GOP Lays Out New Teacher Pay Plan, Faces Backlash

With the clock ticking toward the teacher strike deadline, Republican lawmakers brought out a new plan Thursday to give teachers a raise.

Backlash to this plan was almost immediate on social media. It's called the 60 in 6 Plan. 

It would raise the starting salary for entry-level teachers from $31,000 to $42,000 over six years. An experienced teacher would reach $60,000 in that same time. 

The plan would cost the state more than $700 million over the six years. 

"When fully implemented, it will move Oklahoma from the back of the heap all the way up to the 18th in the country in pay and number three in the country when you adjust for the cost of living," Rep. Michael Rogers, R-Tulsa.

Lawmakers, though, weren't able to layout a way to pay for this plan. The 60 in 6 Plan only includes a pay raise for teachers and doesn't include a raise for school support staff nor money to restore education funding; two of the key demands from teachers threatening to strike. It also doesn't include a raise for public employees. 

On Twitter, the Oklahoma Public Employees Association said the following:

The president of the state's largest teachers' group, the Oklahoma Education Association, called the plan a political stunt and wants real negotiations with lawmakers. 

Only one of the raise plans proposed so far came with a way to pay for it.