SB 20-066 Summary

• Creates the "Greatest Resources for Education Are Teachers Act" to distribute grant money to school districts and charter schools for paying salary bonuses to highly effective teachers in low-performing elementary, middle, and junior high schools.

• Establishes a $4 million one-time appropriation from the state education fund, distributed in two 2-year grant cycles beginning in 2021-22, with up to $2 million available per cycle.

• Highly effective teachers must have at least three consecutive years of effective performance evaluations based on objective student growth measures and qualify for bonuses ranging from $3,000 to $12,000 annually depending on whether they transferred from high-performing schools and grade level.

• Requires local education providers to use objective measures of student academic growth for at least 50 percent of teacher and principal performance evaluations to be eligible for grants.

• Mandates the Department of Education submit a report by December 15, 2025, detailing participating schools, bonus amounts, teacher demographics, student academic growth outcomes, and school performance plan types.