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September 15, 2009 Jay Finegan, 287-1445
Rep. McFadden Named to Commission Studying Teachers’ Pay

AUGUSTA – State Rep. Howard McFadden has been appointed to the Study Commission Regarding Teachers’ Compensation, which was established by the Legislature in June. The appointment, which takes effect immediately, was announced recently by House Speaker Hannah Pingree.

“I’m pleased to be named to this commission,” said Rep. McFadden (R-Dennysville), a third-term legislator who serves on the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee. “The goal here is to ensure that teachers are paid at rates that are commensurate with their experience, education and professional responsibilities. Teachers play a vital role in the development of our workforce, which is critical to Maine’s economic future.”

Rep. McFadden, a retired school administrator, is one of only four legislators on the commission. The other members include a teacher, a school administrator and one human resources professional from the private sector with expertise in compensation.

The commission is charged with investigating conditions affecting teachers’ compensation in Maine, including salaries and benefits. According to the implementing legislation, LD 522, teachers’ incomes here have not kept pace with those in other states, despite the enactment of a minimum teachers’ salary law and huge increases in General Purpose Aid for local schools in recent years.

The commission will study all issues surrounding teachers’ compensation. The group will examine the effects on compensation of the Essential Programs and Services funding system for public education, including the elements of labor market adjustments, student-teacher ratios and the salary differential based on differences in cost of living by region. The commissioners also will explore the effects on teachers’ salaries of the minimum-salary law and the existing system of state subsidies for substandard salaries.

Other issues that the commission must explore include: the effects of inflation on teachers’ salaries; factors relating to the age, experience, recruitment and retention of teachers; and collective bargaining alternatives in determining salaries and benefits at the local school level.

The commission will have to move quickly. No later than December 1, 2009, it must report its findings and recommendations to the Legislature’s Education and Cultural Affairs Committee, which will be empowered to submit legislation regarding teacher compensation to be considered during the Legislature’s second session, which begins in January.