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HB 912

The Hometown Opportunities for Mentoring Educators Act.

2025-2026 Session Introduced by Brian Biggs and 8 co-sponsors

NC HB 912 creates a grant program giving $500 monthly salary supplements to teachers who return to teach in their home LEA, boosting recruitment and retention.

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Bill Summary · HB 912

Summary — HB 912: "Hometown Opportunities for Mentoring Educators (H.O.M.E.) Act"

Note: Multiple different bills across several states are labeled HB 912. This summary focuses on the North Carolina H.O.M.E. Act (House Bill 912, 2025 session), which creates a statewide grant program to provide salary supplements to locally‑trained teachers who return to teach in their home school districts.

Purpose

Establish the Hometown Teacher Grant Program (H.O.M.E.) to encourage recruitment and retention of teachers who grew up or attended school in a local school administrative unit (LEA) by providing monthly salary supplements to those who commit to remain employed as teachers in that same LEA.

Key provisions

  • Program established: The NC Department of Public Instruction (DPI) must establish and administer the Hometown Teacher Grant Program (§115C‑269.33).
  • Definitions:
    • Eligible student: a student who either attended school for five years at a school in the LEA or graduated from a high school in the LEA.
    • Eligible teacher: an eligible student who agrees to remain employed as a teacher in the same LEA where they qualified as an eligible student.
  • Awards:
    • Eligible teachers who enter an agreement to remain employed in the LEA receive a $500 monthly salary supplement for as long as they comply with the agreement.
    • Awards are paid from funds granted to LEAs; the DPI sets participation criteria and standards to ensure eligibility.
  • Promotion: LEAs receiving program grants must promote the program to high school students.
  • Reporting: DPI must report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee by May 15, 2026, and annually thereafter while funds are awarded. Required report items include demographic info, number of recipients by LEA, placement/retention rates, and recommendations to improve the program.
  • Funding: Appropriated $10,000,000 in recurring General Fund dollars for each fiscal year of the 2025–2027 biennium to DPI for program administration.
  • Effective date and applicability: Becomes effective July 1, 2025, and applies to eligible teachers entering agreements on or after that date.

Who is affected

  • Eligible teachers: local students who return to teach in their home LEA and meet the program definition.
  • Local school administrative units (LEAs): must apply for grants, verify eligibility, issue supplements, and promote the program.
  • North Carolina DPI: program administration, criteria development, monitoring, and annual reporting.
  • State budget: recurring appropriations required to support program awards and administration.

Fiscal and operational impact

  • State cost: The bill appropriates $10 million recurring per fiscal year (FY 2025–26 and FY 2026–27 biennium) to DPI for program administration and awards. Actual total award outlays depend on the number of eligible teachers enrolled.
  • Local administrative burden: LEAs must identify eligible teachers, administer monthly supplements, promote the program, and provide data to DPI.
  • Expected program effects: Designed to improve recruitment and retention of teachers in local districts (particularly rural or hard‑to‑staff schools) by leveraging homegrown talent; the program’s effectiveness will depend on outreach, agreement terms, and the number of participating teachers.

Timeline / Status

  • Introduced and considered in 2025 (multiple committee referrals shown in bill history).
  • The bill text establishes an effective date of July 1, 2025, and requires the initial DPI report by May 15, 2026.
  • Legislative history provided in the source indicates action through readings and committee referral; users should consult the official state legislative website for final enactment status and implementation updates.

If you want, I can:
- Produce a one‑page fact sheet for LEAs explaining how to apply and comply; or
- Model potential statewide costs under different participation scenarios (e.g., 1,000; 5,000; 10,000 eligible teachers).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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