Brief Description: Providing salary bonuses for individuals certified by the national board for professional teaching standards.

Sponsors: By House Committee on Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives Barlow, McCoy, Hunter, Seaquist, Eddy, Fromhold, Ormsby, Sells and Morrell).

House Committee on Education
House Committee on Appropriations
Senate Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education
Senate Committee on Ways & Means

Background:

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) is a national, nonprofit organization that has developed standards for highly accomplished teaching and a voluntary system to certify teachers who meet those standards. There are also NBPTS certificates for librarians and school counselors. Funding is provided through federal and private sources to assist candidates with the application fee. Since 1999, state funding has been provided through the appropriations act for a bonus for NBPTS-certified staff. The 2005-07 biennial budget provides an annual bonus of $3,500. The bonus program has not been created in statute. As of January 2007, there were 1,310 NBPTS-certified instructional staff in Washington.

Summary:

Instructional staff with NBPTS certification receive a bonus for each year they maintain the certification. For the 2007-08 school year, the bonus is $5,000. The amount increases annually by inflation.

The NBPTS-certified staff in an instructional assignment in a school where at least 70 percent of the students qualify for federal free and reduced lunch receive an additional $5,000 bonus.

Bonuses are paid in a lump sum and are in addition to other compensation. They are not included in state salary limitations for certificated instructional staff, nor are they included for the purposes of calculating pension benefits.

Votes on Final Passage:

House   95   2
Senate   45   0   (Senate amended)
House   93   2   (House concurred)

Effective: July 22, 2007