Law change could delay collective bargaining

• State funding is directly tied to student enrollment, so districts work with an estimate until enrollment is finalized.

Why it matters: Some districts may not be able to come to an agreement about teacher pay until they have their official enrollment count and confirmed state funding level.

How it works: State law requires schools to negotiate salary, wages, and related benefits, including health and retirement benefits and paid time off.

• Districts and teachers have two months to reach a deal from when the bargaining window opened Sept. 15.
• After reaching a tentative agreement, bargaining committees usually take it to their members for ratification.
• Then, districts must hold two public meetings — the first at least three days after reaching the tentative agreement and the next at least three days after that.

Threat level: Jennifer Smith-Margraf, vice president of the Indiana State Teachers Association, said more districts could end up in mediation this year, not necessarily because of disagreements but because they might run out of time to finalize a deal.

• "You're asking for people to work through a lot of steps in 45 days," she said. "If it gets backed up, it doesn't mean it's not going well."

Of note: It's too early to know what kind of pay raise teachers will see or how many districts will be able to give raises this year.

• But some have said their budgets may be tight, due to declining enrollment, rising costs and changes to start funding.

What they're saying: "Statewide, it's gotten off to a positive start," Smith-Margraf said. "It's pretty early to have many agreements and know what those look like, mainly because of the count date moving."

The intrigue: With the passage of Senate Enrolled Act 486 this year, lawmakers eliminated requirements that school administrators regularly meet with union representatives outside of the contract negotiation period to discuss non-bargainable topics like school curriculum, hiring and retention, student discipline, class size and school safety.

• Those opposed to the legislation said it could leave teachers with few options to make their voices heard, short of going on strike.
• Smith-Margraf said people don't always connect that teachers' working conditions — things administrators used to have to talk with them about — are also students' learning conditions.
• "We have more than 1,000 openings on Sept. 20," she said, referencing the state Department of Education's job bank. "Clearly, we have an educator shortage and we need to be taking steps to fix that instead of exacerbating it."

The other side: The bill's sponsor, Sen. Linda Rogers, R-South Bend, said it was about "flexibility" and eliminated "outdated mandates."