The requirement follows in the footsteps of New Jersey, which in 2020 became the first state to mandate K-12 climate change education across its school districts.

The American Teacher Act would incentivize states to raise their minimum teacher salaries to $60,000 for public K-12 schools through a grant program at the Department of Education. The legislation would also mandate yearly increases congruent to inflation.

Democrats who had objected to the changes and complained that majority Republicans were rushing the legislation through gave a burst of applause after the vote count was announced around 2:30 a.m.

While a vast majority (94%) of K-12 public school principals are generally satisfied, many have lost enthusiasm for the profession.