Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/2866
CTA files initiative to raise additional education funds C TA filed an initiative on Dec. 19 that would raise addi t io n al m o n e y desperately needed for public education. F ollowing the direction of State C ouncil, The Pu b lic School I nvest- ment a nd Ac- countability Act — filed in time to qualify for a possible special election in 2009 — would g o a long way toward solving the bud- get crisis by pro- viding a 1 cen t sales t ax in - crease to benefit K-12 s chool s and community colleges. Th e initiative would raise $5 bil- lion to $6 billion annually. “Our schools, colleges and the state budget are in crisis, The initiative would prohibit the governor and the Legis- lature from supplanting, and education spending has been cut by more than $3.5 bil- lion,” explains CTA President David A. Sanchez. “It is clear that the current budget process for funding pub- lic education is failing s chools and s tudents, and that we need stable and ongo- ing funding for education.” Ca lifor nia cutting, delay- ing, borrowing or diverting the funds. ranked 46th in the n ation in per-pupil edu- cation s pend- ing, acco rding to Education Week, and that was before the budget cr isis. Without addi - tional revenues, public e duca- tion is looking at more than $8 billion in cuts this school year. This staggering amount is the equivalent of reducing gaining team and CTA staff that led to a recent settlement win for AEA. The bargaining team worked tirelessly for over a year negotiating a fair contract s et tlement f or 2007-08. Although the Alvord Unified School District had received a 4.53 percent cost- of-living adjustment (COLA) Alvord scores settlement I t was a concerted effort by Alvord Educators Associa- tion members, their bar- 26 California Educator | december 2008 • january 2009 per-pupil spending by almost $1,200 or laying off 160,000 educators. In fact, the Repub- lican budget proposal would cut education by more than $10 billion. “Our public schools, stu- dents and members cannot continue down the current path of an education reces- sion,” continues Sanchez. “We cannot co ntinue t rying t o meet our students’ needs with- out the necessary resources.” In October, State Council passed a new business item di- recting CTA to immediately draft the initiative for submis- sion to the California attorney general. How CTA moves forward between now and an election in November will be deter- mined by State Council at its Jan. 23-25 meeting. All of the proceeds would go exclusively to improving classroom education. Funds would be used for programs Continued on page 33 > Improving school safety conditions > Hiring additional counselors > Providing instructional supplies, equipment and material, as well as computers and technology > Staff development that improves services to students and in- creases the quality and effectiveness of instructional staff > Providing more com- pensation to recruit and retain educators Funds would be used for: > Reducing class size in all grades for 2007-08 and had sizable reserves, it continued to offer the teachers zero percent and insisted on a large number of take-backs. “We know these are tough financial times we are heading into,” s aid AEA b argaining Continued on page 38 Alvord Educators Association members picket for a fair contract. CTA photo by Brad Bush