At the legislature today, the pros and cons of consuming raw milk is debated in the House. Senate Bill 30 passed overwhelmingly and heads back to the Senate to consider House changes to the bill. In the Senate there’s more discussion about funding for state roads and another agreement for more study about that issue. And we begin a two part series about ginseng. Could it become a leading cash crop? These stories and more coming up on The Legislature Today.
Tag: West Virginia Education Association
State Senator Pulls Ad with WVEA Head Promoting Business
A southern West Virginia lawmaker has pulled a television ad for his car dealership that featured a testimonial by the president of the state’s largest teachers’ union.
Sen. Bill Cole says he stopped running the commercial on Monday. The Mercer County Republican says West Virginia Education Association President Dale Lee is a longtime customer.
Lee says he asked Cole to drop the ad after ethics questions arose at the Capitol. Cole says he didn’t realize there could be potential ethics issues.
State ethics law prohibits public officials from using their office for the private gain of an individual or business.
In the ad, Lee touts his personal experience buying cars from Cole’s dealership. Lee and Cole say Lee wasn’t compensated to appear in the ad.
Senators Compromise on Teacher Pay, Union Wants More
In a last minute compromise, the Senate Education and Finance Committee Chairs agreed to an across the board pay raise for teachers that differs from what…
In a last minute compromise, the Senate Education and Finance Committee Chairs agreed to an across the board pay raise for teachers that differs from what was promised by Governor Tomblin during his State of the State Address.
The amended version of Senate Bill 391 passed by the upper chamber today calls for an $837 across the board increase.
The bill was originally presented by the governor and authorized a two percent across the board pay increase for teachers and school service personnel.
Education Chair Senator Bob Plymale tried to up that to a $1,000 raise, but Finance Chair Senator Roman Prezioso said the state couldn’t find the additional $5 million that would have been added to the bill’s bottom line.
On the floor Wednesday, Plymale said the compromise keeps the fiscal note neutral, at its original $32 million total, but also raises the starting salary for teachers to more then $32,500, helping to attract young professionals to the field.
His amendment was accepted and the bill passed with two voting against it, Senators Mitch Carmichael and Senator Brooks McCabe.
West Virginia Education Association President Dale Lee said after the vote was a good first step, but he will push for the $1,000 teacher pay raise as the bill moves over to the House.
McCabe stood at the end of the session to warn his fellow Senators about the vote. McCabe had spoken against the pay raise in a Finance Committee meeting and reiterated his concerns.
“I’m not challenging the need for salary increases, particularly for teachers,” he said. “We are grossly out of line with teacher salaries and we know we need to address that.”
“What I would hope the Senate would do is in the future when we’re posed with a salary increase, we look at it from the perspective of where is the money coming from? Do we have the money to spend? Most importantly, are we also addressing at the same time improvements in efficiency and effectiveness.”
Lee said McCabe is known for being a proponent of efficiency and he would be willing to sit down and look for better ways to distribute money if asked by lawmakers.
“But there’s not nearly as much waste as people think,” he added.
WVEA wants higher salaries from lawmakers
The state’s largest teacher’s union announced a new initiative pushing for a competitive salary for teachers and school personnel. Union leaders call the…
The state’s largest teacher’s union announced a new initiative pushing for a competitive salary for teachers and school personnel. Union leaders call the pay increase the next step in improving public education and student achievement across West Virginia.
The West Virginia Education Association kicked off the “Competitive Pay Campaign” at their Charleston headquarters.
West Virginia currently ranks 48th in the nation in teacher pay at an annual salary of $45,000.
While WVEA President Dale Lee declined to put a dollar amount on what the union considers a competitive salary, he said it should be a major priority for lawmakers despite a struggling state economy.
“It’s not our job to find the resources for them, but it is their job to place a priority,” Lee said during a press conference. “This has to become a priority and anything up at the Capitol that they make a priority they are able to find the funding for it.”
Lee said every $1,000 raise for teachers would cost the state more than $26 million.
He said implementing a multi-year program would allow the state more time to find some of that amount while catching West Virginia teacher up with the national average of $55,000 a year.