Bill > HB944

This bill establishes a "Matching Grants for Teachers Plan Fund" in the state treasury to help school districts increase teacher salaries by matching funds that districts withdraw from their reserves. Under the plan, the state will provide matching grants to school districts that use their own reserves to raise teacher pay, with each district eligible to receive up to $1 million annually. To qualify, a school district must deposit at least $100,000 into its reserves and cannot deplete its reserves below legally required levels. The bill specifies that districts must use any interest earned from various funds to supplement teacher salaries and cannot use the matching grants to simply replace existing salary spending. The state treasurer will manage the fund, and any unspent money will not revert to the general revenue fund at the end of the biennium. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education will administer the program and can create rules and regulations to implement the matching grant system, with the goal of providing financial support to help school districts increase teacher compensation.

https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB944&year=2025&code=R