Kentucky House Approves Education Funding Increase, Excludes Universal Pre-K and Teacher Raises

The spending plan emphasizes local control over teacher pay and does not include Governor Beshear's proposed universal pre-K and guaranteed pay raises.

The Republican-led Kentucky House has passed a two-year state spending plan that significantly increases funding for K-12 education but does not include funding for universal pre-K or guaranteed teacher pay raises, as proposed by Democratic Governor Andy Beshear.
Governor Beshear's proposal included more than $2.5 billion in additional funding for public education, including a guaranteed 11% pay raise for teachers and funding to provide preschool for every Kentucky 4-year-old.
The House plan emphasizes local control over teacher pay, encouraging school districts to use additional state funding to award salary increases, with the size of raises to be determined by local administrators.
The budget plan includes a substantial increase in per-pupil funding under the state’s main funding formula for K-12 schools and proposes covering 100% of student transportation costs in the second year of the biennium.
The House's actions are part of the process to craft the state's budget for the next two fiscal years, with the focus now shifting to the GOP-dominated Senate, which will put its imprint on the spending plan.