Sen. John Warner, D-Ryder, told a legislative committee Monday that making teachers state employees could solve several problems facing school districts.

Warner isn't advocating converting teachers to state employees - at least not yet.

"I don't know if it makes sense to convert teachers to state employees," Warner said. "We simply don't know enough about how this would work to make an objective determination about the issue."

Warner is the prime sponsor of a resolution that would require the state to study the desirability and feasibility of making teachers state employees.

The Senate Education Committee heard testimony on Senate Concurrent Resolution 4025 on Monday.

Warner said converting teachers to state employees could result in better pay for teachers, eliminate contentious contract negotiations and resolve a lawsuit the state is facing over school funding equity.

Joe Westby, executive director of the North Dakota Education Association, said the organization is not opposed to studying the issues, but it has some concerns.

"I'm not so sure that the teachers across the state of North Dakota would relish or desire to be state employees," Westby said.

One of the challenges in making teachers state employees would be paying them all according to the same salary schedule. Westby questioned if the state could afford to pay teachers in rural areas similar to what they are paid in cities.

Westby also was concerned that if contract negotiations are taken away teachers will lose a say. "That teacher voice is necessary," Westby said.

However, Westby said future lawsuits against funding equity among schools would go away if teachers were state employees and if the state handled education funding as if there were only one school district instead of 210.

Jon Martinson, executive director of the North Dakota School Boards Association, was in favor of the study.

"Rather than tinker with the negative process of negotiations, let's at least move the study forward," Martinson said.

Rep. Ole Aarsvold, D-Blanchard, said making teachers state employees would minimize the competition schools have in hiring teachers and help improve teacher pay.

Aarsvold said that if teachers were state employees, the Legislature could decide how much money goes to pay instead of asking school boards to dedicate a certain amount to pay.

The committee didn't immediately take action on the resolution.

(Reach reporter Tom Rafferty at 223-8482 or tom.rafferty@bismarcktribune.com)