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State leaders are starting to turn their attention to the upcoming regular legislative session in January.
Of the six policy priorities state Treasurer Larry Pack released Monday for the 2026 Legislative Session, three are related to education.
Pack said he wants lawmakers to increase local control of schools, prioritize teacher pay and defend the Hope Scholarship.
As the state Treasurer, Pack is also the chairman of the Hope Scholarship board. He clarified that with the educational savings account program primed to expand eligibility to every student in the state, his main concern would be changes to the law.
“Don’t change the law. Simply don’t change the law,” he said. “When we get to [20]26-[20]27 school year, it’ll be universal, every K through 12 child in West Virginia will be eligible to participate in Hope Scholarship. Now we know they won’t. It’s gonna be a much smaller number, but universal eligibility is what we’re advocating for. All the legislature has to do is nothing.”
As for teacher pay, Pack acknowledged that most students in the state will continue to be educated in the public education system. A recent count from the West Virginia Department of Education estimates that more than 98% of the state’s students are served in some form by public schools.
Pack said if the state wants the best public schools with better outcomes, teachers need to be paid a competitive salary.
“We propose that the minimum salary for any teacher has to be at least $50,000 and if any teacher is making $50,000 or more, that their income should, they should receive a raise at least $2,000 in addition,” he said.
Asked how the state can afford a pay raise while expanding a program that is conservatively expected to cost $245 million when it goes universal, Pack said the state’s economy is on fire.
As the treasurer, he said it’s his responsibility to speak on “anything related to a dollar sign in West Virginia government.”
“We have the money to invest in education, and I don’t think that there’s really anything more important to invest our money in than education,” Pack said. “A budget is just about properties. As far as I’m concerned, we need to prioritize education.”
Although not officially part of his proposals, Pack also acknowledged the need for reform to the state’s school aid formula, the algorithm by which state funds are distributed to local school districts, calling it archaic.
“It was dreamed up 47 years ago, 57 years ago, by a judge who’s now deceased,” he said. “I’m sure he thought it was a really, really good idea. But we all know what worked in 1970 and what worked in 1980 doesn’t work today.
Pack also identified an unclaimed property consumer protection bill, constitutional term limits and eliminating the state income tax on tips and overtime as his other legislative priorities.
The 2026 regular Legislative Session will begin on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026.