Legislators Introduce a Bill to Increase Educator Tax Deductions for Out-Of-Pocket Classroom Expenses

This week, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rep. Anthony Brown (D-MD) introduced the Educators Expense Deduction Modernization Act of 2022 to increase tax deductions for classroom expenses educators must pay out-of-pocket. The legislation would increase the deduction from $250 to $1000 and require the amount be regularly adjusted for inflation. The legislation follows data from the Department of Education showing 94% of public-school teachers pay for supplies out-of-pocket, with nearly 1 in 10 spending more than $1000 a year. “Teachers work as hard as anyone – often harder – to support our students, yet they aren’t paid nearly the salaries and benefits they deserve, and they often spend hundreds of dollars of their hard-earned money on supplies for their classrooms,” remarked Sen. Brown. Lawmakers continue to look for solutions that support the educator pipeline, including making it financially easier to remain in the profession.

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