Oklahoma Senate leaders say the state Teachers Retirement System fund, or TRS, is projected to yield $454 million in revenue contributions for fiscal year 2027, after billions in investments over the last two decades to help grow the once-struggling fund.
So, the Senate's education plan redirects $254 million — more than half of those projected contributions — to bolster Oklahoma's education outcomes, while capping future TRS deposits at $200 million.
Senate Appropriations Chair Chuck Hall, R- Perry, helped explain the funding idea during a press conference on Tuesday.
"The legislature and the taxpayer have invested over $7 billion in retirement benefits through an apportionment of sales tax, use tax and income tax," Hall said. "When our Senate education policy leaders began talking with me about our state's pressing needs and how those needs could be funded, I empowered our appropriations team to be creative in finding sources of funding without growing government, if at all possible."
The plan, Hall said, moves around existing state dollars to meet Oklahoma's Education needs. He said no teacher retirement benefits will be cut and that the TRS will still be funded to grow.
"The system should be strong, and it is strong, and there is no reason to think that it won't stay that way," Hall said. "And we'll be able to fund these good policy decisions that the Senate will be making very shortly."
The full Senate Education Plan, as proposed
Senators say they'll use the funds to give teachers a pay raise, increase investments in literacy programs, raise the funding cap for a parental choice tax credit and make other smaller investments.
While Hall parsed out the dollars and cents for reporters, Senate Education Chair Adam Pugh, R- Edmond, advocated for the legislative priorities that would necessitate the spending.
Pugh said the plan maintains revenue neutrality while allowing for significant investments into Oklahoma's Education system.
"It starts with the men and women in the front of the classroom every single day," he said. "So we are advocating for a $2,500 across the board pay raise."
The pay raise is for teachers at schools that receive state money through the public school funding formula — the vast majority of school districts — and is expected to cost about $117 million annually.
Another $50 million is set aside for Pugh's own Senate Bill 1778, known as the Strong Readers Act, which aims to bolster child literacy rates with early intervention programs. Also among the highest proposed allocations are $29.8 million for the school funding formula directly and $25 million for an increase to the parental school choice tax credit funding limit.
Here is the full breakdown:
House Appropriations Chair Trey Caldwell responded to the proposed Senate plan in a press release hours after its unveiling. He said the House Republican Caucus is wary of any proposals "negatively impacting" teacher pension funds.
"We have concerns about any proposal that negatively impacts the Teachers' Retirement System (TRS)," Caldwell said. "The House has consistently supported commonsense retirement reforms to help experienced teachers return to the classroom, which the Senate has repeatedly rejected. We want to see the full details of Senator Pugh's plan as we work to strengthen our schools without compromising our educators' long-term stability."
He said the House looks forward to working with the Senate through normal budget processes to help move Oklahoma's education forward.
