Education reform should include all voices

While there were several elements of Superintendent Tom Luna’s education legislation that I could support, ultimately I found the proposal to fall short and could not vote for it.

Primarily I was discouraged by the lack of input and concern for local stakeholders, including school boards, teachers, and superintendents, and as importantly, taxpayers.

The way the legislation is currently drafted, the changes would create several unfunded state mandates onto local property taxpayers.

Additionally, the proposals set up new and lasting entitlements that the state and local taxpayers will have to pay for through increased taxes. Those entitlements include a laptop for every high school student beginning in the 9th grade and payment by taxpayers of college credits for high school seniors who take dual enrollment classes.

Superintendent Luna’s pay-for-performance plan, which would give bonuses of $2,000 to $8,000 to teachers, fails to identify a funding source. The result is an additional burden upon local school districts already stretched by budget cuts. To implement this program as it stands, the result would either be firing some teachers to give other teachers’ raises or would require increased property taxes.

I simply cannot support increasing the burden on our local property taxpayers through statewide mandates, nor can I support poorly drafted legislation that will drive a statewide tax increase.

The actual wording of the bills significantly reduces local control, creating additional bureaucracy and paperwork for local school districts. One of several odd requirements that apparently have nothing to do with education reform is that school districts tell teachers and substitute teachers about their options for liability insurance and go through a cumbersome paper process to prove that they distributed, and the teacher, received the information. This is a solution in search of a problem.

I am also disappointed in the superintendent’s unwillingness to even attempt to work cooperatively with teachers that adds to at least the perception that his proposals are meant as an attack on them. Our local districts have been successful in creating partnerships between superintendents, school boards, parents and teachers to truly put students first and develop successful classroom environments.

Thousands of citizens from taxpayers to educators have come to the Statehouse and many of you have written me to ask that we take a step back and consider all the options. Many proposed provisions won’t come into effect until after next year’s legislative session or beyond. Why not take a year to have a discussion with all stakeholders and fully consider the impact on taxpayers?

It is for those primary reasons I voted no. I continue to believe that if the time was taken to do it correctly, rather than hastily crafted last minute plan that has been placed in front of us, we can achieve the goals we share.

As always, I welcome your input in the legislative process. Please share your thoughts by calling me at 1-800-626-0471 or e-mailing skeough@senate.idaho.gov.