McCrory opposes teacher pay plan, budget
Published May 30, 2014
by Jon Ostendorff, USA Today, May 29, 2014.
Republican Gov. Pat McCrory on Thursday said he had problems with the Senate's plan to give teachers raises in exchange for them voluntarily giving up tenure-style protections.
McCrory's office released statements he made to reporters after a meeting in Raleigh.
"I think we need a more comprehensive approach, long-term sustainable and fiscally responsible approach on how we are going to pay our teachers in the future so it's a career as opposed to a one-time pay increase," he said. "So at this point in time, we have a major difference with the Senate and we hope to resolve those differences during the next several weeks."
At issue: NC Senate offers big teacher raise for tenure loss
The GOP-controlled Senate on Wednesday filed a budget that would mean raises of more than 10 percent for veteran teachers who gave up job protections. A court recently ruled lawmakers couldn't strip tenure from teachers.
The Senate said it would spend up to $468 million for teacher pay raises next year though leaders would not immediately say where they money could come from.
McCrory also disagrees with the Senate's spending priorities in its budget. McCrory listed impacts to the Department of Transportation, environmental protection, commerce, Health and Human Services and education as among his concerns.
"It's my job as governor to protect the efficient and effective operations of state government and good customer service," he said. "And I think the budget submitted by the Senate causes us some great concerns in that area and we will be giving more details on what our concerns are."
Powerful Rules Committee chair Sen. Tom Apodaca, R-Buncombe, Henderson and Transylvania, said he was unconcerned about McCrory's displeasure with the Senate budget.
"I didn't like his (budget)," he said. "Ours goes a whole lot further and I think ours shows teachers how we value them."
He said the budget includes $14.8 million bond to build a state crime lab in Western North Carolina.
Apodaca said the Senate budget puts more money in every part of education spending from K-12 to the university and community college system.
But the extra spending is paid for by cuts. Part of it comes from eliminating teacher assistants in the second grade statewide, Apodaca said.
The N.C. Association of Educators said the plan to get the double-digit pay increases also means a $3.4 million cut to school bus replacement funds, $28 million out of transportation services and a whopping 30 percent cut to the state Department of Public Instruction, which implements the state's public school laws.
The group does not agree with the suggestion that teachers should give up due process rights to get a big raise.
"We feel that this was a very vindictive budget that was put out by the Senate," Mark Jewell, the group's vice president. "It put forth a pay raise tied to selling your rights as a public school employee."
He said there is no promise in the spending plan that teachers would get another raise the next year or be spared from a demotion.
Sen. Terry Van Duyn, D-Buncombe, said senators have been told to stick around Raleigh on Saturday, signaling a vote that could come as early as just after midnight.
A bill must pass three readings to clear the Senate and the readings can't be on the same day, she said.
Van Duyn, who was appointed to fill the seat of the late Sen. Martin Nesbitt this year, said she wanted to hear more from teachers before weighing in on the pay raise plan. She generally supports raises.
Van Duyn said the pace of legislation in the short session has made it hard for the public to be involved.
"There is no time for public comment," she said. "There is not time for stakeholders to express how they are going to be hurt by this."
Associated Press contributed.
