Helping Maryland’s counties afford their share of the Blueprint, the landmark plan to revamp the state’s public schools and early childhood programs, will be the No. 1 education issue before the General Assembly in 2024, Senate Majority Leader Nancy J. King said.
The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, passed by the legislature in 2021, increases education funding by $3.8 billion annually for 10 years, with the cost borne by the state, the 23 counties and Baltimore City. Among other provisions, the law requires that all public school teachers be paid at least $60,000 a year starting in 2026. That’s only one of the funding issues that some county officials say could break their budgets.
“We’re hearing from rural counties that they just can’t afford to participate,” said King, D-Montgomery, chair of the Education, Business and Administration Subcommittee. “A lot of it is paying teachers.”
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