Paying teachers

Rod Jetton, speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives, has proposed a plan to increase the minimum salary for teachers to $31,000 a year. Most school districts already exceed the current minimum of $23,000, including all the districts in the Southeast Missourian's coverage area. One district -- Jackson -- has a minimum salary of $31,000. In all, some 400 of the state's 524 districts would have to increase salaries to meet the proposed new minimum.

Jetton says the extra cost would come from increased state funding. The total bill would be in the neighborhood of $60 million.

But some districts have more pressing needs. They would rather, if the state has the wherewithal to increase school funding, to be able to decide how to put the money to the best use.

And, given the election-year spending increases being tossed around, prudent taxpayers have to wonder where all the money is going to come from. Increases in state revenue, which have helped generate surpluses in Missouri's budgets the last few years, might slow significantly or even disappear is the nation's economy goes into an extended slump.

Paying teachers a decent salary should be the goal of every school district. That might be considerably more than the $31,000 minimum proposed by Jetton is some areas where it's difficult to attract good teachers. But in other areas, a decent salary might be less than that. Shouldn't local elected school boards decide how to best spend whatever funding is available to them?