Senate Democrats Sustain Veto of Teacher Pay Raises

Senate Democrats, with cover from far-left NCAE, kill teacher pay raises until 2021

Dems and NCAE try to convince teachers that no raise is better than a raise

Raleigh, N.C. — Senate Democrats today sustained Governor Roy Cooper’s veto of the sixth and seventh consecutive teacher pay raises. Senate Democrats also previously rejected an offer from Republicans of a 4.9% teacher pay raise plus a $1,000 bonus, citing opposition to the deal from Governor Cooper.

The Democrats’ decision means that teachers will not get a pay raise until at least 2021.

Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) said, “Senate Democrats have rejected every teacher pay offer we’ve proposed, and Governor Cooper has vetoed every teacher pay raise we’ve passed. Their strategy is to block teacher pay raises then mislead everybody into blaming the Republicans. It’s a deeply cynical ploy that harms teachers and our state.”

Since 2014, North Carolina teachers have received the third-highest pay raise in the country. Here are the average salary increases from 2014 to 2019.

2014–15–7.0% (opposed by Senate Democrats)
2015–16–3.8% (opposed by Senate Democrats)
2016–17–4.7% (opposed by Senate Democrats)
2017–18–3.3% (vetoed by Gov. Cooper, opposed by Senate Democrats)
2018–19–6.5% (vetoed by Gov. Cooper, opposed by Senate Democrats)(Source: nonpartisan Fiscal Research Division)

The record is clear. Senate Democrats and Governor Cooper have never supported a Republican-proposed teacher pay raise, and they probably never will.