By Eileen Hernandez, Capitol Correspondent
February 28, 2025 – Austin, TX
The Texas Senate just sent a message loud and clear: teachers deserve more money, and they deserve it now. In a rare unanimous vote, lawmakers approved Senate Bill 26, a sweeping $4.3 billion teacher pay raise package that supporters are calling the strongest Texas Teacher Bill of Rights ever.

But before the bill sailed through, it faced tough questions in the Senate Education Committee — especially from Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas), who pressed Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe) on how exactly this massive pay raise would be funded. “Why aren’t other allotments accepted from the recapture?” West asked. “Can you kind of go through that? Is there a definition for instructional staff? So it comes from the Foundation School
Program? The House is going to go for that?”
Creighton fired back, “They do if they love their teachers.”
What’s in the Bill?
SB 26 guarantees permanent salary increases for teachers, differentiating between urban, suburban, and rural school districts:

• Urban and Suburban Districts (5,000+ students):

○ $2,500 annual raise for teachers with 3-4 years of experience
○ $5,500 raise for those with five or more years

• Rural Districts (under 5,000 students):

○ $5,000 raise for teachers with 3-4 years of experience
○ $10,000 raise for those with five or more years

The bill also expands the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA), a controversial program that ties pay raises to performance evaluations, potentially allowing some educators to earn six-figure salaries. It also includes state-funded liability insurance for teachers and free pre-kindergarten for their children.

Sen. Tan Parker (R-Flower Mound) called it a milestone moment. “I’m excited. All the teachers in Texas are excited. No other state in the country — Texas itself — has never done something of this magnitude,” Parker said.

The House Showdown
While the Senate vote was unanimous, the bill now moves to the Texas House, where it could face an uphill battle. Funding for the pay raises relies on the Foundation School Program (FSP)—the state’s main source of education funding. This is the statewide budget mechanism that redirects money from wealthier districts in Texas to poorer districts. House lawmakers have yet to signal their full support. West’s interrogation of Creighton on the Senate floor foreshadowed the challenges ahead.
“How are we defining instructional staff? Are we including librarians? Counselors? Special education teachers?” West pressed. “And is this guaranteed money in perpetuity, or will schools be forced to dip into local funds down the line?”
While Creighton remained steadfast, Sen. Phil King (R-Weatherford) turned his attention to how the bill would be reported, calling out the media for what he claimed was rampant misinformation about school finance.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen this level of misinformation floating around about education finance and school choice,” King said, gesturing to the press gallery. “I just hope that people will have the courage and the integrity to not print inaccurate information.”

What’s Next?
Now, all eyes are on the Texas House. If passed, SB 26 would mark the largest teacher pay increase in Texas history. If it stalls, the political blame game could begin—just months ahead of an election cycle where education is shaping up to be a defining issue.