Kentucky’s Republican-led House of Representatives on Thursday endorsed expanded education spending in a two-year state spending plan, but two of the Democratic governor’s top priorities: guaranteed raises for teachers and access to preschool for all 4-year-olds. was omitted.
The budget, which passed the House on a 77-19 vote after hours of debate, would funnel significant additional funding to K-12 schools. In a key policy decision, the Republican bill leaves teacher pay decisions up to local school districts while encouraging school administrators to give raises to teachers and other employees. Each district will decide the amount of the raise.
The House version has no funding for the governor’s ambitious universal pre-K proposal. The state’s main policy document, the executive branch budget, now goes to the Republican-controlled Senate.
Kentucky House clears the measure of silence at the start of business hours
Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear called for a guaranteed 11% pay raise for teachers and all other public school employees in a spending plan he submitted to lawmakers. He says it’s needed to recruit and retain teachers. He proposed spending $172 million in each of the next two fiscal years to provide preschool to every 4-year-old in Kentucky. The goal is to get all children into kindergarten.
Rep. Derrick Graham, the top House Democrat, said during a lengthy debate on the House floor that the Republican plan does not go far enough to train K-12 teachers at a time when the state’s budget is huge. He noted that Kentucky ranks near the bottom of the nation in average starting teacher salary and average teacher salary.
“This budget is not going to impact the low state rankings,” Graham said.
Representative Jason Petry, Republican of Kentucky, is shown here answering questions about the executive branch’s budget bill on the House floor in Frankfort, Kentucky, on February 1, 2024. While the new budget does significantly increase education spending, critics say: Not enough money has been allocated to education yet. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Republican Rep. Jason Petry said the budget reflects a policy decision that shows “we’re sticking to local control so that states don’t set pay levels.”
Petry, who chairs the House Appropriations and Revenue Committee, staunchly defended the level of state support for public schools in the House bill. He said he would increase funding for K-12 education by more than $1.3 billion over two years. “It’s well supported,” he said.
In his proposal, Beshear proposed more than $2.5 billion in additional funding for public education.
Throughout the debate, House Democrats highlighted shortcomings in the Republican spending plan, citing water projects and affordable housing initiatives as examples.
Republican Rep. Kevin Bratcher responded cheerfully to Democratic criticism, calling it a responsible budget.
“They just say, ‘Use it, use it, use it, use it,'” Bratcher said. “And it’s stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid.”
Much of the House debate focused on education funding, which has always been the cornerstone of the national budget.
The House plan would increase per-pupil funding under SEEK, the state’s primary funding formula for K-12 schools. The amount will be $4,368 (an increase of $117 million) in the first year and $4,455 (an increase of $154 million) in the second year. The current amount is $4,200 per student.
The House budget bill brings new benefits to school districts. State spending on transporting K-12 students to and from school would increase, with the state paying 100% of the cost in the second year of the two-year period. Mr. Beshear called for the state to cover all of these costs in both years. Under the House plan, the state would pay 80% of those costs in the first year of a two-year cycle starting July 1.
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Republican leaders said the House version would make significant investments in mental health and substance abuse recovery programs. It includes money to hire 100 more social workers and give raises to state police troopers and commercial vehicle enforcement officers. The plan calls for an additional $196 million in funding for the College Access Program, Kentucky’s need-based grant initiative for undergraduate students.
Budget development has been a top priority for lawmakers during this year’s 60-day session, and the House’s action marks another step in that process. The focus now shifts to the Senate, which will influence the two-year spending plan. The final version will ultimately be refined by a conference committee made up of House and Senate leaders. Republicans hold an overwhelming majority in both chambers.
In other action Thursday, the House passed another spending bill that would tap into the state’s large budget reserves to make a number of one-time investments. Nearly $1 billion would be used to further pay down the state’s pension debt. Other allocations will go toward supporting infrastructure and economic development. The bill passed the House 96-0 and advanced to the Senate.
