Sen. Kamala Harris has proposed a $315 billion plan to eradicate the teacher pay gap nationwide, the first policy revealed for her 2020 presidential campaign.
The Houston Chronicle reports Harris shared parts of her agenda while campaigning in Houston on Saturday. With the 54-year-old presidential contender's initiative, the average teacher would receive an approximate $13,500 salary increase.
Harris reportedly intends to pay for the hefty $315 billion over a 10-year period, citing loopholes in estate taxes that currently assist the country's wealthy, CNBC reports.
"You can judge a society by the way it treats its children," the California native said during her speech. "And one of the greatest expressions of love that a society can give to its children is educating those children with resources they need."
As it stands, public elementary, middle and high school educational institutions primarily receive funding from local and state governments. The federal government has traditionally provided under 10 percent of its total expenses. Harris' proposal would change this landscape, invigorating the federal government to take charge in what has increasingly grown to be a detrimental disparity for schools and teachers nationwide.
Harris' plan would require the federal government to provide annual funding to support educational expenses, along with local and state funding to close the teacher pay gap affecting those who work at a local versus collegiate level.
Additionally, the 2020 contender is incentivizing the deal, offering an additional $3 to every $1 the state adds to increase its teacher's salaries.
The issue regarding teacher's pay has persisted throughout the years resulting in nationwide protests led by educators themselves. Blavity reported walk-outs in Seattle and Oakland, most recently, with additional reports spanning West Virginia, Kentucky and Arizona in the past year alone.
Harris announced her bid for president on Martin Luther King Day and the 47th anniversary of Shirley Chisholm's historic presidential campaign announcement, as Blavity reported. She made it official in her hometown of Oakland, California, six days later.
Harris is statistically the top presidential contender among Black women; she's the only African American woman and the third woman overall to announce her 2020 candidacy.
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