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132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2025
Legislative Document No. 34
S.P. 53 In Senate, January 8, 2025
An Act to Increase the Minimum Salary for Teachers
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on January 6, 2025. Referred to the Committee on
Education and Cultural Affairs pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator PIERCE of Cumberland.
Cosponsored by Speaker FECTEAU of Biddeford and
Senators: BENNETT of Oxford, President DAUGHTRY of Cumberland, LIBBY of
Cumberland, RAFFERTY of York, Representatives: BRENNAN of Portland, KUHN of
Falmouth, MITCHELL of Cumberland, MURPHY of Scarborough.
Page 1 - 132LR0233(01)
1Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
2Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §13406, as amended by PL 2019, c. 343, Pt. UU, §1, is
3 repealed.
4Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA §13407, as amended by PL 2021, c. 441, §1, is repealed.
5Sec. 3. 20-A MRSA §13408 is enacted to read:
6§13408. Minimum salaries beginning in 2026-2027 school year
7 Each school administrative unit shall establish a minimum salary for certified teachers
8 and career and technical education teachers as follows:
91. School year 2026-2027. For the school year starting after June 30, 2026, the
10 minimum salary is $45,000;
112. School year 2027-2028. For the school year starting after June 30, 2027, the
12 minimum salary is $47,500;
133. School year 2028-2029. For the school year starting after June 30, 2028, the
14 minimum salary is $50,000;
154. School year 2029-2030. For the school year starting after June 30, 2029, the
16 minimum salary is $52,500; and
175. School years beginning in or after 2030. For the school year starting after June
18 30, 2030, the minimum salary for certified teachers and career and technical education
19 teachers must increase by multiplying the amount of the salary by the cost-of-living
20 adjustment. For each subsequent year, the previous year's adjusted minimum salary for
21 certified teachers and career and technical education teachers must increase by multiplying
22 the amount of the adjusted minimum salary by the cost-of-living adjustment. For purposes
23 of this subsection, "cost-of-living adjustment" means the Chained Consumer Price Index
24 for the 12-month period ending June 30th of the preceding calendar year divided by the
25 Chained Consumer Price Index for the 12-month period ending June 30th of the calendar
26 year in which the adjustment is effective and "Chained Consumer Price Index" has the same
27 meaning as in Title 36, section 5402, subsection 1.
28 A school administrative unit shall provide to the department annually on or before
29 October 1st the number of certified teachers and career and technical education teachers
30 eligible for incremental salary increases as defined in section 15689, subsection 7‑A,
31 paragraph A.
32Sec. 4. 20-A MRSA §15689, sub-§7-A, as amended by PL 2021, c. 441, §2, is
33 further amended to read:
347-A. Adjustment for minimum teacher salary. Beginning in fiscal year 2020-21
35 2026-27, the commissioner shall, in accordance with this subsection, increase the state
36 share of the total allocation to a qualifying school administrative unit by an amount
37 necessary to achieve the minimum salary for certified teachers and career and technical
38 education teachers established in section 13407 13408.
39 A. As used in this subsection, unless the context otherwise indicates, "qualifying
40 school administrative unit" means a school administrative unit that the commissioner
41 determines to have a locally established salary schedule with a minimum teacher salary
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42 of less than $40,000 $45,000 in school year 2019-2020 2026-2027. As used in this
43 subsection, unless the context otherwise indicates, "incremental salary increases"
44 means the incremental increases in the salaries of certified teachers and career and
45 technical education teachers employed by a qualifying school administrative unit in
46 school year 2019-2020 2026-2027 necessary to meet the minimum salary requirements
47 of section 13407 13408 from fiscal year 2020-21 2026-27 to fiscal year 2022-23 2028-
48 29.
8 B. The commissioner shall allocate the funds appropriated by the Legislature in
9 accordance with the following.
10 (1) The amount of increased funds provided to qualifying school administrative
11 units under this subsection must be the amount necessary to fund the incremental
12 salary increases specified in this subsection.
13 (2) The number of certified teachers and career and technical education teachers
14 eligible for incremental salary increases in a qualifying school administrative unit
15 for a fiscal year must be based on the information supplied to the department
16 pursuant to section 13407 13408 in that fiscal year.
17 (3) The increased funds provided under this subsection must be issued to
18 qualifying school administrative units as an adjustment to the state school subsidy
19 for distribution to the certified teachers and career and technical education
20 teachers. Qualifying school administrative units shall use the payments provided
21 under this subsection to provide salary adjustments to those certified teachers and
22 career and technical education teachers eligible for incremental salary increases.
23 The department shall collect the necessary data to allow the funds to be included
24 in a qualifying school administrative unit's monthly subsidy payments beginning
25 no later than February 1st of each fiscal year.
26 (4) Funding for incremental salary increases in fiscal year 2020-21 2026-27 must
27 be based on data submitted to the department and certified by school administrative
28 units as of October 1, 2019 2025.
29 This subsection is repealed July 1, 2028.
30Sec. 5. Effective date. This Act takes effect June 30, 2026.
31SUMMARY
32 This bill incrementally increases minimum teacher salaries beginning in the 2026-2027
33 school year and provides limited supplemental funding to pay for those increases.
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