NC lawmakers pass COVID relief, advance K-12 reopening bill Roughly $62 million remains in the pot of funds available for the checks, and those who were not able to apply by the December deadline now have until May. This story has been corrected to reflect the first TRA payment was in August 2019, not January 2020. If you have any questions, please email [emailprotected]. All rights reserved.The EdNC mark is property of EducationNC and registered as a state trademark with the North Carolina Secretary of State.Terms of service | Privacy policy, Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, reopen this fall under either plan B or plan C. Cooper allowed elementary schools to open under plan A. December General Fund Monthly Budget Report, Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology(GREAT) Program, Governor, Superintendent, State Board Chair urge return to in-person learning, State Board approves social studies standards, unveils legislative agenda, and more, What you need to know to be an effective advocate: State government 101. According to a letter sent to school officials from the Office of Charter Schools, this decision was based on several findings: The Board also remains concerned that rather than acknowledge its failures, Torchlight continues to blame the Office of Charter Schools and DPI Exceptional Childrens Division for Torchlights noncompliance, Chair Eric Davis said, and takes little or no responsibility for its failure to comply with federal and state special education laws, rules, and regulations.. Consolidates two scholarship programs for students with special needs into the North Carolina Personal Education Student Account for Children with Disabilities Program, and fully funds the programby adding$15.6 million per year. RALEIGH, N.C. The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction will have to use a reserve fund to cover all of the $1,000 bonuses for teachers included in the new state budget. Offers may be subject to change without notice. The Department of Public Instructions Exceptional Children Division said it noticed deficiencies at the school as early as February 2020. Cooper recently introduced a supplemental budget that strongly overlaps with the bill he signed Wednesday. Cooper signs COVID relief bill distributing federal money | WNCT $546 million for emergency rental assistance, which will build on North Carolinas current work. Another $30 million would be used to extend high-speed internet throughout the state, including 35,000 student hotspots to help improve educational access. Those Democrats were Sen. Ben Clark, D-Hoke, and Sen. KirkdeViere, D-Cumberland. The governor's proposal includes $700 million in federal funding to help with coronavirus vaccines and testing, along with contract tracing and other prevention measures. On top of these bonuses for state employees, teachers will get an additional $1,300 in bonuses, while principals will get an additional $1,800. The legislation would make schools open for exceptional needs students under plan A, and under either plan A or plan B for all other students. If republishing the story online, please provide a link to EdNC.org or a link to the original article in either the byline or credit line. Allowable edits to the content of the piece include changes to meet your publications style guide and references to dates (i.e. An additional $17.5 million will be used to increase direct care worker wages. Our content must be republished in full. Otherwise mirrors the tax plan that previously passed the Senate. Text keyword CFA to 336-379-5775, For traffic alerts text the word TRAFFIC to 336-379-5775, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said in part, the "Legislature must make educator pay a top priority when they come back in September. All of the bonuses. Creates a new experience-based salary schedule forcorrectionalofficers, which results in an average 7%raise. The 2018 election through then Republican candidate Mark Harris' eyes. Copyright 2023 Market Realist. The total authorized cost is $80 million. Teachers and principals would get $2,500, non-certified school employees would get $1,500, and community college and UNC System staff would get $2,000. Coronavirus relief funding and teacher bonuses are central to North Carolina Gov. State Budget Director Charlie Perusse said this nearly $700 million package will be considered as legislators also make decisions on the remaining $4 billion in federal COVID relief funds over they next few weeks. Please email Anna Pogarcic atapogarcic@ednc.orgif you have any questions. Please use the following guidelines when republishing our content. GREENSBORO, N.C. North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has signed nine bills into law including a bonus for teachers and school employees. CMS to give teachers, other eligible staff $750 bonus after - WBTV The district has had success with its guest teacher program. On Nov. 17, WTVD reported that the pay increases will be retroactive to the start of the fiscal year on July 1, but it wasn't clear at the time whether the bonuses will apply to this years W-2 or next years. The bonus structure with some of the raises that were seeing, its a huge step forward to where weve been.. "I am proposing one-time bonuses of $2,500 for teachers and principals, $1,500 for school personnel in public K-12 schools and $2,000 for workers in our community colleges and universities," Cooper said. Provides $50 million in federal funding for rural downtown transformation grants in Tier 1 or Tier 2 counties. Leadership for the Republican legislative majority indicated they'd rather see teacher compensation discussed as part of the state's regular budget process, as opposed to a faster moving emergency pandemic relief bill. Teacher pay has been a particular flashpoint between Cooper, a Democrat, and the GOP majority in recent years, contributing to a series of budget stalemates that actually helped the state bring its cash reserves up to where they are now. Provides $7.3 million in grant fundingforsheriffs offices in Tier 1 and 2 counties to be used for expenses incurred by the offices. Cooper also announced this week his desire that students return to school, though he isnt mandating it. Roy Cooper closed school buildings due to COVID-19, and things havent been the same since. @$2D&`YxXXf32`w)H2I@O!#,P0 U On Thursday, the Republican-controlled General Assembly passed its own emergency COVID relief bill. But unlike the plan from state lawmakers, Cooper wants one-time direct payments of $2,500 to teachers and principals, $2,000 to NC Community College and UNC System workers and $1,500 to noncertified school personnel. The original headline of the article must be used. "We're asking Gov. "This pandemic continues to strain communities across our state, and this investment of federal funds in critical areas will help us defeat COVID-19 and build back a stronger and more resilient North Carolina," Cooper said in a statement. Cooper also proposed $50 million to continue hazard duty pay for police, prison guards and other state employees who face potential exposure to the virus every day. For the latest weather conditions and forecast text the keyword WEATHER to 336-379-5775, For local news stories right to your phone text the keyword NEWS to 336-379-5775, Need our Call for Action Team? The legislation passed the Senate this week mostly along party lines. Signup or login to Twitter to get even more breaking news from NCPW! Gov. Anderson is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Provides fundsto opena long-term care facility at Central Prison to ensure it is fully operational by FY 2022-23. The board unanimously passed retention bonuses for all employees, including teachers, janitors and cafeteria workers. Bill 818: Compensation for Certain School Employees will allocate a one-time $350 payment to teachers and school employees. by Alex Granados, EducationNC February 5, 2021, This article first appeared on EducationNC and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.. Increases the child tax deduction by $500per child. When asked whether he would veto the Senate bill on in-person learning, Cooper didnt say. See below for more details on the budget proposal: Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. Cuts the personal income tax rate from5.25% to 3.99% by 2026, starting with 4.99% in 2022. He also asked for a formula change that would bring the state's unemployment tax down slightly and said the state's Unemployment Trust Fund, which the tax feeds, stands at a healthy $2.59 billion. 0 North Carolina parents would have until May 31 to take advantage of the so-called Extra Credit grants. Cooper's budget also has $30 million to extend broadband internet and 35,000 internet hotspots for education. may not be republished without prior permission. Provides $400 million tostate agencies for repairs and major renovations. RALEIGH, N.C. Gov. That federal funding comes from the relief bill passed by Congress in December. All of EdNCs content is open source and free to republish. A press release said that Cooper will release his plan for a biennium budget later in the session. Previously, they weren't eligible. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The letter school officials sent to DPI notes that the 10-day time frame poses additional problems because it overlaps with the holiday season, when many employees will not be working. Alex Granados | %%EOF NC Department of Public Instruction = Page 1/4 = Document revised on 2/3 /2020. is a weekly in-depth look at politics in Charlotte, North Carolina, South Carolina, and beyond with host Ben Thompson. Click here to read the governors complete budget recommendations. I appreciate the work of legislators to quickly pass vital relief as the state responded to the pandemic last year and I believe we can work together to get the job done again. Approximately $700 million for access to vaccines and testing, tracing and prevention measures to slow the spread of the virus. Transfers $2.7 million from the Jobs Maintenance and Capital Development special fund to the Film and Entertainment Grant special fund. Governor Cooper proposed a budget this year that includes a 10 percent raise for K-12 teachers over the next two years. NC Senate approves teacher pay bill, tables pitch for larger bonuses Soliant Special Education Teacher (Huntersville, NC) in Huntersville Data obtained by WCNC Charlotte shows that 1,056 teachers have resigned so far this school year, which represents about 11% of CMS' total teaching staff. Perusse said highlights from that federal allocation include: The states consensus revenue package for the current fiscal year and a projection forecast through 2023 will be made available by the end of next week. "We can and will turn the corner on this pandemic and our communities can be even stronger than before. For example, the House passed a measure Thursday that would forgive liquor license fees for bars forced to close for much of this year. There is data, however, on the lower grades where plan A has been allowed. Bonuses for educators and school personnel in public K-12 schools, Community Colleges and the University System. Coronavirus: Cooper proposes budget including teacher bonuses - WXII Teachers and Principals - $2,500 23 . It also raises the zero-tax bracket to $25,500 for married filers, according to a news release from Sen. Phil . Allocatesover $1 billion of federal American Rescue Planfundsto provide grants tolocal governments forwater and sewer utilities. CMS board of education approves increased bonuses for teachers - WCNC-TV Increases theUniversity of North Carolina Need-Based Financial Aid Programby 5%. Why is it impotent to stop mass gun violence? Now is the time to fix this and provide a real safety net," the governor said. Creates a $22 million reserve fund to cover increased costs for schools in the event DPI under-projects student enrollment growth. The total authorized cost of the project is $91 million. Our communities and people face serious challenges and we must come together to identify areas of common ground and help our people beat the pandemic and thrive once again, the governor said. EdNC is a nonprofit, online, daily, independent newspaper. All teachers in North Carolina will get a 1.3 percent increase in the base salary this year and again next school year, according to WUNC. Its likely he is talking about the part of the bill that allows middle and high school students back in classrooms under plan A, since there is minimal social distancing under that plan. Alex Granados is senior reporter for EducationNC. Creates a new Department of Correction within the Governors cabinet and a separate Division of Juvenile Justice and Division of Community Supervision and Reentry within the Department of Public Safety. In addition to federal stimulus spending, the governors plan calls for $695 million dollars to be appropriated from the unreserved General Fund balance to address a number of immediate needs. Please email Anna Pogarcic at, If you republish a story, please let us know by emailing Anna Pogarcic at. The budget blueprint would provide $10 million more for North Carolinas food banks, plus an additional $4.5 million for housing legal services support. Guest teachers would also get bonuses under the new plan, now eligible for a total bonus of $2,500. Provides $100 million in federal fundingto create a new program to assist local governments with stormwater infrastructure and management. Allocates $10 million for cybersecurity risk management. Charlotte teachers to get bonus as a 'thank you' from district - WCNC-TV EdNC is a nonprofit, online, daily, independent newspaper. All Rights Reserved. Walker Kelly said the bonuses for teachers and other school personnel are needed and would be much appreciated by all. All rights reserved. (Certified Nursing Assistant) 7A-3P + $2,500 Sign on Bonus! Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. It also raises the zero-tax bracket to $25,500 for married filers, according to a news release from Sen. Phil Bergers office. Funds construction of the Brody School of Medicine with$76million. Meanwhile, Cooper also unveiled an emergency supplemental budget plan that includes $695 million in state spending. Increases the Community College Need-Based Assistance Program by 7.5%. Cooper on offshore wind energy development in NC: "It's the right thing to do", $50 million to continue hazard pay for state employees, particularly law enforcement and corrections personnel, $64.5 million for the State Employees Health Plan, which has incurred costs from the pandemic and is funded by a blend of taxpayer and employee contributions, $30 million to extend high-speed internet around the state. Please use the following guidelines when republishing our content. Apply for a VocoVision Distance Learning Special Education Teacher job in Hickory, NC. Anna Pogarcic is the Director of Content for EducationNC. November 16, 2021, by All teachers will get $300 from funds that would have otherwise been spent on bonuses for teachers who improve students reading scores.