Photo via Metro

Mayor John Cooper this morning announced his administration's plan to give Metro teachers a 3 percent pay raise, following through on a promise made earlier this year by his predecessor David Briley.

In July, Briley announced that teachers would receive an additional 3 percent cost-of-living adjustment in January, on top of the 3 percent raise they received in the current Metro budget. But it wasn't clear how the funding would work and how it would truly be recurring. Cooper's office says in a release to media that "the $7.5 million of funding required for the adjustment will be sourced from excess MNPS fund balance, of which $2.5 million has come from MDHA," adding that "the adjustment requires Council approval and will go before the Board of Education in December."

“Nashville’s teachers are our most important resource when it comes to public education, and we’re keeping an important promise made to our hard-working educators,” Cooper said in a written statement. “We still have work to do in understanding how to better attract and retain teachers in our school system. I look forward to the results of the expert compensation study currently underway that will help us identify long-term solutions for improving teacher compensation.”

Cooper's announcement comes as Metro faces a budget crisis. Concerns about the city's finances prompted the Cooper administration to try to tamp down fears among Metro workers concerned about their jobs.

In a letter to Metro employees last week, Metro Finance Director Kevin Crumbo wrote: “The Administration is evaluating numerous opportunities for revenue enhancements and cost reductions to balance the budget, but no plan is underway for a widespread reduction in workforce."

At-Large Councilmember Bob Mendes is already out with some deep analysis of the situation and how he plans to vote on Cooper's proposal over at his blog.