HomeLocalPonca PostSenate passes bill to raise teachers salaries but fails to pass bill to fund raises.Senate passes bill to raise teachers salaries but fails to pass bill to fund raises.Thu, March 15, 2018 by Lyman JamesSHARE NOW Late last night the State Senate passed a bill that would provide a 12.7 percent teacher pay raise, but, they failed to acquire enough votes for the bill that would fund those raises.Senate Bill 133 would provide a 12.7 percent teacher pay raise. The bill passed with a 35-11 vote.House Bill 1033, however, failed to receive the required 36 votes to pass. Lawmakers said HB 1033 would have generated $450 million in revenue by increasing taxes on cigarettes and fuel and raising the gross production tax.The Oklahoma Education Association has urged people to contact their senators and tell them to vote against the proposed plan saying funding this plan means taking a revenue stream intended for health care.Oklahoma House Bill 1033 would be $1/pack tax increase on cigarettes $0.06 increase on motor diesel & gasoline and GPT increase to 4% for first 36 months of production. The cigarette tax money would go towards teacher pay the first year, then the healthcare fund the year after that. Some are saying that these taxes will eat up the raise for teachers.
