Lawmaker Proposes Largest Teacher Pay Raise in Texas History

During this year’s legislative session, lawmakers in Austin are working with a budget surplus of almost $33 billion, the largest in Texas history.

They have to figure out what to do with that money. Many are pushing to prioritize education.

This week, State Rep. James Talarico (D-Austin, Dist. 50) plans to file a bill that would do just that and target one of the biggest demands from educators across the state: Raise teacher salaries.

Talarico unveiled the legislation on Tuesday plans alongside teachers associations, public education advocates, and other Texas House Democrats on Tuesday morning to share more details about the bill.

“We're going to be proposing the biggest teacher pay raise in Texas history. Totally stop the bleeding. And try to recruit the best and brightest into our classrooms so that we can serve the next generation,” he said.

According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, Texas teacher salaries average around $58,000 and currently rank in the bottom 10 states across the country.

Talarico told NBC 5 that the bill would move Texas into the top 10 states for teacher pay.

“We're about $7,500 behind the national average. So this bill, if we pass it, if we bring Republicans and Democrats together to make a big move on teacher pay, we could rocket Texas into the top 10 of states in teacher pay. And that's something our teachers deserve,” he said.

Talarico, a former middle school teacher, said with the state's current financial position and the $33 billion budget surplus, there's no excuse for not making a down payment on the future.

"So even doing the biggest pay raise in Texas history will still leave more than half the surplus left to spend on other priorities. This is something we have to do for our kids. And for our teachers and for the next generation,” he said. "When I was an educator, I struggled to make ends meet and now, 40% of teachers have to work a second job just to pay the bills. So it's no wonder that thousands of teachers are leaving the profession, throwing our state into a historic teacher shortage crisis."

The bill would also include a 25% bump for support staff in schools working in key positions like school nurses, cafeteria workers, counselors, and bus drivers. The average pay for such positions is just over $29,000.

Many of these needs have been on the wish list of the teachers advocates for a long time – including the Alliance AFT, the union representing employees in Dallas ISD.

"There's no question where [the budget surplus] needs to go. And that's in the future investment of our future Texans right here in our public schools,” said Alliance AFT president Rena Honea.         

While starting salary for teachers in districts like Dallas and Fort Worth is $60,000, rural districts with less funding can't come close to higher salaries without help from the state.

According to the Texas Education Agency, the minimum salary for classroom teachers, full-time librarians, full-time counselors, and full-time registered nurses is currently set to just over $33,000 for starting pay. The paytable shows increases with experience.

The minimum has stayed the same for the last four years, up from $28,000 in 2018.

Honea said these lower amounts are common in more rural districts as opposed to the larger districts, which are each offering highly competitive salaries and bonus incentives for new hires, as well as bonuses for existing employees. She said the paytable needs to be updated to keep up with modern-day changes.

“There are so many variables in our districts today, all of them large and small, that are dependent on the pay that the state sets and the increases that come," Honea said. “The biggest thing right now is the educational allotment. The raises are incredibly important to stop the mass exodus of our educators all across the state, but the educational funding allotment has not taken place since at least 2004 to 2008 and so the demographics in the state [have changed], the state has grown. But our educational system has not made any adjustments for that at all. And now's the time to do it.”

Honea said inflation has made it worse for everyone, everywhere. She said some Dallas teachers can't afford to live in the neighborhoods they teach in.

"That's the lack of respect for educators and school employees that's driving them out of our underfunded jobs. So what we are asking is certainly respect in the paychecks,” she said.

Supporters of the pay increases say it can help keep teachers in the profession, as many educators continue to leave in droves across the entire state.

"I think Texas saw an exit of about 43,000 employees and teachers last year alone,” said Honea.

Talarico introduced a similar piece of legislation in 2021 that would have made the minimum salary for teachers $70,000 but it failed. The teachers union hopes the mindset is different this time around.

"So many of our legislators run on the need to improve our schools. Well, they need to put their money where their mouth is. Really take it to heart,” said Honea.

During the press conference on Tuesday, Texas Democrats said negotiations with Republican lawmakers on could result in a different number from the requested $15,000 teacher pay bump as the legislative session continues.

“I’m hoping, as much as possible, we can move the final product closer to $15,000 because, Texas, we don’t do things small, right? We do big things in this state,” said Talarico.

The legislative session runs through May.