On Taxes and Teachers
The House just gave early approval to the strangest of property tax relief bills.
The bill, filed by Rep. Paxton, would reduce the property tax rate by 9 cents -- to 91 cents per $100 valuation. But an amendment tacked on by Rep. Dunnam -- one that passed relatively easily -- says the state can only bring the property tax rate under $1 if they first raise teacher pay in Texas to the national average. The bill stipulates that each teacher, librarian, school nurse or counselor would need to get a $6,000 raise before the tax rate could be below a dollar.
The amendment doesn't actually do anything to allocate the money, however, which ties the House's hands to lower taxes. The Senate would probably be hard-pressed to pass this bill, without stripping it of the teacher-pay provision. Then again, teacher pay raises are hard to vote against.
All in all, this bill probably won't ever do what it was intended to do.
Comments
The Texas House had an opportunity to vote on a significant teacher pay raise plan when they voted on the budget. Instead, they substituted what would have given good teachers a few thousand dollar raise with a $850 dollar raise.
Mr. Dunnam and others spoke quite loudly about how much, or rather how little, they care about keeping qualified teachers in Texas on that day.
Posted by: lilburne overton | May 10, 2007 12:27 PM
So teachers not only don't get a pay raise, but they also don't get a property tax cut.
Pure politics.
Posted by: Jiminy | May 10, 2007 1:18 PM
The 81 hacks who voted for this have proven that they are not capable of representing the general public -- just the shrill special interests.
The Dumbocrats and the alleged Republicans who voted with them are going to wet themselves once word gets back home of what their vote today is going to cost.
Posted by: Gina | May 10, 2007 1:54 PM
I disagree with you, lilburne. As a teacher in a large urban school district, I'm glad they voted down a teacher incentive pay plan and voted instead to spread the money. Incentive pay plans don't work, they're divisive, and inherently unfair. Now, if only the raise was larger and guaranteed.....
Posted by: anonymous | May 15, 2007 1:18 PM
Wow, the teacher in a large urban school district did not let me down. I do not expect that teachers want to be held accountable. The government systems, such as the public school system, are the few places where people can hide from accountability.
In most people’s work life they are held accountable, or as the teacher put it, there is a divide between the good and not so good and their income is reflective. The reason good teachers are lost, is because the boil when they see teachers that do not work as hard as they do getting rewarded (paid) the same as they are being paid.
I am a former teacher that has a BS and MEd that has moved on and acquired a MBA, because there is not enough accountability in the education system nor incentive when the staus quo teachers are taking my incentive away desire is low because of the status quo teachers are promoted into leadership roles all too often.
Cut the property taxes and hold teachers accountable
Posted by: Rush | May 16, 2007 9:00 AM
I have no problem being held accountable--anyone is welcome to come to my room anytime and evalutate my job performance. But again, another human being isn't a "product." The problem I have is tying my salary to test scores.If incentive pay is based on test scores, I will be automatically left out because on paper, I do not have test scores because I am a technology applications teacher. There are no TAKS scores (yet) for my subject. What isn't on paper, what won't show up on any data roster, is that I tutor. Some of the students' success is because of my efforts and those who aren't necessarily core content teachers. I and others like me will quit our subjects and teach core content to get scores so we can make money too. And if you tell me I can make more money by raising test scores, what do you think I'm going to emphasize in my classroom? Good teachers aren't lost because of other inferior teachers--teachers leave because they can't afford to support their families or they're sick of all the emphasis placed on test scores now. Just think of what it will be when how much money I can make is tied to that.....
Posted by: A teacher in an urban district | May 16, 2007 10:51 AM