Bill Description: House Bill 656 revises Idaho’s Career Ladder so that teachers who have been previously certified and move to Idaho from another state can be placed higher on the Ladder when they are hired.
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Does the bill finance education based on the student rather than the institution? (+) Conversely, does the bill finance education based on an institution or system? (-)
House Bill 656 would increase ongoing spending in the General Fund by an estimated $2,086,500. The majority of this funding (approximately $2,017,000) would be allocated to salaries and benefits for teachers who move to Idaho from out of state. The remaining $69,500 would be allocated to salaries and benefits for administrators who return to the classroom. By appropriating additional funding for the Career Ladder, an administratively complex salary-allocation schedule that is part of Idaho’s public education system, House Bill 656 finances education based on the system rather than students.
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Does the bill decrease barriers to entry for teachers and other education professionals or services, thus incentivizing entrepreneurship and increasing the supply of options for education services in the marketplace? (+) Conversely, does the bill create barriers to entry into the education marketplace? (-)
As Idaho Freedom staff have written previously, Idaho’s “Career Ladder is a salary-allocation schedule that defines how much money the state will give to each school district for a teacher with a given level of experience and education. … Teachers move to higher rungs the longer they work in the district and by meeting the applicable performance criteria, such as having a master’s degree.”
Under the current system, experienced teachers who move to Idaho from another state must start over at square one on the Career Ladder. The same is true of administrators who return to the classroom. House Bill 656 would amend this procedure so that these teachers start on the rung of the Career Ladder that corresponds to their years of experience and satisfaction of performance criteria. By doing this, House Bill 656 removes a barrier to entry into the teaching profession and could attract more highly qualified teachers to Idaho.
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