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Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee signed a new bill into law that would free teachers from paying mandatory union dues and increase their pay.
Republicans in the state legislature have tried to remove the mandatory union fees for years.
The Teacher Paycheck Protection Act was passed on May 18 and raises the minimum salary of teachers to $50,000 a year by 2026 from $35,000 and their unions are now forbidden to forcefully deduct contributions from their paychecks.
Senate Bill 281 passed the Senate 25–6 on March 30 before it was passed in the House.
The salary increases would be gradually raised to the minimum cap for the 2026–27 school year.
“The Teacher Paycheck Protection Act provides the largest salary increase in Tennessee history and ensures union dues are no longer collected by school districts, giving teachers control of their own hard-earned paycheck, said Lee.
“I thank the General Assembly for their continued partnership to support Tennessee teachers and ensure taxpayer dollars are used to educate students, not fund politics.”
The governor said that the latest pay increase made the Volunteer State “a top ten state for teacher pay.”
The legislation was sponsored by Tennessee Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson (R-Franklin) and House Majority Leader William Lamberth (R-Portland).
“Teachers are tasked with the incredibly important job of educating the next generation,” Johnson said.
“This legislation recognizes the importance of teachers’ work by raising their pay and protecting their paychecks. It will also enhance the quality of our education system by helping attract and retain talented teachers.”
Another sponsor of the bill was state Sen. Bill Powers (R-Clarksville), who said it would help “mitigate teacher shortages.”
The bill was backed by the conservative organization, Americans for Prosperity Tennessee, which had backed the passage of the bill through the legislature.
“The Paycheck Protection Act will increase teachers salaries and prevent automatic deductions from their paychecks,” said Americans for Prosperity Tennessee State Director Tori Venable.
“We thank Gov. Lee for putting these proposals forwards and every member of the legislature who voted to prioritize students and teachers over unions.”
The state teachers union has long been criticized over its left-wing political activism by lawmakers in the state.
Tennessee Republicans have been passing legislation over the past few years targeting transgender ideology and the availability of obscene books in schools across the state.
The Tennessee Education Association (TEA), the state’s largest teacher union, donated half a million dollars to political candidates in 2018, reported the Center Square.
State Republicans have called the TEA a biased political organization, which donated $529,000 to candidates out of its $10.9 million in expenses in 2018.
The union reportedly held total assets of $11.5 million, with $9.2 million in annual revenue that year.
The TEA acted as a player over highly contested political issues, with left-wing takes on issues ranging from pandemic lockdown policies to charter schools, much to the irritation of the Republican-held state legislature.
It also opposed a 2021 law banning the teaching of Critical Race Theory in the classroom and has steadfastly fought the creation of charter schools.
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