Daily postings
from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 1500
Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators,
legislators, members of the press and a broad array of education advocacy
organizations via emails, website, Facebook and Twitter.
These daily
emails are archived at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
Follow us
on Twitter at @lfeinberg
Take a quick look at this
graphic timeline showing the flow of big voucher money
BIG MONEY BEHIND SCHOOL TAX CREDIT
Philly.com Interactive Timeline created using Timeline JS
by Josh Cornfield and Will Bunch
The state House
education committee debated but did not vote on a bill Monday that would expand
the state’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit. The measure is backed by the
Archdiocese of Philadelphia and a political action committee called Fighting
Chance PA that is funded by a group of hedge fund managers in Bala Cynwyd.
Here's an interactive
look into how money has gone from the hedge fund managers to the lawmaker that
introduced the measure.
Rep. Christiana’s “Different Money”
On Monday I attended the House Ed Committee
meeting and listened as Rep. Christiana tried to explain how diverting millions
of dollars to non-accountable private and religious schools would somehow actually
help our struggling school districts, and that somehow $50 million of additional
EITC money was “different money” not subject to the same considerations as
general fund appropriations. Please
continue to disabuse your state reps of these peculiar notions. There is no “different money”: $50 million
diverted is $50 million that cannot be spent on other things, like
constitutionally mandated public education.
Correction 1: On Monday we reported that
Rep. Christiana and the “Commonsense for the Commonwealth” PAC shared the same
address as his district office. That is
incorrect.
The Citizens for Jim Christiana
Campaign and the PAC share the same mailing address for remittances.
Correction 2: On Monday the
Students First PAC “Follow the Money” chart sent as an attachment understated
the contributions by the Black Clergy PAC to Friends of Fatimah; there was an additional
$43,000 used for media buys.
See the budget updates below. For the sake of context, for two years in a
row the Governor has proposed eliminating the ABG; two years ago the
accountability block grant was $254 million.
Still in play:
- Christiana’s
proposed $50 million EITC/voucher expansion
- New
teacher/principal evaluation plan using test scores as 50% of rating
- Distressed
school districts $50 million assistance
- Charter
school “reform” – Killion’s HB2352 would remove local control, giving a
new state commission authorization and oversight, would create a parent
trigger conversion, would put off any funding formula changes for another
year
Pennsylvania
Published: Tuesday, June 26, 2012 , 11:22 PM
Lawmakers are nearing completion of
a $27.7 billion state budget that would offer more money to schools and
colleges than Gov. Tom Corbett proposed.
With the potential for more aid than
expected, Harrisburg
A spending plan unveiled Tuesday by
the state Senate would restore $100 million in accountability block grants to
the state’s education budget. The governor had proposed eliminating the grant program.
PSBA 4:11 pm Tuesday June 25th
PSBA 2012-13 Budget Update: Senate
Appropriations Committee Issues Basic Education Subsidy and General Budget
Spreadsheets
This afternoon (June
26) the Senate Appropriations Committee issued its spreadsheets with figures
concerning the 2012-13 state budget. The committee released school
district Basic Education funding spreadsheets this afternoon. Click here
for the General
Fund Budget Spreadsheet.
Please click here to
see the Basic
Education Funding charts for
school districts. Please be aware that these spreadsheets may not be
final as the House has not passed any budget legislation at this time.
The budget as proposed
by Gov. Corbett in February was set at $27.15 billion. However, the budget in
the Senate spreadsheets contains $27.65 billion. The charts reflect:
·
Basic Education Funding is set at $5.40
billion, with no inclusion of the Student Achievement Education Block Grant
(SAEBG) proposed by the
governor for distribution of education funds currently calculated through
separate formulas, including the basic subsidy, pupil transportation and Social
Security. The SAEBG is zeroed-out in the document. Funding for the basic
education subsidy, pupil transportation, non-public and charter school pupil
transportation and school employees Social Security are continued under
separate line items.
·
Funding for the Accountability Block Grant is
included at $100 million.
·
Special education funding is level funded
again at $1.02 billion.
PSBA Presents Testimony Opposing EITC/EISC Expansion
PSBA’s website 6/25/2012
On June 25, PSBA
presented testimony to the House Education Committee opposing HB 2468, Rep. Jim
Christiana's (R-Beaver) "school choice" plan that includes two
elements: an expansion of the established Educational Improvement Tax Credit
(EITC) program, and a new Educational Improvement Scholarship Credit (EISC)
program. The proposed EISC program alone would provide $200 million in tax
credits to businesses over three years, with continued expansion based on
participation in the program.
The hearing can be
watched on the House Republican Caucus' website at http://www.pahousegop.com/wsa.aspx.
Click on the video titled "House Education Committee Informational
Meeting."
Yinzercation Blog
by YinzerThing June 26, 2012
HB 2468 has lots of
cheerleaders. That’s the current House Bill under consideration that would
expand Pennsylvania
The
voucher-in-disguise bill was introduced by Rep. Jim Christiana, a Republican
who hails from Monaca in Beaver
County PAC. That was the single
largest contribution from this new political action committee (or PAC) that has
already “doled out $225,000 to pro-voucher state lawmakers and other political
committees in Harrisburg
Here’s another perspective on
that “Different Money”…..
“Expanding the EITC now will drain more
state revenue away from public schools at a time when many are laying off
teachers, cutting kindergarten or prekindergarten, and eliminating courses.”
Analysis of HB 2468
Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center June 25, 2012
Individuals, Not Corporations, Pick Up
the Tax Tab for EITC Scholarships
Corporations get triple dip deduction for
contributions to private schools
Proponents
argue that expanding the EITC doesn’t affect the budget because companies pay
the bill; however, the opposite is true.
Individual taxpayers will pay at least $9 of $10 in EITC funding.
The
EITC program needs substantial program reform prior to any expansion. It is a costly program with little
accountability that allows businesses to direct other taxpayers’ money to
favored organizations.
Schools' financial
squeeze gives rise to questions about future of early education in state
Published:
Monday, June 25,
2012 , 6:00 AM
On Wednesday, we’ll
know if Harrisburg
Maybe the novel idea
to privately pay for kindergarten through tax credits for businesses will come
through, maybe it won’t. Maybe the state will suddenly increase school funding.
Or maybe, as parents
have feared all spring, 5-year-olds will spend this fall at home instead of in
a classroom.
Posted: Tue, Jun. 26, 2012 , 9:15 PM
Troubled Philly-based cyber charter school ordered closed
It looks like the plug
might finally be pulled on a troubled Philly-based cyber school that had
siphoned a hefty sum of tax dollars. A
lengthy investigation by the state Department of Education determined that the Frontier Virtual Charter
High School
Tomalis said Craig had
until June 18 to notify the state if he and the school's Board of Trustees
would surrender the school's charter. Otherwise, Tomalis said, the state would
file charges to have the charter formally yanked.
Loch Ness
Monster real in biology textbook
This would be funny if it weren’t so, well, not funny.
A biology textbook used by a Christian school in Louisiana that will be accepting students with publicly
funded vouchers in the fall says that the Loch Ness Monster in Scotland
Is your State Rep. on the cosponsor list for HB
2364? If not, why not?
If they tell you that we should make it easier
to authorize charters or that they are already accountable enough have them
read this:
PA
Charter Schools: $4 billion taxpayer dollars with no real oversight
More details on HB
2364 from PSBA:
http://www.psba.org/news-publications/headlines/details.asp?id=3469
Education Voters PA @EdVotersPA
Please take 2 minutes to send an email to
your state reps; ask them to restore public ed funding:
STATEWIDE PRESS COVERAGE OF SCHOOL DISTRICT
BUDGETS
Here are more than 800 articles since January
23rd detailing budget cuts, program cuts, staffing cuts and tax
increases being discussed by local school districts
The PA House Democratic Caucus has been tracking daily press coverage on
school district budgets statewide:
June 29 is deadline to submit proposals for PSBA’s 2013
Legislative Platform
Your school board is invited to submit proposals for consideration for PSBA’s 2013 Legislative Platform. The association is accepting proposals now until Friday,June 29, 2012 . Guidelines for platform submissions are posted on
PSBA’s Web site. The PSBA Platform Committee will review proposals
and rationale submitted for the platform on Aug. 11. The
recommendations of the committee will be brought before the Legislative Policy
Council for a final vote on Oct. 18.
Your school board is invited to submit proposals for consideration for PSBA’s 2013 Legislative Platform. The association is accepting proposals now until Friday,
Absentee ballot procedures for election of PSBA officers
PSBA website 6/1/2012
All school directors
and school board secretaries who are eligible to vote and who do not plan to
attend the association's annual business meeting during the 2012 PASA-PSBA
School Leadership Conference in Hershey, Oct. 16-19, may request an absentee
ballot for election purposes.
The absentee ballot
must be requested from the PSBA executive director in accordance with the PSBA
Bylaws provisions (see PSBA Bylaws, Article IV, Section 4, J-Q.). Specify the
name and mailing address of each individual for whom a ballot is requested.
Requests must be in
writing, e-mailed or mailed first class and postmarked or marked received at
PSBA Headquarters no later than Aug. 15. Mail to Executive Director, P.O. Box 2042 , Mechanicsburg ,
PA 17055
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