Gov. Janet Mills (D) has continued to tout provisions of the $500 million supplemental budget in the weeks since she signed it into law.
On Monday, the governor attended an event with Senate Majority Leader Teresa Pierce to celebrate the inclusion of a measure raising Maine’s minimum teacher salary over the course of the next three years.
Under Part SSS of the supplemental budget, the minimum salary for teachers statewide will be increased from $40,000 to $50,000 by the fall of 2029.
This will be done incrementally over the course of the next few years, going up to $45,000 in the 2027-2028 academic year, $47,500 in 2028-2029, and finally to $50,000 in 2029-2030.
According to the National Education Association (NEA), Maine has an average starting salary of $44,152 for the 2024-25 fiscal year. Coming in 41st nationwide, this was one of the lowest in the country.
The average teacher’s salary fell more towards the middle of the pack, coming in 29th at $65,621.
Senate Majority Leader Pierce led a push in early 2025 to increase teacher salaries, citing her support of a 2019 measure raising the baseline to $40,000.
A 2023 measure raising the minimum salary to $50,000 received unanimous approval in both the House and Senate before being left unfunded on the Appropriations Table.
“As the daughter of a longtime public school teacher, and as someone who raised five daughters who attended public schools in Maine, I know firsthand how important teachers are and the many challenges they have to overcome every day,” said Gov. Mills during an April 27 ceremonial signing event.
“This salary increase is just another small step toward finally paying teachers what they deserve,” said Mills.
“When we think back to those who most influenced our lives,” said Pierce, “chances are one of them was a teacher. But today, too many current and future teachers struggle to see how they can afford to stay in their careers.”
“With this critical investment, we are ensuring that the next generation of educators is ready and willing to inspire our students,” said Pierce.
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This is just one of many policy changes included in the state’s new supplemental budget, which passed through the Legislature along partisan lines earlier this month.
Among the provisions included in the final version of the budget was a new tax on Mainers earning over $1 million, a bell-to-bell cellphone ban in public schools, free community college, funding for “reproductive health care” providers, as well as a plan to send $300 checks to many Maine residents, among other things.
[RELATED: $500 Million Supplemental Budget Signed by Gov. Janet Mills After Partisan Passage]
While many Democratic lawmakers have praised the bill, Republicans have criticized it on several counts, including for dipping into the state’s emergency fund, also known as the Rainy Day Fund, to cover the cost of some of these initiatives.
During debate on the chamber floor, numerous Republican-backed amendments were raised and rejected before the final version of the legislation was passed and sent to the governor’s desk for a signature.
$50,000 so they can teach our kids everything but what they should be teaching them. No thanks. Our schools have degraded to nothing more than liberal education camps