PHOENIX — A freshman Republican lawmaker who helped shepherd former Gov. Doug Ducey's effort to raise teacher pay to end a 2018 statewide teacher strike is working to boost educator salaries by another $10,000 a year.
And the measure cleared its first hurdle on Monday with a 10-5 vote of the House Appropriations Committee — with most Democrats opposed for a variety of reasons.
House Bill 2800 is designed to address that Arizona teachers remain among the lowest-paid in the nation despite the 20% raise they won after the strike, said Rep. Matt Gress. He said he wants to make Arizona a mecca for teachers by boosting pay well above the national average.
