Texas Lawmakers Want to Give Teachers a Raise

Texas teachers could soon receive raises thanks to a bill filed with the Texas Senate Tuesday morning.

Bill 3 was submitted by Republican State Senator Jane Nelson of Flower Mound. As reported by the Texas Tribune, the legislation would mandate that $3.7 billion dollars be allocated for providing $5,000 pay raises to all full-time teachers.

The bill has the support of Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Further efforts to create a merit-based system that reward teachers considered most effective could also be in the works.

The cost is estimated at $3.7 billion over the next two years. At his inauguration Tuesday, Gov. Abbot defended the cost as an investment in Texas' future and a way of ensuring that a student's destiny is not determined by their ZIP code.

Most of us probably remember a teacher who had a tremendous impact on our lives. As kids, we didn't understand that they were often sacrificing so much of their own money to do so. These raises should go a long way toward helping more teachers have a lasting impact on more kids and lead to continued success for our state.