A Texas Senate committee gave unanimous approval Thursday to a bill giving across-the-board pay raises to public school teachers, the first step forward for a top goal of lawmakers in both political parties.

SB 26 expands the Teacher Inventive Allotment (TIA) a merit-based pay program that gives bonuses to top-performing teachers based on academic growth. Under SB 26, 50% of teachers in a district can participate in the teacher incentive program, compared to the current cap of 33%.

Sen. Brandon Creighton filed a bill Tuesday aimed at increasing pay for Texas teachers. More experienced teachers could get a bump of up to $10,000.

Last school year, the average teacher in Texas made thousands of dollars less than teachers in other states. A nearly $5 billion bill filed Tuesday in the Legislature seeks to provide across-the-board raises and put more money toward bonuses.

Under the roughly $5 billion proposal, public school teachers would be guaranteed raises in their third and fifth years in the classroom. The measure now heads to the full Senate.

Texas lawmakers on Thursday are expected to debate an across-the-board raise for the state’s experienced educators.

The proposal comes as public school teachers in Texas are leaving the profession in droves and many districts are trying to make up budget shortfalls.

A recent budget analysis noted the Texas Senate’s voucher bill could affect the fund if it leads students and teachers to leave public schools.

Read more For the first time since Gov. Greg Abbott declared raising teacher pay an emergency item, the Senate laid out exactly what new teacher pay guidelines would look like.

A Texas Senate committee has voted to advance Senate Bill 26, a comprehensive bill that would increase teacher pay after public comment on Thursday.