Sen. Kennedy files bill in North Carolina Senate to boost teacher pay

A new bill filed by State Sen. Michael Garrett Kennedy seeks to provide supplemental funding to support teacher salaries in qualifying local school units, including Guilford County Schools, according to the North Carolina State Senate.

The bill, filed as SB 285 on March 13 during the 2025 regular session, was formally listed with the short title: ‘Teacher Salary Supplement/Guilford Cnty Schs.’

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, the bill authorizes supplemental funds for teacher compensation during the 2025-27 fiscal biennium, specifically including Guilford County Schools as eligible recipients. The State Board of Education will allocate salary supplements to qualifying local school administrative units. These supplements will be determined by local boards, not exceeding $5,000 per state-funded teacher. Eligibility is based on a county’s adjusted market value of taxable property and specific counties like Guilford. The funding distribution considers factors like county tax rates, median incomes, and real property values. Charter schools are encouraged to provide similar supplements. The bill stipulates nonsupplant requirements to prevent units from replacing non-state funds with state funds. Reports on the implementation will be submitted annually, with the act effective July 1, 2025.

Of the two sponsors of this bill, Gladys A. Robinson proposed the most bills (eight) during the 2025 regular session.

Bills in North Carolina follow a multi-step process before becoming law. A lawmaker starts by filing a bill, which is assigned to a committee for review. The bill must be read three times in each chamber. If one chamber changes the bill after the other passes it, both must agree on the final version. Once both chambers approve the same bill, it goes to the governor, who has 10 days (or 30 if the legislature is not in session) to sign, veto, or let it become law without a signature.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.

Garrett graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2007 with a BSBA.

Garrett, a Democrat, was elected to the North Carolina State Senate in 2019 to represent the state’s 27th Senate district, replacing previous state senator Trudy Wade.