Kentucky schools may see more dollars per student, but no teacher raises and millions in pension funds in limbo, if Senate Republicans have their way.

Unveiled Wednesday evening, the Senate's budget calls for a guaranteed $4,161 SEEK rate — a record dollar amount, but less than a record when adjusted for inflation.

The SEEK rate — a guaranteed base funding rate that includes state and local dollars — is currently at $4,000 per student.

"This will be the highest SEEK per pupil of any of the three budgets seen thus far," said Sen. Chris McDaniel, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations and Revenue Committee.

But that may be overshadowed by how the budget handles teachers' pensions.

After slashing how much the budget allocates to the teachers' retirement system from over $700 million a year to less than $200 million, the budget proposes a deal.

That $500 million a year is threatened to be withheld from the teachers' pension system until undisclosed "structural changes" are made. It makes up the majority of the state's obligation to cover teachers' retirements.

If changes, including moving new teachers to the hybrid model that sparked widespread district-closing teacher protests in 2018, are not made by Aug. 1, those millions go to a different pension system. The hybrid model blends components of a traditional pension system and a 401(k)-style retirement plan.

The House's version of the budget fully funded teacher pensions, allocating over $700 million a year for them.

"KY teachers & school personnel are working day & night to teach kids...yet you’re trying to do this when they can’t get into the Capital?!" KY 120 United, a grassroots group primarily focused on pensions and public education, tweeted during the appropriations committee meeting.

The Capitol is closed to nonessential personnel to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Instead, KY 120 United members drove around the Capitol, honking in protest.

"We’re watching," they tweeted.

The budget, crafted by Senate Republicans, also axes raises for teachers pitched by Beshear and included in the House budget.

It still provides enough money to cover the $2,000 raises for teachers that Beshear ran on — but dictates that money to go to raises for school staff. Teachers do not get a raise.

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"We did provide the full amount that the governor requested for the teacher supplement that (Beshear) provided for," McDaniel explained. "However, what we do is direct a 1% raise for the classified staff."

The House budget called for all school staff — from teachers to custodians — to get a 1% raise.

The jump in SEEK dollars comes with a few caveats. About $6 per student — about $3.9 million across the state — needs to go to textbooks.

Another $10 per student would needed to be saved until state revenue is shored up, McDaniel said.

"The most important thing that we can do is provide stability in a time when there is not as much stability," McDaniel said.

Quickly skimming through only the changes the Senate made to the House budget, McDaniel did not touch on transportation or school safety, signalling their funding rates did not change.

After passing the committee with zero no votes and only one pass, the budget heads to the full Senate. Lawmakers acknowledged it would likely land in a conference committee — when House and Senate members cannot agree on a bill and hash it out together.

The coronavirus pandemic is sure to shift the budget outlook, lawmakers said Wednesday. Skyrocketing unemployment numbers and maintaining a COVID-19 hotline are likely to impact tax revenue and expenses.

"We really need to take the time to understand that" as lawmakers move forward with the budget, Senate Minority Leader Morgan McGarvey said as he passed on his vote.

Reach Olivia Krauth at okrauth@courierjournal.com or 502-582-4471, and on Twitter at @oliviakrauth. Support strong local journalism by subscribing: courier-journal.com/subscribe.