By BRUCE SCHREINER
Associated Press

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Teachers who clogged the halls of Kentucky's Capitol when lawmakers last met are set to return in force as they are loudly demanding that the legislature defy the governor and restore increases in education funding.

School was canceled in more than 30 districts - including the state's two largest in Louisville and Lexington - to accommodate all the teachers and other school workers wanting to attend Friday's rally in Frankfort. Other districts sent delegations but were planning to keep classes open.

Kentucky's unrest comes as teachers in Oklahoma and Arizona have protested low funding and teacher pay. The demonstrations were inspired by West Virginia teachers, whose nine-day walkout earlier this year led to a 5 percent pay increase. On Kentucky, teacher anger has boiled over amid changes to their pension system and a battle for more education funding.

Kentucky lawmakers are reconvening Friday for a scheduled two-day wrap-up of the legislative session. They're likely to get a boisterous reception from teachers.

"People are disillusioned, people are disgusted and people are upset," said Patricia Lea Collins, the Head Start and preschool director for the Pike County school system.

Thousands of Kentucky educators, chanting pledges to "remember in November" the actions of their lawmakers, filled the Capitol earlier this month to demand generous school funding and oppose pension changes.

Elsewhere, after weeks of protests by teachers and threats of a walkout, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey rolled out a proposal Thursday promising a net 20 percent raise by 2020. Teachers didn't immediately react to the proposal. Thursday's announcement came after more than a month of protests at the state Capitol and at schools across Arizona.

Meanwhile, the walkout that shuttered schools in many of Oklahoma's largest districts for two straight weeks came to an end Thursday though two of the largest districts of Tulas and Oklahoma were to remain out Friday. The development came amid vows the fight was not over: Oklahoma's largest teachers union called on members to shift their attempts to electing pro-education candidates in November.

In Kentucky, this year's rallies came as lawmakers struggled with the complexities of passing a new two-year state budget, searching for education funding and trying to fix one of the country's worst-funded pension systems. The state is at least $41 billion short of the money it needs to pay retirement benefits over the next 30 years, straining state and local government finances.

Since the last rally, Republican Gov. Matt Bevin has vetoed the state budget plan that included record-high classroom spending, restored school transportation funding and ensured that teachers who retired after 2010 but don't yet qualify for Medicare have health insurance.

Bevin also vetoed a $480 million tax increase lawmakers sought to fuel education spending. The revenue bill would impose a 6 percent sales tax on a variety of services like auto and home repairs while cutting the income tax rate for some individuals and businesses.

Bevin's administration questioned the revenue projections, saying the new taxes would not pay for the spending that lawmakers approved, but would lead to at least a $50 million shortfall over the next two years.

The Kentucky Education Association, the statewide teachers union, sharply criticized Bevin's vetoes in calling for Friday's "day of action" by teachers.

Bevin barked back, saying the teachers' position on the budget bill had changed over time. He blasted the union's leadership as "absolute frauds" and said they had not been clear in what they wanted lawmakers to do. The union urged lawmakers to override the vetoes.

Bevin further angered teachers this week by signing legislation that alters the state pension program for teachers and other state employees. The changes preserve benefits for most workers but move new hires into a hybrid plan. Opponents worry the changes will discourage young people from becoming teachers.

The pension changes have already drawn a court challenge. It's unclear what will happen on the budget and tax bills. A majority of the membership in each chamber is needed to override a vote, and observers expect a close vote.

If lawmakers let the vetoes stand, Bevin could call them back into special session to pass a budget before the new fiscal year starts in July. Without a new budget, Kentucky government would partially shut down July 1.

Both urban and rural Kentucky school districts statewide canceled classes Friday.

"Our teachers and support staff have answered the call to advocate for students by encouraging our lawmakers to fully fund education," said Manny Caulk, superintendent of Fayette County schools in Lexington.

In Meade County, where schools were closed Friday, the district's superintendent, John Millay, said teachers deserve to have their voices heard.

"Teachers as a whole have never been ones to get involved in any political process," he said. "They do their work. They trust that ... the people that make the laws will take care of them. But that trust has been kind of broken."

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