Cobb County teachers and bus drivers could see pay raises

Teachers and other non-temporary employees in the Cobb County School District could see a nice bump in their paychecks this summer.

The district's proposed $1.4 billion budget for fiscal year 2023 includes raises ranging from 8.5% to 13.10% for educators, custodians, bus drivers, social workers and other employees.

• Cobb County schools has allocated about $86.8 million in its general fund to accommodate the raises, district documents show.

State of play: Cobb's raises come as educators and other staff members continue to feel the mental strain of teaching students during a pandemic.

Context: The proposed raises follow the Georgia General Assembly's approval of $2,000 raises for teachers backed by Gov. Brian Kemp.

• Cobb Superintendent Chris Ragsdale extended that to include the district's full- and part-time employees for this month's payroll, the district said.
• The $2,000 raises were part of Kemp's 2018 campaign promise to give educators a $5,000 raise. More than half of that promise — $3,000 — was approved in 2019, according to the AJC.

Of note: So far, one other metro school district — Gwinnett — has announced that some of its employees would get raises. Teachers would also get a $2,000 cost-of-living boost, the AJC adds.

What we're watching: The Cobb school district will hold public hearings on May 19 so residents can provide feedback on the proposed budget.

• The Cobb Board of Education still has to approve the budget, which would go into effect on July 1.