'Combat pay' instead of teacher merit pay - Governor's team and Democrats may find common ground.

Sacramento Bee ^ | April 20, 2005 | Andy Furillo

[calcowgirl]

The Schwarzenegger administration and Democrats are discussing a possible compromise to the governor's teacher merit pay proposal that would offer incentives to lure good teachers into the state's worst schools.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has called the idea "combat pay." It is terminology that makes some educators cringe, but it is a concept that the governor's opponents also view as possible middle ground in the debate over teacher compensation.

Merit pay for teachers, instead of step raises, was one of four key areas Schwarzenegger outlined in his call for overhauling state government this year. But some political experts see the issue as generating little enthusiasm on the streets among those gathering signatures for a ballot initiative - and one that could be destined for a gubernatorial dumping.

"(Merit pay) doesn't seem to be getting anyone's attention," Republican political strategist Tony Quinn said. "You can see it going away, unless they want to spend a whole lot of money to put it on the ballot, and you get the sense it's something that can be worked out in the Legislature."

It would be the second facet of Schwarzenegger's government overhaul plan to be pulled back. The governor on April 7 dropped a public pension measure.

Citizens to Save California, the business-backed campaign committee that is championing Schwarzenegger's agenda, is paying for the signature-gathering effort to get merit pay on the ballot. But the merit petitions are generating just 75 cents a signature on the street, half the rate the governor's redistricting and teacher tenure initiatives are getting, according to professional gatherers. The committee, meanwhile, is paying $2 a name plus bonuses on Schwarzenegger's budget-control measure.

[EdReform]

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