Leaders of the Republican-controlled North Carolina legislature on Tuesday announced details of a tentative budget agreement, including a 7 percent pay raise for teachers in public schools, that could end a monthlong stalemate that has exposed a breach between Republican conservatives and moderates in the state.
Legislative leaders announced some details of the $21.3 billion spending plan in an afternoon news conference in Raleigh, the capital. Most notably, they highlighted the $282 million earmarked for teacher salary increases. Phil Berger, the president pro tem of the Senate, said the money would raise North Carolina’s average pay for public teachers to 32nd in the nation from 46th.
Mr. Berger and Speaker Thom Tillis of the House, in a joint news release, said it amounted to “the largest teacher pay raise in state history without raising taxes.”
But a number of analysts said Tuesday that they had a less-than-clear picture of where the state would get the $282 million. The answer is likely to be found in the text of the compromise bill, which was expected to be released on Wednesday.
Low teacher pay has become an embarrassment in North Carolina, a state proud of its commitment to quality public education. But finding the money for the raises has been particularly vexing since last year, when Republican lawmakers, who hold full control of state government for the first time since Reconstruction, approved sweeping tax changes, including an income-tax cut that is expected to reduce state revenue by $680 million this year, according to an analysis by the state’s Legislative Services Office.