BATON ROUGE — Lawmakers have until 5 p.m. June 23 to vote on Gov. Jeff Landry's executive order that would move $168 million from public school funding to pay one-time stipends for teachers.

The plan pulls money from the Minimum Foundation Program (MFP), the funding formula for public schools, and uses it to pay a one-time $2,000 stipend to each teacher. Louisiana has about 51,000 public school teachers.

Landry signed the executive order after multiple attempts to raise teacher pay failed to get past voters or the legislature in previous years. The order is aimed at raising the average salary of a Louisiana teacher above $55,000 a year.

"This executive order focuses on teachers who are in the classroom and those support staff who are supporting those teachers and supporting those students," Landry said.

Three groups representing school boards, principals, and superintendents do not support the plan. The Louisiana School Boards Association, the Louisiana Association of Principals, and the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents and Administrators asked in a joint statement to meet with legislative leadership to understand the potential impacts of the order.

Karen Triche, Executive Director of the Louisiana Association of Principals, said the funding cut would affect more than just classroom teachers.

"It's not going to counselors, it's not going to therapists. It's not going to assistant principals, principals, or superintendents. It is going to the classroom teachers, but the deficiency will hurt the classroom teacher," Triche said.

"Education and educators need to be a priority, and they aren't," Triche said.

Louisiana Federation of Teachers President Larry Carter said last week that his organization has not taken a stance on the executive order, but heard from leaders who said smaller districts likely couldn't financially afford it.

"They're already talking about the potential of layoffs, maybe even programming, and that is of concern to all of us," Carter said.
When asked how teachers could get a pay raise without the executive order, Triche pointed to other options.

"EBR just voted to give their teachers a pay raise. Other monies can be found to do the things that are being done," Triche said.

As of now, there is no word from the governor's office on the summit request made by the three educational organizations.