Volume 36, No. 8
March 5, 2010
It’s Not Doom & Gloom – It’s Worse Than That
for ETF Budget Scenario
This was the observation by Rep. James Thomas, a member of the House Education Finance Appropriations Committee, during a committee budget discussion Wednesday.
In the proposed budget, Gov. Riley also assumes Congress will approve $345 million federal aid to prop up the state education budget and help save jobs. The recent action on a jobs bill in the U.S. Congress did not have provisions tied to education. The likelihood of such a bailout appears unlikely to happen before the state legislative session ends April 26.
With only 12 legislative days remaining, work on the education budget must begin soon. While there is talk of a special session to craft the state General Fund budget, committee members clearly understood the need to have an education budget in time for local school boards to make personnel decisions. Local boards need a budget before the end of the school year.
“Local school boards need a budget that can’t be prorated,” Rep. Mac Gipson emphasized. Providing such a budget would mean significant cuts and the need to prioritize. Rep. Betty Carol Graham supported cutting programs and adamantly opposed eliminating jobs.
The only place to look in the state budget for major cuts would be personnel, according to Craig Pouncey at the state Department of Education. Local board members should have frank discussions with their lawmakers about the financial dilemmas and potential cuts facing local schools.
Because of the dire situation, it is critical that K-12 receive 70 percent of the Education Trust Fund appropriations. It is equitable because a far greater number of Alabama’s public students are in the K-12 system.
Pay & Benefits Flow to Terminated Employees
A Simple Fix on Horizon
The need for S.429 and S.430, sponsored by Sen. Hanks Sanders, has already been explained by the Legislative Fiscal Office: “Under current law, provisions of the Teacher Tenure Act, the Teacher Accountability Act, and the Fair Dismissal Act require a local board of education to continue paying the salary and benefits of a terminated employee until all appeals processes have been exhausted.”
S. 429 and S.430 would insert common sense back into the termination appeals process and definitively stop pay upon termination by the school board. The bills would:
- Authorize immediate cancellation of an employment contract for any teacher convicted of a specific felony or sex offenses involving a child;
- Maintain teachers’ current appeal process;
- Provide a pre-termination hearing before the employing local board at which pay is stopped;
- Protect teachers’ 5th amendment right against self-incrimination by restricting use of testimony offered; and
- Give employee restitution for any unpaid compensation if the termination is reversed by a hearing officer.
AASB warned that the 2004 change to the tenure and fair dismissal law would hurt school systems. The data proves that there are inherent problems with the new law. Many of those problems will need to be addressed in a comprehensive reform effort. However, S.429 and S.430 provide the single most effective way to return public school dollars to the classroom in a quick fix to the payroll loophole. The public will demand no less, especially in an election year.
Costs have skyrocketed because every terminated employee has a financial incentive to appeal. An even higher cost is when a school board determines it can’t afford the legal fees, cost of a substitute, and pay the terminated employee payroll and benefits. The use of out-of-state arbiters leads to delays and inconsistent decisions. Local school boards are caught in a no-win situation. To avoid the time and costs would mean finding a way to absorb an employee who otherwise would be terminated. And that’s a position no school board, superintendent or principal wants for their students.
The payroll loophole and its fix may be addressed as soon as next week. AASB urges school board members to contact members of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee and urge their support to S.429 and S.430. Local input makes all of the difference. Committee members include: Senators Sanders, Bedford, Butler, Coleman, Denton, Dixon, Figures, Holley, Little (T), Little (Z), Marsh, Means, Poole, Ross, Smith, Smitherman, and Waggoner.
Note: Separate bills address a specific criminal case that will address only cases in which the terminated employee is actually a convicted criminal. H.37 and S.316 are pending final passage. While it could provide some relief, the employee may still be paid for years before convicted. S.429 and S.430 fix that problem.
FEMA Safe Room Standards
The House Education Finance Appropriations committee Wednesday amended and approved H.459. In its original form, the bill would have required all new school construction to include a safe room for students at a very high FEMA standard able to withstand 250 mph winds. The amendment changed language to allow the state Building Commission to set the standard for “safe spaces.” The FEMA requirement would have been a costly and unfunded mandate.
“Of course, all education leaders want our students to be safe,” testified AASB Executive Director Sally Howell. “If the state decides this is a policy priority, then please make sure the state funds it.”
The original bill would have required school boards to apply for a FEMA grant in an attempt to fund the construction costs. However, FEMA makes those grants on a competitive basis, and that source of funding is both insufficient and unreliable according to Assistant State Superintendent Craig Pouncey. The committee amendment makes applying for the grant permissive rather than a mandate.
Schools are already constructed according to safety standards the state Building Commission sets. Students are likely already safest while at school where hallways are fortified and reinforced. Superintendent Frank Costanza of Tuscaloosa County, CLAS and the Emergency Management Association also testified against the bill. The amendment sufficiently addressed school officials’ concerns and the committee approved H.459.
Take Two: Charter Schools Back
A visit planned by U.S. Secretary of Education to Alabama is likely the backdrop for the reintroduction of charter school proposals: S.508 and H.677. The new versions incorporate amendments discussed when House and Senate committees easily killed the bills in February. The changes:
- Charter schools must have certified principals;
- Charter schools must comply with the same sports eligibility rules as public schools; and
- Language attempts to waive local board liability for charter school actions within a school board’s jurisdiction.
The changes appear to address points brought by the education community during public debate. AASB, however, does not believe the liability language accomplishes its goal. Furthermore, language to ensure proration apply to charter schools was not included.
The charter bills still ignore the big picture flaws of the proposal. Any charter school effort must be carefully crafted to ensure it works with current Alabama law and truly provides a tool for local school systems to offer opportunities for all students. Until then, local school boards will join K-12 education groups to oppose H.677 and S.508.
Superintendent Posting Requirement
Goes to Governor
H.79, sponsored by Rep. James Buskey, received final passage Thursday. Among other posting requirements for state level positions, county and city school systems would be required to post superintendent vacancies. Any school system with a superintendent vacancy should be ready to comply. The school board must fill a vacancy within 120 days. A notice of vacancy must be posted for at least 30 days with specified information before the position is filled. The bill is pending the Governor’s signature. H.79 will take effect immediately upon passage.
Teachers Retirement System to Refinance
S. 292 allows the accrued liability rates for the Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) and the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) to be computed over a maximum period of 30 years rather than the current 20-year maximum period. The House Education Finance Appropriations Committee approved the bill Wednesday. The impact of the bill will reduce the cost of employer contributions for the TRS by some $54.1 million. The savings would be realized in FY2011, and yearly contributions could be less by taking advantage of a 30-year versus 20-year formula. S.292 awaits final passage in the House.
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Local school boards work with legislative leaders to accomplish the public’s highest priority -- educating our children.
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12 Days remain in the
Regular Legislative Session.
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