OEA continues call for Monday walkout after last-minute changes to school funding package

OKLAHOMA CITY (KOKH) — The Oklahoma Education Association says a planned walkout is still on despite teacher pay raises being signed into law Thursday.

Governor Mary Fallin signed three pieces of legislation authorizing a 15- to 18-percent teacher pay raise and funding for the measure. But before the governor could sign the bills, lawmakers voted Thursday to remove approximately $47 million in funding from the package that would have come from a hotel and motel tax.

OEA President Alicia Priest said, "Stunts like these are why Oklahomans lack any trust or confidence in the state legislature."

"What yesterday looked like a positive step forward and a historic downpayment on our children’s future now hangs in the balance as the legislature dismantles the funding needed to solve this crisis they created in the first place," Priest said.

She says the goal of educators has been to avoid a walkout, planned for April 2.

"Because lawmakers continue breaking promises, even promises made less than 24 hours ago, we call on schools to remain closed on Monday so educators can send a clear message at the Capitol: Oklahoma educators won’t stand for these games any longer," Priest said.

The organization has asked lawmakers to give teachers a $10,000 raise and support staff a $5,000 raise. They would like legislators to restore $200 million to public school funding, which has been cut from the budget since 2008. The group would also like to see $213 million for state employee pay raises over three years and $255.9 million in health care funding over the next two years.

Schools and parents have been preparing all week for a potential walkout. On Thursday, Oklahoma City Public Schools and Tulsa Public Schools, the state's two largest school districts, announced they would close April 2.