made.

The bill’s most-mentioned provision is a proposed $220 increase to the basic allotment, the first such increase since 2019. In current statute, 30% of increases to the basic allotment must be used on compensation for nonadministrative employees, with 75% of that specifically for classroom teachers, librarians, counselors and nurses. HB 2 would increase that to 40%, providing an additional layer of increased pay for teachers beyond the basic allotment increase. It is difficult to determine exactly how much of a pay raise this would give nonadministrative staff, but it would certainly direct more funding to salaries. The fiscal note on the bill cites a $7.5 billion price tag; TCTA will provide updates as it becomes clearer exactly how much of that would go to teacher pay.

Williams thanked the committee for increasing the basic allotment, but repeated TCTA’s position that a direct, across-the-board pay raise is a more effective vehicle to guarantee teachers get the raises they deserve. She mentioned that in the last 15 years, school district operating costs have steadily increased, but the portion of those costs spent on teacher compensation have stagnated. With a direct pay raise, teachers would not have to worry about school districts having a say in how additional state funding is distributed.

Another provision of the bill would remove requirements to maintain the raise in future years for teachers who received an unsatisfactory appraisal the year before. Williams expressed TCTA’s strong opposition to this provision and cited numerous other ways that school districts can address underperforming teachers.

HB 2 also includes an infusion of state dollars into the Teacher Incentive Allotment program (TIA). The proposed changes would add a fourth category, acknowledged, which intends to extend performance pay bonuses to more teachers. Williams cited that only a small percentage of teachers receive any money through the program and that it should not be seen as a substitute for an across-the-board pay raise. 

Uncertified teachers were also a frequently-discussed topic during the hearing. The bill would prevent Districts of Innovation from hiring uncertified teachers for foundation subjects going forward, with some runway for those teachers to become certified. Williams thanked Buckley for including this provision and underscored that certified teachers produce better outcomes for students. She also cited a recent TCTA poll that indicated how much of a burden uncertified teachers put on their certified peers at the same campus. 

Rep. James Frank (R-Wichita Falls) was particularly interested in TCTA’s internal research about the operating expenditures to teacher pay gap and said that it was, “The best chart [he’s] ever seen.” Williams answered questions from other committee members and offered to provide specific language to address TCTA’s concerns with HB 2. 

Committee Vice Chair Rep. Diego Bernal (D-San Antonio) mentioned multiple times that this is a starting point for the bill. TCTA will continue to be actively involved in amending the bill going forward and will keep members up to date on the latest developments as it travels through the Capitol.