This bill had executive action by its House committee and may be on its way to the floor of the House. If you have time, you can still have an impact by making a comment with your legislators. Talking points are below. It is best to write your own comment, in your own words. Mass emails with the same wording do not receive much attention by the legislators or their aides.
NAME/NUMBER OF BILL: HB 1590 Funding of schools to address enrollment declines from Covid-19.
Click HERE to leave your comment with your 3 legislators (senator and 2 representatives).
Enter in your comment: You oppose this bill because…
-the bill uses prior enrollment numbers for school funding rather than actual current enrollment
-it gives money to schools for “empty seats”
-this bill would bail out schools that have made poor decisions about curriculum and mandates and as a consequence, have lost students
We cannot give extra money to school districts that have lost students. Parents have pulled their students from public school for many good reasons. Many parents disagree with the equity and sexed curricula, others are dissatisfied with low academic achievement, remote learning and Covid rules. These school districts should live within their means. Public schools have plenty of money. The state education budget exceeds $17 billion, teacher pay and benefits now average $120,000 per year and schools receive, on average, $16,800 per student, which is more than the tuition at most private schools. With record inflation and the public tax burden at record highs, state officials should not be providing funding for empty classroom seats. Please say NO to HB 1590.