Indiana Democrats to file teacher pay bills in 2019 General Assembly

For one, State Sen. Eddie Melton, D-Gary, said Wednesday he would offer a bill to increase teacher base salaries across the state by 5 percent.

“It is very clear that teachers have communicated to us in my district how important this is to them,” Melton told an audience gathered for the annual legislative conference hosted by the Bingham Greenebaum Doll law firm. “Teachers still dig into their pockets to buy supplies for the classroom.”

Republicans are expected to seek additional tax credits of $100 to $500 for teachers who buy their own supplies.

The Indiana State Teachers Association requested last week that the General Assembly take action in the 2019 session, beginning Jan. 3, to boost salaries.

Republican legislators, however, are gearing up for at least two years of studies and debates for increasing pay, which both parties generally favor. It has been seven years in some public districts since pay increases; Indiana ranks lowest in the Midwest and 37th in the country for teacher pay, officials said.

“It’s my hope that we get more money in teachers’ pockets,” said House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis. “That could come both short term and long term. That could come through an immediate tax credit, an extension of the current tax credit to all public school teachers in a substantial amount.”

At issue is Indiana’s process of sending funds to school districts, which then have discretion in how to use the funds.

“These decisions are made at the local district level. They’re not made at the state level. .... How do we make sure it (teacher raises) actually gets there?” said Robert Enlow, Chief Executive Officer for EdChoice, a clearinghouse on school choice.

Bosma added, “I hesitate to use the word ‘mandate,’ but we’ve got to encourage very strongly for schools to focus more so on teacher pay than on administrative expansion.”