URGENT! Public Education is under ATTACK 
and here are the Weapons

The Idaho legislature is trying to pass SB 1110 which would virtually END the use of the citizen’s initiative process.  Reclaim Idaho planned to use this process to increase education funding and now all of that is in jeopardy. 

If education funding is an important issue to you, please join us tomorrow Feb 24 at 5:00 pm PT for a Zoom discussion with Luke Mayville.  

Register HERE.

But wait.  There’s more.  Here are some of the other bills currently under consideration in the legislature that would be devastating to public education:

1.  HB 199 results in drastic cuts to future funding opportunities for education and other unmet basic needs.  It gives tax breaks to corporations and the wealthy which would cut about $264 million this year and about $450 million next year from the General Fund, essentially negating the “budget surplus” which could be used for education and other unmet basic needs. 

Democrats have proposed the Idaho Working Family Agenda which would be a much better use of our “surplus” funds.  Read more about that HERE. Contact Committee Members HERE and tell them that you OPPOSE HB 199 and that you support the Idaho Working Family Agenda instead.

2.  HB 174 would take away negotiation rights of teachers by making negotiation with the local education associations optional for school districts. Contact Committee Members HERE and tell them you OPPOSE HB 174 because teachers deserve to be able to have representation from their teacher’s union.

3.  HB 215 that would establish private school vouchers, disguised as “grants” or “scholarships”. On top of constitutional concerns, the IEA opposes this legislation because it would siphon critical funds away from public schools (as noted above, already ranked 51st in per-student funding) and send them to private schools.  Contact Committee Members HERE and let them know that you OPPOSE HB 215.

 

4.  HB 221 would allow teachers without a teaching certificate to teach.  local school boards to “certify” people without a teaching certificate or teaching experience instead of requiring a teaching certificate.  Each school district could decide on the criteria within certain minimum guidelines from the state.  Contact Committee Members HERE and let them know that you OPPOSE HB 221.

Democrats believe in a strong, vibrant, and fully funded public school system here in Idaho.  Take action to help us achieve that vision.

Thank you,

Linda Larson, secretary 

Bonner County Democrats

For a more in-depth look at Idaho’s woeful investment in public education and the opportunity presented by the budget surplus, read McInelly’s Guest Opinion.