Pa+Budget+2011-12

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= THE BUDGET = = = = The House and Senate voted mostly along party lines to approve a $27.15 billion [|budget]for 2011-12 that strips $1.1 billion from education - mainly $818 million from K-12 public schools. The Senate voted 30-20 and the House voted 109-92. The budget also lowers business taxes and leaves much of the $750 million surplus untouched. Though Republicans blame schools for misusing the federal stimulus money for the past two years, the GOP plan includes massive cuts to programs that were fully funded BEFORE the stimulus money was received. These include:=


 * = COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT THAT FUNDS FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN AND TUTORING STILL CUT BY 61% ($159 MILLION) FROM WHAT WAS AVAILABLE BEFORE THE STIMULUS!!!=


 * = CHARTER SCHOOL REIMBURSEMENT THAT HELPS DISTRICTS COPE WITH LOSS OF REVENUE DUE TO CHARTERS IS STILL ELIMINATED ($224 MILLION) - IT WAS PRESENT BEFORE THE STIMULUS!=


 * = EDUCATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM USED TO TUTOR AT RISK STUDENTS IS SLASHED BY $47.6 MILLION - AVAILABLE PRE-STIMULUS.=


 * = BASIC EDUCATION FUNDING IS LACERATED BY $33.6 MILLION - ALL PRESENT PRE-STIMULUS.=

= WHAT HAPPENS NOW = = = = = = Gov. Corbett signed the bill late Thursday with only 12 minutes to spare! It is the law of the land. Also passed is a bill to limit exceptions for school districts needing to raise taxes beyond the inflation rate. Corbett threatened to veto the budget without it. He also spent at least $2 million - $10 million in budget appropriations for Republican holdouts to vote for the measure.=

=He also said his staff has been working behind the scenes on a proposal to make it easier for parents to take their children out of the public schools they currently attend and send them to private or other public schools. "We'd like to see this bill passed before we adjourn for the summer," he told reporters. No word on whether this measure received a vote yet.=



= GOOD NEWS ON VOUCHERS = = = = 11th-hour negotiations over a controversial proposal to create student tuition vouchers - a move Corbett has supported - failed when the House and Senate could not reach agreement. But voucher advocates are sure to revive the issue later in the year. = = = = = = = = = =

= = = = = = = = = = = = BUDGET DETAILS = = = = = = The state budget agreed to by Gov. Corbett and GOP legislative leaders is available to the public, and it is virtually unchanged from House Bill 1485. The Philadelphia //Inquirer// sums it up: “Detailed spreadsheets released by the legislature late Monday reveal steep cuts to state aid for public education and programs for the poor, including food pantries, job training, and drug and alcohol programs.” The budget also deprives Pennsylvanians of health care – from a 63% cut to maternal and child health to deep reductions in health care that seniors and people with disabilities depend on. And it slashes General Fund support for state parks by $19 million and for state forests by $4 million. Meanwhile, as the Associated Press reports, “it also would lower business taxes and keep hundreds of millions of dollars in reserve.” =



= = = HOW THE BUDGET IMPACTS THE MON-VALLEY =


 * = **East Allegheny School District** is cut by $1 million or 15 percent, representing $561 less per student.  =
 * = **Elizabeth Forward School District** is cut by $849,000, or 8.6 percent, representing $320 less per student.  =
 * = **McKeesport Area School District** is cut by $3 million, or 11 percent, representing $703 less per student.  =
 * = **South Allegheny School District** is cut by $986,000, or 9.6 percent, representing $587 less per student.  =
 * = **Steel Valley School District** is cut by $1.4 million, or 15 percent, representing $710 less per student.  =
 * = **West Mifflin School District** is cut by $811,000, or 11 percent, representing $265 less per student.  =
 * = **Woodland Hills School District** is cut by $3.67 million, or 20 percent, representing $723 less per student.  =
 * = Duquesne School District is cut by $1.2 million. Legislators did restore $2.8 million in cuts from HB 1485.  =



= DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO = = = = = = = = According to legislative printouts, two budgets will be increased - Gov. Tom Corbett's and and Lt. Governor Jim Cawley. They will see their combined budgets grow by $130,000. The governor also accepted a nearly $30,000 taxpayer-funded pay raise this year, and just ordered four brand-new cars at taxpayer expense for the Commonwealth’s two First Families. =



= SCHOOL CODE CHANGES =

= One of the pieces of legislation that accompanies the state budget is called the School Code, and it sets out how state funds are divided up along with other laws governing public education. So what does this year’s School Code bill do? Well, according to the version that finally saw the light of day Monday, legislators are preparing to strip away major safeguards that ensure tax dollars are being used effectively. The bill makes it illegal to collect information to see if early childhood education and higher education programs are doing a good job. It eliminates the requirement that teachers receive ongoing training to improve their skills. And it deletes provisions that ensure state funds are being used for programs that are proven to help kids learn. =



= SO WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN? =


 * =  Republicans have steamrolled through a budget with controversial funding cuts by the deadline - barely. After hundreds of thousands of emails, letters and phone calls, after protests, town hall meetings and pleas for our children, the only thing that matters to GOP legislators is the special interests who are funding their campaigns.  =


 * = The fight is not over. To paraphrase the poet Gwendolyn Brooks, though it is dark now it cannot always be night. You will be right. That is the long fight. =


 * = Election day is only a year and a half away. When that day comes, we can make these people pay for the damage they're reaping on our children, our poor, our environment, our state. =


 * = New Jersey was in a similar situation of approximately $1 billion in unnecessary education budget cuts. They filed a lawsuit to their state's Supreme Court and won. We need to do the same. The only downfall is this took a year to reach fruition in Jersey. It will take time here, too. =


 * = Pennsylvania does not have a legal provision to allow recall elections as they have in Wisconsin. Our Democratic allies need to propose such a measure. If Republicans really believe the voters are behind them, why would they oppose a measure to find out? =


 * = Don't lose hope. I know it's hard when we suffer a defeat like this one. But there's always tomorrow. I leave you with a performance of "The Impossible Dream" sung by Brian Stokes Mitchell. It's sad that our quest to provide a quality education for our children is comparable to that of Don Quixote. However, it's apt. =

media type="youtube" key="cxjGlgmSJ8o" height="510" width="640" =If you're having trouble viewing this video, please click [|HERE].= = = =

= CONGRATULATIONS, REPUBLICANS! =

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= ON THE BACKS OF THE POOR AND CHILDREN!!! =



DON'T LEAVE ME HANGIN' BRO!!! =Not a single Democrat in the House or Senate voted for the budget or school tax limiting measure. How ever did you manage to pass them on time? = =Oh, that's right! You have a majority in both houses and the governor's seat - something the previous administration didn't have during any of its 8 years.= =You go ahead and clap yourselves on the back anyway. It's hard work ignoring your constituents like that!= =Insult on Time=

= BUDGET NEWS: = =MASD Urged to File Lawsuit Against State=

=Corbett signs budget, outlines fall agenda= =State education budget hits neediest school districts the hardest= =TEACH Decries 'Murder' of Public Education By Harrisburg Republicans= =Hollow victory - This budget could have cushioned more of the pain= =Insult on Time= =State colleges hiking tuition= =Corbett Signs Budget= =Corbett passes budget into law= =Corbett signs Pa. budget ahead of deadline= =Last Minute Dispute Hangs Up Passage of Budget= =Disputed school tax bill stalls final Pa. budget= =State Budget is a Body Blow to the Neediest= =CLEAR Coalition says State Budget Fails Pennsylvania’s Children, Senior Citizens, and Hard Working Families= =After deal, Corbett haggling, referenda bill moves forward.= =[|See How The House Voted]= =[|See How The Senate Voted on the Budget]= =**View the BUDGET:** [|Final_2011_12Budget_Printout.pdf]=

=State education budget hits neediest school districts the hardest= =House Bill 1485 = =Debate on House Bill 1485= =Is the GOP Budget Racist?= =Pa's Budget Surplus= =Battleground Pennsylvania= =New Jersey Supreme Court Finds Education Cuts Unconstitutional=

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