Bill > H1054

This bill appropriates funds for salary increases for public school employees and state employees, enhances sick leave benefits, and provides a cost-of-living adjustment for certain retirees, covering the 2026-2027 fiscal year. * **Public School Employees:** * Establishes new monthly salary schedules for teachers and annual salary schedules for principals for the 2026-2027 fiscal year, including supplements for advanced degrees and certifications. * Sets monthly salaries for assistant principals based on the teacher salary schedule plus 19%, with additional supplements for advanced degrees. * Increases annual salaries for central office administrators (superintendents, assistant superintendents, directors, supervisors, finance officers) by 9% for the 2026-2027 fiscal year. * Increases annual salaries for noncertified public school employees by 9% for full-time employees on a 12-month contract, with equitable adjustments for other noncertified staff for the 2026-2027 fiscal year. * Appropriates $939,800,000 from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction for these compensation increases. * **State Employees:** * Provides a 7% legislative salary increase for eligible state-funded employees, effective July 1, 2026, with specific exclusions for local education, community college, and university employees, among others. * Adjusts annual salaries for the Governor, Council of State members, and various executive and judicial branch officials, effective July 1, 2026. * Increases salaries for Clerks of Superior Court and their assistants/deputies, and for magistrates, effective July 1, 2026. * Increases salaries for legislative employees, principal clerks, sergeants-at-arms, and reading clerks, effective July 1, 2026. * Provides a 7% across-the-board salary increase for community college faculty and non-faculty personnel, and for employees of The University of North Carolina (SHRA, EHRA, and NC School of Science and Mathematics), effective July 1, 2026. * Establishes new experience-based salary schedules for correctional officers, youth counselors, youth counselor technicians, youth services behavioral specialists, State Highway Patrol officers, State Bureau of Investigation and Alcohol Law Enforcement officers, probation and parole officers, and juvenile court counselors, effective July 1, 2026. * Appropriates $939,800,000 from the General Fund for the costs associated with these state employee compensation increases. * **Enhanced Sick Leave:** * Requires the State Human Resources Commission to adopt rules by January 1, 2027, for enhanced sick leave benefits for state employees, effective July 1, 2027. These benefits include accrual rates, reinstatement of leave, expanded permissible uses (including for domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking victims), and definitions of immediate family members. * **Retiree Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA):** * Provides a 3% increase to retirement allowances for beneficiaries of the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System, the Consolidated Judicial Retirement System, the Legislative Retirement System, and the Local Governmental Employees' Retirement System whose retirement commenced on or before July 1, 2025, effective July 1, 2026. A prorated increase will be provided for those whose retirement commenced after July 1, 2025, but before June 30, 2026. * Appropriates $250,000,000 from the General Fund to the Reserve for Retiree Cost-of-Living Adjustments for this purpose.