GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Lawmakers in Michigan continue to explore ways to address the ongoing teacher shortage, especially in the short term.
It's an issue, some believe, has been boiling over in our state for quite some time.
"I mean, the reality is that Michigan has done a very poor job for, you know, frankly, decades now, in terms of encouraging and giving people reason to want to get into the teaching profession," said Robert McCann, executive director ofThe K-12 Alliance of Michigan.
Lawmakers, like State Rep. Matt Koleszar (D-Plymouth), understand something needs to be done.
“It is an issue that every state representative in the state is dealing with," he said. "It is an issue that is nonpartisan. This is about getting something done for public school systems to have the best at their craft back in the schools.”
One of the newest possible solutions is HB 4752. It incorporates increased salaries for retirees who want to return to schools, whether that be as a teacher, coach, social worker and more.
However, state law currently requires those retired educators to wait nine months before they can legally return to campus in the capacity.
READ MORE: Michigan Department of Education launches program to address teacher shortage
“A lot of the retirees were telling me, 'Look, Matt, I just retired in June and want to come back and sub part time, and I can't do that,'" Koleszar said. "I heard another person tell me, 'Matt, I was the football coach for the last 23 years. I'm retiring from teaching, but I would still like to be the varsity football coach, and I can't do that.'”
Koleszar inquired with the Office of Retirement Service about the need for a nine-month waiting window. In his words, the office told Koleszar "they would lose the tax-exempt status of the pension system with the IRS" if they just let people go back to work without a wait period.
In other words, you must show you've actually retired if you want to start collecting a pension.
However, as McCann explained, Michigan is the only state with such a law.
“The Office of Retirement Services made a claim to that regard earlier this year and, when questioned about it, admitted that they don't have any basis for that to be true," McCann said. "If there is a concern about the IRS coming in and investigating that, then why haven't they done that in the 49 other states already? The reality is that they haven’t.”
A prior version of the bill, passed by the state House of Representatives in June, was ready to effectively erase that waiting window by offering retirees up to $10,100 per school year, or up to $20,200 overall.
Since the school year resets Jan. 1, it essentially broke down to a cap of $10,100 per semester if a retired educator came back to work in both the fall and the spring.
The latest version of HB 4752 increases that number. Now, retirees could earn up to $15,100 per school year or up to $30,200 overall.
Koleszar sponsored the bill.
“I've heard from people all over the state that are retiring from education but still want to have an active role in their space," he said. "This would enable them to do that.”
While McCann sees this as a move in the right direction, he hopes lawmakers can either get rid of the earning cap or the waiting window altogether.
“You're telling someone that, while you've earned your retirement, we want you to come back but we can only pay you even below what we're paying substitute teachers inside of our classrooms," he said. "It's not an encouraging argument to make to get someone to give up their retirement that they've well earned and come back and work again in our schools.”
Koleszar told FOX 17 they are investigating to see if there's any wiggle room to shorten the waiting window, but the compensation amount is less flexible.
"At some point, you do have to put a cap," Koleszar said.
In the initial stages, HB 4752 has overwhelming support on both sides of the political aisle. It passed with a 100-8 vote, or more than 92 percent support, in the House.
Now, it heads to the Senate, where Koleszar hopes it passes with immediate effect, so once the governor signs it, interested retirees can get right back to work.
