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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for June 29, 2015:
Education
funding debate highlighted budget’s first Senate step
Just a heads-up that the PA Ed Policy Roundup may be intermittent
and/or late this week while some of us pretend we're on vacation
“Sen. Daylin Leach
(D-Montgomery) called the Republican agreed-to budget and the debate on its
merits “kabuki theatre.” “This is never
going to become law, this whole budget…because there is nothing of the
governor’s priorities in this budget,” he said. “Rather than going through this
exercise, I’d rather we continue negotiating and try to come up with an actual
plan to move the ball forward for all people of Pennsylvania.” Republicans have spreadsheets showing their
budget invests $370 million in basic education spending more than the current
fiscal year’s budget. The Wolf administration and legislative Democrats have
contended the actual number is only $8 million.”
Education
funding debate highlighted budget’s first Senate step
The PLS
Reporter Author: Jason Gottesman/Sunday, June 28,
2015/Categories: News and Views
The
first step for the Senate in the continued movement of a Republican crafted FY
2015-2016 spending plan saw the legislation move out of the Senate
Appropriations Committee along a straight party-line vote Sunday evening. However, the committee action was permeated
with debate over education funding after committee Minority Chairman Vincent
Hughes (D-Philadelphia) offered an amendment to fund education at the level
proposed by Gov. Tom Wolf.
It was
the second of three amendments Sen. Hughes offered to the budget bill.
“To say
that the education investment proposal in House Bill 1192 is reflective of the
needs and concerns of the people of the Commonwealth really does not make
sense,” he said. “It shows folks are out of touch with what’s going on in the
community.”
The ABCs of
school-funding formulas
KRISTEN
A. GRAHAM, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER Sunday,
June 28, 2015, 1:08 AM
Why does
the education-funding formula now being debated in Harrisburg matter?
Pennsylvania
is one of just three states in the country that lack such a formula, a
situation that has led, experts say, to the single most inequitable system of
allocating education dollars in the nation. But that might change if a proposal
by a bipartisan commission created during the Corbett administration is
adopted. In virtually every state,
legislated formulas govern how education dollars are divvied up, often solving
for differences in districts' ability to pay for their students' educations.
Read
more at http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20150628_The_ABCs_of_school-funding_formulas.html#uB2GoMC3T0FRADFx.99
Fair funding
formula can be a win instead of a stalemate
Pottstown
Mercury Editorial POSTED: 06/29/15, 2:00 AM EDT |
In
typical Pennsylvania legislative tradition, this week promises to be the most
active of the year in Harrisburg. The activity around the end of the fiscal
year, which falls at midnight Tuesday, rolls together everything the
Legislature should have been doing since the governor’s budget address last
winter. In recent days, the
Republican-controlled House has voted on a budget which Gov. Tom Wolf has vowed
to veto, and the partisan bickering over every topic from pension reform to how
liquor is sold is going at full tilt. In
the midst of the chaos, the Basic Education Funding Commission on Thursday
offered its report and recommendations for a fair funding formula.
The
bipartisan commission came up with a formula that would benefit poorer schools
in the Commonwealth, correcting some of the funding unbalance that has earned Pennsylvania a
ranking among the most failing states for equity in public education.
“Late Sunday night, the Senate voted 27-22 to approve a bill
that would create a statewide school district to oversee some of the
lowest-performing schools in the state. The
Achievement School District would be empowered to convert a school under its
jurisdiction to a charter school, among other options.”
Liquor overhaul, budget bills nearing
floor of state Senate
By Kate
Giammarise & Karen Langley / Post-Gazette Harrisburg Bureau June 29, 2015
12:00 AM
HARRISBURG
— Legislative Republicans on Sunday unveiled their plan to unravel the state
system of wine and liquor sales and began moving the bill toward Gov. Tom Wolf,
who opposes turning the business over to the private sector. In a rare Sunday session ahead of the state
budget deadline Tuesday, Senate Republicans moved both the liquor bill and a
GOP-crafted budget — which Mr. Wolf has said he would veto, in whole or in part
— through committee and toward the Senate floor. The House has already approved
the budget bill.
Two days
before the #PaBudget deadline, Wolf, GOP still separated by a common language:
Analysis
Penn
Live By John L. Micek | jmicek@pennlive.com Email
the author | Follow on Twitter on
June 28, 2015 at 9:10 PM, updated June 29, 2015 at 6:40 AM
He was a
tourist from Nepal - and unlike the rest of us, he was in the state Capitol
willingly on Sunday night to see how the sausage was made. State
Rep. Mike Vereb, a Republican from Montgomery County, was trying to give
the guy directions to the fourth-floor balcony above the state House chamber so
the visitor could get a first-hand peek at democracy in action.
Or, y'know ...
not. It took a little while, but eventually,
the two men, separated (to borrow from George Bernard Shaw) by a common language, finally managed to
reach an understanding. And the tourist was on his merry way.
It was
pretty much a central casting
metaphor for the not-quite-11th hour drama unfolding with the state budget.
Are budget
stakeholders being told to prepare for a budget impasse?
The PLS
Reporter Author: Jason Gottesman/Sunday, June 28,
2015/Categories: News and Views
As the
July 1 start to the FY 2015-2016 is fast approaching and the possibility of a
veto from Gov. Tom Wolf for a Republican-crafted budget plan looms, are
lawmakers telling those that rely on budget dollars to prepare for a long-term
budget stalemate? It depends on who one
asks. “Everybody’s
asking me what to do,” said Rep. Brian Sims (D-Philadelphia).
However,
he said he is not yet telling those who rely on state budget dollars to prepare
for the worst, fearing such a message would play into “scare tactics” of those
who might want members to vote on a budget they don’t necessarily agree with. “I refuse to carry somebody else’s spin,” he
said. As of now, Rep. Sims said he is
telling those who call him with concerns about their paycheck, pension, or
funding for schools in his district to reach out to Speaker Mike Turzai
(R-Allegheny) and House Majority Leader Dave Reed (R-Indiana). “Those two people have more of a say on those
three issues than anyone does,” he told The PLS Reporter. Senate
Appropriations Committee Minority Chairman Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia) said
he’s been telling stakeholders to prepare for the worst for months now.
GOP lawmakers
press state budget plan that risks Gov. Wolf's veto
Reading Eagle by The Associated Press Saturday June 27, 2015 12:01 AM
HARRISBURG
— The Pennsylvania House of Representatives approved an approximately $30
billion Republican-crafted budget bill on Saturday as the Wolf administration
and top GOP lawmakers positioned themselves for a government shutdown and the
first veto of an entire budget in at least four decades. The bill passed 112-77 after two hours of
debate during an unusual weekend session with just four days left in the
state's fiscal year. The bill now goes
to the Senate, where it is expected to pass the Republican-controlled chamber
as early as Monday. However, it faces a near-certain veto by Democratic Gov.
Tom Wolf, and without an enacted budget package by Wednesday, the Wolf
administration will lose some spending authority, particularly for a wide
variety of human and social services.
- See
more at: http://readingeagle.com/news/article/pennsylvania-budget-gop-lawmakers-press-plan-that-risks-governor-wolf-veto#sthash.6VGSbrZp.dpuf
Pennsylvania lawmakers
work through weekend on state budget
Delco Times By Mark Scolforo, The Associated Press POSTED: 06/28/15, 7:01 AM
EDT
HARRISBURG,
Pa. >> Pennsylvania lawmakers headed back to work in the Capitol on
Sunday with expectations the Republican majority may soon send the Democratic
governor a state budget and other legislation he appeared likely to veto. The House’s voting session, starting in
midafternoon, was likely to include some of the bills that traditionally
accompany budget legislation at this time of the year. The Senate was due in around dinner time,
with committee votes on the main state budget and a proposal to privatize the
state liquor system among its potential business. A $30 billion-plus state budget bill passed
the state House on Saturday, 112-77, with all Democrats and two Republicans
voting “no.” Under the Legislature’s rules, the Senate can’t vote on it until
Tuesday. Republicans touted their budget
proposal’s slight rise in education funding and that it lacked any tax increase
despite the state’s substantial structural deficit. Democrats argued it again
shortchanged schools after several years of inadequate state funding and
employed too many short-term fixes that would leave public finances on shaky
financial footing.
PA’s “Super Voucher”
EITC/OSTC programs will divert up to $150 million in tax dollars to private and
religious schools this year with no academic or fiscal transparency. It is anticipated that legislation
authorizing an additional $150 million may be part of the budget process
unfolding in Harrisburg. Some have also
called these tax credit programs the “new WAMs” as they facilitate lawmakers
being involved in bringing money to their districts…
Bucks company
gains tax credits by donating to schools
Philly.com Chris Palmer LAST UPDATED: Monday,
June 29, 2015, 1:08 AM
YARDLEY
McCaffery's Food Markets is to make $100,000 donations to two schools in
central Bucks County, the company announced last week, one to the Abrams Hebrew
Academy in Yardley, the other to St. Andrew's Catholic School in Newtown. The donations will be made under the state's
Educational Improvement Tax Credit program, the company said, which provides
Pennsylvania businesses with tax credits for donating to educational or
scholarship organizations. McCaffery's
was founded in 1986 and has four supermarkets - one in Yardley, another in
Newtown, and two in New Jersey. It is planning to open a fifth in Doylestown,
the company said. Rabbi
Ira Budow, of the Abrams Hebrew Academy, praised the company's owner, Jim McCaffery,
for the donation, calling him "truly a righteous person" who
"sets an example for all of us."
Don’t Miss Tuesday, June 30, 8 p.m. #FairFundingPA
chat on Twitter
You are invited to
join the next monthly Twitter chat with Pennsylvania’s major education
leadership organizations on Tuesday, June 30 at 8 p.m. They
will discuss details of the recommendations for a fair, school funding formula
made by the General Assembly’s Basic Education Funding Commission. Use hashtag #FairFundingPA to
participate and follow the conversation.
On the last Tuesday of each month at 8 p.m., the following organizations
go to Twitter to discuss timely topics, ask questions and listen to the
public’s responses:
- The Pennsylvania Association of School
Administrators (PASA);
- The Pennsylvania School Boards
Association (PSBA);
- The Pennsylvania Association of School
Business Officials (PASBO);
- The Pennsylvania Association of
Elementary and Secondary School Principals (PAESSP)
- The Pennsylvania Association of Rural
and Small Schools (PARSS)
Join the
conversation. Share your ideas, lurk, learn and let us know what you think
about the state’s support for public schools. It’s a simple, free and
fast-paced way to communicate and share information. If you’ve never tweeted
before, here are directions and a few tips:
Register Now – PAESSP
State Conference – Oct. 18-20 – State College, PA
Registration is now
open for PAESSP's State Conference to be held October 18-20 at The
Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel in State College, PA! This year's
theme is @EVERYLEADER and features three nationally-known keynote
speakers (Dr. James Stronge, Justin Baeder and Dr. Mike Schmoker), professional
breakout sessions, a legal update, exhibits, Tech Learning Labs and many
opportunities to network with your colleagues (Monday evening event with Jay
Paterno). Once again, in conjunction
with its conference, PAESSP will offer two 30-hour Act 45 PIL-approved
programs, Linking Student Learning to Teacher Supervision and Evaluation
(pre-conference offering on 10/17/15); and Improving Student Learning
Through Research-Based Practices: The Power of an Effective Principal (held
during the conference, 10/18/15 -10/20/15). Register for either or both PIL
programs when you register for the Full Conference!
REGISTER TODAY for
the Conference and Act 45 PIL program/s at:
Apply
now for EPLC’s 2015-2016 PA Education Policy Fellowship Program
Applications are
available now for the 2015-2016
Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP).
The Education Policy Fellowship Program is sponsored in Pennsylvania by The
Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC).
With more than 400 graduates in its first sixteen years, this
Program is a premier professional development opportunity for educators, state
and local policymakers, advocates, and community leaders. State Board of
Accountancy (SBA) credits are available to certified public accountants. Past participants include state policymakers,
district superintendents and principals, charter school leaders, school
business officers, school board members, education deans/chairs, statewide
association leaders, parent leaders, education advocates, and other education
and community leaders. Fellows are typically sponsored by their employer
or another organization. The Fellowship
Program begins with a two-day retreat on September 17-18, 2015 and continues to
graduation in June 2016.
Click here to read about the Education Policy
Fellowship Program.
Sign up here to receive a weekly
email update on the status of efforts to have Pennsylvania adopt an adequate,
equitable, predictable and sustainable Basic Education Funding Formula by 2016
Sign up to support fair funding »
Campaign for Fair
Education Funding website
Our goal is to
ensure that every student has access to a quality education no matter where
they live. To make that happen, we need to fundamentally change how public
schools are funded. The current system is not fair to students or taxpayers and
our campaign partners – more than 50 organizations from across Pennsylvania -
agree that it has to be changed now. Student performance is stagnating. School
districts are in crisis. Lawmakers have the ability to change this formula but
they need to hear from you. You
can make a difference »
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