Sec. 703. Ensuring teachers are paid a livable and competitive wage
1,903 words·~9 min read·
/bill/119/hr/7767/ih/section-703A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2027 and each succeeding fiscal year. In addition to amounts otherwise available to carry out this section, there are appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to the Secretary to carry out this section— for fiscal year 2027, $14,500,000,000; and for each succeeding fiscal year, the amount appropriated under this section for the preceding fiscal year, increased by the annual adjustment percentage.
From amounts made available to carry out this section, and after making the reservations described in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall award grants, through allotments described in paragraph (3), to States to enable States to guarantee that all teachers employed by local educational agencies in the State are compensated with a livable and competitive salary, which shall be an amount that— is at least the minimum salary for teachers; increases throughout each teacher’s career; and is, to the greatest extent practicable, commensurate with annual salaries for college-educated and similarly experienced professionals in the region in which such agencies are located, as determined in accordance with procedures and requirements established by the Secretary.
From the amount appropriated under subsection
(a)for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve— one-half of 1 percent for allotments for payments to the outlying areas, to be distributed among those outlying areas on the basis of their relative need, as determined by the Secretary, to ensure that teachers are paid a livable and competitive salary, in accordance with the purposes of this title; one-half of 1 percent for the Secretary of the Interior to be allocated by the Director of the Bureau of Indian Education for programs or activities operated or funded by the Bureau for Bureau-funded schools (as defined in section 1141 of the Education Amendments of 1978 ( 25 U.S.C. 2021 )) to ensure teachers are paid a livable and competitive salary, in accordance with the purposes of this title; and 1 percent for program administration, technical assistance, and data collection for the program under this section. Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, the requirements of this section and section 702 shall not apply to recipients described in clause
(i)and
(ii)of subparagraph (A), except that such recipients shall use funds described in this paragraph to ensure that teachers are paid a livable and competitive salary. After making the reservations under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall allot 50 percent of the remaining amount appropriated under subsection
(a)in accordance with subparagraph
(B)and allot the other 50 percent of such remaining amount in accordance with subparagraph (C). From an amount equal to 50 percent of the amounts appropriated under subsection
(a)and remaining after the reservations of funds under paragraph
(2)(referred to in this section as the targeted formula amounts ), the Secretary shall allot to each State having a plan approved by the Secretary under subsection
(d)an amount that bears the same relationship to such targeted formula amounts as the total amount that local educational agencies in the State received under section 1125 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 6335 ) for the preceding fiscal year bears to the amount all local educational agencies in all States received under such section for the preceding fiscal year. From an amount equal to 50 percent of the amounts appropriated under subsection
(a)and remaining after the reservations of funds under paragraph
(2)(referred to in this section as the EFIG formula amounts ), the Secretary shall allot to each State having a plan approved by the Secretary under subsection
(d)an amount that bears the same relationship to such EFIG formula amounts as the amount the State received under section 1125A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 20 U.S.C. 6337 ) for the preceding fiscal year bears to the amount all States received under such section for the preceding fiscal year. For the purposes of this section, a State’s allotment shall be the sum of a State’s allotments calculated under subparagraph
(B)and subparagraph (C). Subject to paragraph (3), a State that receives an allotment under this section shall ensure that the annual base salary of a full-time teacher employed by a local educational agency in the State is an amount that— is at least the minimum salary for teachers; increases throughout each teacher’s career; and is, to the greatest extent practicable, commensurate with annual salaries for college-educated and similarly experienced professionals in the region in which such agencies are located, as determined in accordance with procedures and requirements established by the Secretary. To comply with paragraph (1), a State shall adopt one or more of the following laws or policies to ensure that every full-time teacher employed by a local educational agency in the State receives an annual base salary that is not less than the minimum salary for teachers: A statewide salary schedule that ensures that the salary of every full-time teacher employed by a local educational agency in the State is— an amount not less than the minimum salary for teachers established by the State under subsection (d)(1)(A); and increases as the experience of a teacher increases. A statewide minimum annual base salary for teachers who are in their first year of teaching that not less than the minimum salary for teachers established by the State under subsection (d)(1)(A). A State law to increase salaries for teachers. The Secretary shall ensure that, not later than 3 years after a State receives an allotment under this section, each such State meets the teacher salary requirements described in paragraph (1). In order to receive an allotment under subsection (b)(3), a State shall submit a State plan to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably require. Such State plan shall include, at a minimum, each of the following: A description of the State’s minimum salary for teachers, including the State’s plan to ensure that the State will meet the requirements of subsection (c)(1) not later than 3 years after the State receives an allotment under this section. A description of the State’s plan to increase the State’s per-pupil expenditures or the aggregate expenditures of the State with respect to the provision of free public education in the State, in a manner that— supports local educational agencies in increasing salaries or wages for teachers, paraprofessionals, specialized instructional support personnel, classified school employees, principals, other school leaders, school librarians, school bus drivers, and other staff across their careers, including through providing increased resources to local educational agencies; and does not— increase average class sizes or student to full-time equivalent teacher ratios at the State, local educational agency, or school level; reduce planning time; or require teachers to teach additional classes. An identification, with respect to the average teacher salary baselines in the most recent fiscal year, of the statewide average and the average in each local educational agency in the State. An identification of the number and percentage of teachers employed by local educational agencies in the State who earn a salary of less than $60,000 annually, disaggregated by each period of service specified in the average teacher salary baselines, across the State and in each such local educational agency. A description of the State’s plan to comply with the equitable distribution of teachers requirement under section 1111(g)(1)(B) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 6311(g)(1)(B) ). Each State shall make the State plan publicly available for public comment for a period of not less than 30 days, by electronic means and in an easily accessible format, prior to submission to the Secretary for approval under this subsection. Upon submission, the State plan shall include a summary of the comments submitted to the Secretary, with a description of how the State addressed the comments, and make such summary with description publicly available on the website of the State educational agency. Each State that receives an allotment under subsection
(b)shall— reserve not more than 1 percent of the amounts allotted to the State under subsection (b)(3)(D) to provide technical assistance and conduct monitoring to ensure that all local educational agencies meet the requirements described in subsection (c); reserve not more than 4 percent of the amounts allotted to the State under subsection (b)(3)(D) to conduct statewide efforts to— increase teacher compensation across the State in accordance with in subsection (c); identify and reform policies and practices at the State, local educational agency, and school-level to promote excellent teaching for all students, particularly subgroups of students; and address structural and organizational challenges in the teaching profession, in order to— raise the standards, status, and salaries of the teaching profession; and attract and retain promising and talented young people to teaching; and from the amounts allotted to the State under subsection (b)(3)(D) that are remaining after reserving amounts under paragraphs
(1)and (2), allocate— 50 percent of such remaining amounts to local educational agencies in the State in accordance with the targeted formula described in section 1125(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 6335(b) ); and 50 percent of such remaining amounts to local educational agencies in the State in accordance with the formula described in section 1125A(d) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 6337(d) ). Not later than 1 year after receiving an allotment under this section and annually thereafter, a State that receives an allotment under this section shall submit a report to the Secretary and publish such report in a clear and easily accessible format on the website of the State. Such report shall contain any information required by the Secretary and include, at a minimum— data on the average teacher salary baselines for the previous fiscal year, disaggregated by the statewide average and the average in each local educational agency in the State; updated data on the number of teachers employed by local educational agencies in the State who earn less than the minimum salary for teachers, disaggregated by each period of service described in section 702(a)(4), across the State and employed by each local educational agency; a description of the actions the State educational agency will take in the next fiscal year to support local educational agencies described in paragraph
(2)in decreasing the number of teachers employed by such agencies who earn less than the minimum salary for teachers; a description of actions taken by the State to increase the State’s per-pupil expenditures or the aggregate expenditures of the State with respect to the provision of free public education in the State, in a manner that— supports local educational agencies in increasing salaries or wages for teachers, paraprofessionals, specialized instructional support personnel, classified school employees, principals, other school leaders, school librarians, school bus drivers, and other staff across their careers, including through providing increased resources to local educational agencies; and does not— increase average class sizes or student to full-time equivalent teacher ratios at the State, local educational agency, or school level; reduce planning time; or require teachers to teach additional classes; and a description of how the State improved the equitable distribution of teachers in such fiscal year, as required under section 1111(g)(1)(B) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 6311(g)(1)(B) ).
Connectionstraces to 4
1 reference not yet in our index
- 20 USC 20
Citation graph
cites case law
Sec. 703
Ensuring teachers are paid a livable and competitive wage
Cite20 USC 20
Cites 5Cited by 0 across 0 sources