News from Your Organizing Team

Hello from your organizing team! We are ready to hit this New Year with energy and celebration on the work we are continuing to do: addressing your concerns, encouraging and supporting our goals and issues. Looking at legislative battles ahead, we need to celebrate our successes and keep focused on each other and the needs out there. We know all of you are working with great effectiveness in your buildings and we appreciate and value your determination, conduct and professionalism. Stay tune for more news, check out our new Facebook page ( Nespa "U"nion), be our friend and watch for BLOG news. We are all standing up for you.

STATE PROPOSES CUTS: TIME TO TAKE ACTION!

BUT NO LAYOFFS ARE ANTICIPATED FOR NORTHSHORE FOR NEXT YEAR

The Governor has proposed $2 BILLION in cuts to K-12 and higher education over the next 2 years! That’s on top of the $2 BILLION cut in the last Session, and another $311 million they cut in December. Proposals to cut at these levels are unprecedented, outrageous, and simply wrong. If passed by the Legislature, these cuts would permanently damage our students’ futures---and possibly our own financial futures.

Education has already been cut to the bone---as most of us can see from the large class sizes, insufficient support for our struggling students, bloated workloads, and high insurance costs. Three work days per year for teachers—the Learning Improvement Days-- have already been cut by the State. Since 2009, over 5,000 educator jobs have been cut, resulting in larger class sizes. Our Cost of Living Increases were eliminated for last year and for this year. I-728 class size funds have been eliminated. And the proportion of our medical benefits paid by the State has been declining, sending our out-of-pocket costs through the roof.

Now, the Governor and some Legislators have their sights set on more cuts: Cuts to our pensions; cuts to the remaining K-4 class size enhancements; no Cost-of-Living Allowance and a pay freeze for teachers for 2 years (no step increases, or increases based on education credits for teachers. There is currently no State proposal to stop step increases for classified staff like NESPA); a further reduction in the proportion of our health benefits paid by the State; elimination of the remaining “gifted” education funding; and the elimination of the $5,000 stipend for National Board Certified Teachers.

This Legislative Session has begun, and ends in late April. These budget cuts are likely to be debated for months, with a final decision at the end of the Session.

What’s behind these proposals?

Washington relies primarily on consumer spending for its revenue---the sales tax and the Business and Occupation Tax, based on sales. With the Great Recession continuing, spending is way down, and the State is not collecting the taxes needed to pay for the minimal levels of education and services necessary.

The November election results severely worsened the situation. Our best hope had been that Initiative 1098 would pass; this would have increased revenues by several billion by taxing those currently pay only a small proportion of their income in State and local taxes---the 2% of Washingtonians whose individual income exceeds $200,000, or whose family income exceeds $400,000. Even though it would have reduced taxes for 98% of Washingtonians, it lost by a margin of 2 to 1. Had initiative 1098 passed, cuts such as this would not have been proposed. In fact, I-1098 would have raised exactly the amount of the budget shortfall for the next 2 years.

To make matters worse, Tim Eyman’s Initiative 1053 also passed by a 2 to 1 majority. It requires that the Legislature pass any taxes—or close the billions in tax loopholes—by a 2/3 majority. Unfortunately, 2 out of 3 Legislators do not have the courage nor inclination to do the right thing. And the Republicans want to shrink government (read K-12 education, universities, etc) even further, with even more tax cuts.

LAYOFFS NOT ANTICIPATED FOR NEXT YEAR IN NORTHSHORE

These are proposed cuts; they are not a done deal. It is clear that cuts will be made, but how deep the cuts will go depends on our collective efforts. Northshore is situated better than most school districts---with our increasing levy capacity and our supplemental levy. However, if the State cuts go deep enough, Northshore would need to offset the State cuts with local cuts.

The School Board has begun its budget process. They will be budgeting based on a worst case scenario—the Governor’s budget proposal. Under this scenario, NO LAYOFFS DUE TO BUDGET CUTS ARE PROJECTED for either teachers or classified staff. But if the economy worsens, or Legislators decide to cut education further to save other programs, that could change. (And while overall staffing levels are projected to remain the same, the School Board could—as always—examine a re-prioritization of staffing, and layoff in some job titles while adding to others. There is no greater risk of this, this year, than in any other year, however.)

We can either be spectators to the dismantling of our public education system, our pensions, and health care---or we can fight back. We will be fighting back to minimize the cuts. Please:

• Stay in touch with your Building Communicator for further info on what action to take.

• Go to OurVoiceWashingtonEA.org now, and weekly, to find out what’s happening AND to communicate with the Governor and your Legislators! Again and again!

WOULD YOU LIKE TO REPRESENT NESPA AT WEA’S ANNUAL CONVENTION?

Every Spring, about 1,000 WEA members, elected by their colleagues, meet for WEA’s annual convention called the WEA Representative Assembly. The RA provides a forum where WEA members discuss, debate and vote on several policies which set the goals and priorities for the coming year. The daily schedule for R A can be long and intense with evening sessions often stretching until 11 P M. It’s an opportunity to learn, to meet others who do similar work in other school districts and to meet WEA’s leaders, while being a part of democratic process. Most people come back from the RA describing it as an incredible experience that leaves them energized and feeling powerful.

NESPA can send up to 8 delegates, elected by NESPA members. This year’s Representative Assembly will be in Tacoma, from Thursday evening May 12 through Saturday, May 14. NESPA will pay the cost of mileage to and from Tacoma( carpool required), meals and hotel (double occupancy), and a substitute for Friday, May 13th. If 8 or more people are nominated, an election will be held in last week of January.

If you are interested in being a delegate, please email Barti Khandekar at khandekars@hotmail.com

A brief statement (50 words or less) indicating why you are interested in being a delegate must be forwarded to Barti by Friday February 4th.

Please note:
All elected R A delegates must attend the Mock Assembly (Pre R A meeting) on April 28th in Monte Villa Admin Center and ALL R A sessions in Tacoma. Those attending R A will need to sign “Delegate Agreement Form” prior to this convention. All delegates will report back to the NESPA members on the event and the decisions made by the R A.

Failure of the delegate to complete these duties may result in the delegate reimbursing NESPA for ALL expenses.

Bharti Khandekar
NESPA VP