Still, when we talk about initiatives from the early 90's, we have to remember that Tennessee wasn't in such dire economic straits back then. Essentially, the BEP attempts to equalize state money going into each district based on that district's needs, regardless of where the tax money originated. Poor counties pay less, while prosperous counties pay more. There have been lawsuits filed in order to force Nashville to include salaries in the distribution program, but with no success. Now a coalition of smaller districts is pushing the state to reconsider the issue.
Larger districts disagree.
According to representatives from Nashville, Memphis, Chattanooga, and Knoxville, allocating salaries through the BEP would devastate their budgets. They contend that the BEP has done its job well in getting needed money into poor, rural counties, but it should not be used to benchmark salaries for teachers across the state. While I am all for teachers getting the pay they deserve for their hard work, I really have to agree with the argument, especially in light of Tennessee's current economic problems. If you have a username and password, Log In here. Get it off your chest at Streetmail's message board.