It appears the committee is trying to make up most of the shortfall with federal stimulus funds and by cutting the half of the budget that is not public education. However, with a shortfall exceeding 10% of the total budget that has become exceedingly difficult. It looks like the budget emerging from the House Appropriations and Finance Committee will cut an additional $40,000,000 from public school support!
We have been working with legislative leaders to make those cuts as painless as possible. We still have disagreement on just how deep they need to be, on how to make the best use of federal stimulus funds, and on exactly how the cuts should be made. The legislature's first attempt to answer these questions will be in the budget bill likely to move to the House floor this weekend.
However, any cuts will be painful as the legislature seeks to avoid increases in class size, layoffs of school employees, or reduction in work days for school employees. Everyone knows that we live in serious economic times and that mitigating rather than preventing pain has become the name of the game! As the budget begins to move to the House Floor and the Senate, we will keep working with legislative leaders to "mitigate pain." and keep you informed. For now, just keep urging legislators to protect public school funds and school employee benefits.
Follow this link to send an email on school employee health benefits
Follow this link to ask the legislature for adequate funding next year.
Some Good News
Senator Pete Compos agreed to permanently table Senate Bill 355. The measure was a back-door voucher bill that creates a new personal and corporate income tax credit for contributions to scholarship granting organizations called the “Equal Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit.” In NEA-NM's opinion, credit against income tax is considered a tax expenditure in that, while it is not a direct payment from the state to the taxpayer, the taxpayer reduces the amount of tax paid to the state. Thus this measure violates the establishment clause of the US Constitution and several provisions of the New Mexico Constitution. As an expenditure of tax dollars it is a violation of Article IV, Section 31 of the New Mexico Constitution, which prohibits a direct educational appropriation to any person, corporation, association, institution or community not under the direct control of the state. Additionally, the measure also violates Article XII, Section 3 of the New Mexico Constitution because it prohibits the use of public money for the support "of any sectarian, denominational or private school…"
Acompromise brokered by NEA-NM was voted on unanimously by the Senate Education Committee, Senate Bill 603, which does not violate our resolutions or the constitution! It is a simple income deduction of up to $500 for tuition paid by a taxpayer for the taxpayer's dependent children to a 501 3(c) chairty. This deduction is, like any other tax deduction, deducted from the taxable income of the taxpayer. It cost only about $200,000 annually (compared to $7,000,000 annually for Senate Bill 355.
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