Note:  I previously sent out this action alert to SEE membership.  I am including it in this week's SEE legislative update so that all advocates that receive SEE's legislative update help at this critical time.

**Action Alert - Set the Education Budget Target High**

Leadership - the Governor, Senate Majority Leader and the Speaker of the House - scheduled May 6 as the date to release the budget targets for all areas of government including education. The single education target agreed to by leadership dictates the quality of education that school districts can provide for their students. Will schools maintain current programming and class sizes, or will painful cuts be required? It all depends on the target.

 

Legislators need to hear from their voters. Now is the time to make noise by contacting your legislators with the following message. Your own words are best, but you can paraphrase or simply cut and paste the message below. Here's my pep talk to you. Don't paralyze yourself with worry about getting your words and the message exactly right. Just write and send it!

 

Please support our schools by asking your leadership to set the education budget target high enough to provide an additional 3% increase on the basic formula for next year and a 2% increase the following year. Also, the budget target must include funding to stop the growth of the unfunded cost of special education services.

 

If you can, add your thoughts on why this is so important to you. Talking points are available to assist if you want to expand on the message.

 

Email your state legislators! You can find their contact information here. Please copy the following leadership into your email, which includes the majority and minority leaders and the chairs of the education finance committees in both the Senate and the House. You can cut and paste the following addresses into your email:  [email protected] , [email protected] , [email protected] , [email protected] , [email protected] , [email protected] .  You can also include the Governor by using his email form.

What is happening at the Capitol

J ust three weeks and three days before the legislative session must end on May 20.  The House and Governor are miles apart from the Senate in spending, particularly in E-12 education.  Read more . 

The House passed its education omnibus bill off the floor on Tuesday.  The Senate should take up their education omnibus bill on the floor early next week.  In addition to the May 6 deadline for budget targets, leadership also choose next Wednesday, May 1 as the day all Senate and House omnibus bills are passed off the floor and conference committee members will be picked.  Also, May 13 is when each conference committees is supposed to wrap up their work with a single negotiated omnibus bill for each area of government including education.  The intent is be more transparent, giving legislators and the public a week before the end of session to digest what is in each omnibus.  G iven the major ideological differences, will see if leadership can stick to this ambitious schedule.  Stay tuned!