ATLANTA – State Representative Tangie Herring (D-Macon) recently introduced House Bill 333, which would require annual updates to the state’s minimum salary schedule for elementary and secondary educators to account for inflation.
“The cost of living has risen so dramatically that, even with pay increases, the buying power of a teacher’s base salary is now thousands of dollars less than it was 17 years ago,” said Rep. Herring. “As a former teacher, I didn’t enter the profession to get rich—I did it to change lives. But no teacher should have to work a second job or struggle as part of the working poor just to stay in the classroom. Rising costs are eroding already low salaries, making it harder for teachers to do the job they love. If we want them to support our kids, we must support them. That’s why I followed through on my campaign promise to stand with teachers by filing this bill. I’m also proud to have won both a competitive primary and general election, in part because of my strong support for public education and teachers. The bill has already earned the support of a number of my colleagues in the General Assembly, and together, we are committed to making sure our teachers are valued and fairly compensated.”
Rep. Herring filed HB 333 after data from the National Education Association suggests Georgia ranks 20th in the country on average teacher salaries.
“We cannot accept being middle of the pack,” added Rep. Herring. “Our teachers deserve to live in the number one state to do business AND the number one state to work. This legislation is in line with efforts to offset inflationary pressures in other parts of our economy. It just makes sense to relieve that same pressure for our teachers.”
Before serving in the Georgia General Assembly, Rep. Herring was a classroom teacher for 28 years.
HB 333 has been assigned to the House Education Committee, where Rep. Herring will advocate for the legislation’s passage during the 2025 legislative session.
The full text of HB 333 may be found here.
Representative Tangie Herring represents the citizens of District 145, which includes portions of Bibb and Monroe counties. She was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2024 and currently serves on the Code Revision, Economic Development and Tourism and Urban Affairs committees.
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