SC teachers to see raise in minimum pay in House budget proposal. Here’s how much
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- SC House plan raises starting teacher pay to $50,500, up from $48,500.
- Increasing salary schedule by $2,000 per cell would cost $150 million annually.
- State budget faces allocation pressure from tax cuts, roads and health.
Teachers starting their career next year in South Carolina would see a minimum $50,500 salary, under a spending plan proposal approved by the House budget committee.
The House Ways and Means Committee approved a $15.4 billion spending plan, which now goes to the full House for its consideration on the week of March 9.
Raising the starting teacher pay to $50,500 and increasing each cell of the minimum teacher salary schedule for $2,000 would cost the state $150 million more a year. The $50,500 starting salary, up from $48,500, was recommended by Gov. Henry McMaster and Superintendent of Education Ellen Weaver.
“This figure would continue to ensure that all teachers in South Carolina are paid above the minimum salary in our neighboring states, a primary reason a record number of teachers living in North Carolina and Georgia are crossing the border to teach in South Carolina each day,” said Patrick Kelly, the director of governmental affairs for Palmetto State Teachers Association.
The minimum salary schedule bases teacher pay on years of experience and education level.
Currently, 45 school districts out of the state’s 72 traditional school districts have a starting salary below $50,500 a year.
When putting together the state’s budget for the fiscal year, which begins July 1, budget writers had about $939 million in annual dollars to allocate. However, some of that includes unspent revenue from last year’s discussions. The amount available also will get eaten up by planned tax cuts, including a portion planned for an income tax cut.
“While those numbers are awesome and kind of reflect how South Carolina’s economy has been doing recently, and has continued,” Ways and Means Chairman Bruce Bannister said. “We do have some large funding lines that will take those numbers down very quickly, tax cuts being the top one, roads and infrastructure and health care. Those three are very large expenses, fortunately covered by our growing economy, but it does then make all the rest of the things we want to do tighter.”
This story was originally published February 18, 2026 at 3:50 PM.
