House panel adopts amendment and sends substitute-teacher bill to finance panel after debate over $200 minimum

The Minnesota House Education Policy Committee on March 11 adopted an author's A1 amendment to House File 630 and voted to re-refer the bill to the Education Finance Committee after testimony from school leaders, superintendents and union representatives.

Representative Mueller, the bill’s author, said the measure would remove the $200-per-day minimum pay provision that had been required for districts to participate in the short-call substitute pilot and would also convert the pilot into a permanent pathway in statute. "We are looking at the pilot program...the amendment...strikes out being a pilot and says this is the new way of doing substitute teachers," she said.

Kristin Dammer, assistant superintendent for business and administrative services at Moorhead Area Public Schools, testified that the $200-per-day requirement had been a financial barrier for rural districts. Dammer said Moorhead’s student population is about 7,300 and the district employs about 1,300 permanent employees; typical substitute fill rates are roughly 60–65 percent and fell to 52 percent in February, when 26 classrooms remained open, she said. "That was in February, which meant on 1 day 26 classrooms remained open," Dammer said.

Rick Sandstad, superintendent in Alexandria, described daily staffing challenges and urged lawmakers to remove the $200 requirement so districts could expand their substitute pools. "If you want to generate a bill to help schools, gain the kind of information about accusations at other employers, I think that's a little more complex," he said. (Sandstad's broader point in the hearing emphasized local flexibility in setting rates.)

Caitlin Snyder of Education Minnesota urged caution, saying short-call substitutes are limited in training and employment protections and that lowering pay could be perceived as lowering compensation in a period when educators are seeking higher pay. "There’s no other profession in the world where you would solve a shortage by lowering their pay," she said, arguing the pilot should not reduce educator pay.

Committee members discussed regional pay-setting practices, long-term substitute pay formulas and incentive strategies used by districts, including bonuses after sustained assignments. Several members urged the author to work with stakeholders on language that would preserve quality and provide local flexibility. PELSB executive director Dr. Elena Bailey told the committee that PELSB has data on the short-call substitute pilot and that information on participation and outcomes was included in the committee packet.

The committee adopted the A1 amendment and then voted to re-refer House File 630, as amended, to the Education Finance Committee for further consideration.