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Gov. Jeff Landry was adamant Tuesday that Louisiana public school teachers would not see a pay cut in the upcoming school year, but he did not specify where he would find the tens of millions of dollars needed to avoid it.

鈥淚 think the teachers deserve certainty. They deserve stability. They deserve respect and a permanent pay raise,鈥� Landry said at a state Capitol news conference.

The governor won鈥檛 release details about where the money to restore teacher pay will come from until after the Louisiana Legislature鈥檚 lawmaking session concludes Monday. He said he first wants the final copy of the state budget, which the legislature will approve before it adjourns, before he makes that decision.

Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, confirmed that one option to preserve teacher pay involves into another year of teacher pay stipends. The money would come from the funding that gets distributed to K-12 schools through a state school funding formula called the Minimum Foundation Program.

Legislators and advocates for teachers said they want more information about what would lose money in order to keep the teachers鈥� pay intact.

鈥淚 think a lot of members of the legislature would like to see a firm plan,鈥� House Democratic Caucus Chairman Kyle Green, D-Marrero, said in an interview Tuesday. 鈥淲e would like to hear from the governor about where the reductions would come from.鈥�

David Claxton, with the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents and Administrators, also warned that removing money from school district operations could result in layoffs.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think that鈥檚 a good plan unless there is money sitting around that we don鈥檛 know of,鈥� Claxton said.

Avoiding a teacher pay cut this year

For the past three years, the legislature has provided $2,000 and $1,000 stipends to K-12 teachers and school support staff, respectively. But there is no money in the current budget plan to cover those payments, which cost $198 million annually.

The governor and lawmakers were relying on voters to approve a constitutional amendment in the May 16 election that would have provided a permanent teacher salary hike to replace the stipends this year. When it , they didn鈥檛 have an immediate backup plan to replace that money.

As a result, the governor floated a entirely new plan to legislators this week that involves taking $150 million from the Minimum Foundation Program to extend the stipends for another year.

The Minimum Foundation Program allocates a total of $4 billion in state funding to public schools, but the $150 million cut would come from the $1.2 billion that goes to 鈥渘on-instructional鈥� programs. These include school administration, business services, facility acquisitions, construction and other spending outside of the classroom.

Claxton said the cuts would be difficult for small and rural school districts to absorb, particularly when costs for fuel, electricity and food for school lunches are surging.

鈥淚f they are going to remove money from the districts, that is not a good thing,鈥� he said.

Teacher advocates are cautiously optimistic, however. Larry Carter, president of the Louisiana Federation of Teachers, said he is happy Landry and legislators have committed seriously to retaining teacher pay at its current levels, even if he wants more information about the plan.

鈥淲e didn鈥檛 get a chance to really get the details,鈥� Carter said Tuesday.

As recently as last week, Henry and House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jack McFarland, R-Jonesboro, had said they weren鈥檛 able to provide another round of teacher stipends this year because of the state鈥檚 financial and legal constraints.

Legislative leaders backed off those statements after the governor returned from his trip to Greenland as a special envoy for President Donald Trump. On Tuesday, they committed to coming up with the money to restore teacher pay over the next few months.

鈥淸W]ith the Governor鈥檚 commitment expressed today to working with our members, we believe that with constitutional guidelines we can forge a path to providing properly appropriated, recurring funds to pay the teachers stipends in this coming year,鈥� Henry and House Speaker Phillip DeVillier, R-Eunice, said in a joint statement.

Louisiana has 51,000 public school teachers and approximately 40,000 school support workers. In order to provide the stipends again, Landry and lawmakers will need to come up with almost $200 million in the state budget plan that goes into effect July 1.

Henry has said the lawmakers may only need to find $150 million if they exclude certified teachers who work as school administrators from receiving the stipend again.

Long-term plans to keep teacher pay level

On top of the short-term plan to avoid an immediate pay cut, Landry said he will work on a permanent solution to avoid them in the future.

The governor and the legislature are forming a task force to make recommendations for permanently rearranging the Minimum Foundation Program to drive more money into teacher compensation from existing funds.

鈥淭here is no way we can鈥檛 find a permanent pay raise in those dollars,鈥� Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said at the governor鈥檚 news conference.

Landry said teachers deserve to be paid more in general.

鈥淥ur classroom teachers are actually making less money today than they did in 1988 when you adjust for inflation,鈥� the governor said.

The governor and legislators will have to work closely with the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education on any long-term overhaul of the Minimum Foundation Program. The state school board has more direct authority over it than the governor or lawmakers.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: [email protected].

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