“I will also support merit-pay for teachers, so that we reward great teachers – instead of the failed tenure system that rewards bad teachers and punishes good ones.”
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The federal vehicle for teacher merit pay is the Teacher and School Leader Incentive (TSL) program, which funds performance-based compensation systems. Trump's first-term record on it was inconsistent: his FY2018 budget requested about $199.6 million for continuation costs of existing awards only, his FY2019 request listed the $200 million program among 29 programs proposed for elimination, and his FY2020 request reversed course, seeking $200 million including $110 million for new awards supporting increased compensation for effective teachers. The program continued operating and making performance-pay grants throughout his term (Jan. 2017-Jan. 2021), but he never advanced a broader merit-pay initiative, and teacher tenure, a state and local matter, was unaffected by federal action. Uneven support of the existing federal merit-pay program earns partial credit.
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