Legislative Updates

 March 9, 2010

Legislators released their two budgets last night. As expected, charter students are slated to sustain cuts of $10 M regardless if the sales tax referendum passes; however, if the May one-cent  referendum fails, our students will be cut $31M.　 The cuts per pupil are:
• $10M cut - $88.19 cut per student based on 113,393 charter students
• $31M cut - $273.39 cut per student based on 113,393 charter students

With the budget release last night, the legislature is taking one day of testimony: TODAY!
The Association will testify before both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees today. We'd like to add your voice; the voice of your parents; and the voice of your teachers to ask legislators to consider the cuts to our students. Please tell legislators how the cuts will affect your ability to instruct your students. You can easily contact your legislators through our VotersVoice, which is the most effective means of communication since the legislators control funding for our students. The Association is also here to hear your concerns, and you can contact me via e-mail at eileen@azcharters.org or phone at 602.944.0644 ext:308.
 
Charter students are underfunded, on average, $1,624, from their district peers, according to the recently released 2008-09 Superintendent's Report. As the legislature considers cuts to education, legislators should remember the existing disparity and that some districts and charter schools have no access or limited access to additional revenue streams.
 
We will have more information available for our members through our weekly Wednesday emails; however, we wanted to get out this message to all our charter schools due to the short turnaround in taking testimony on the effects of these budgets.



March 5, 2010

49th Legislature, Second Regular Session of the Arizona State Legislature
Legislative Update - Week 8  March 1 – March 5, 2010

Race to the Top:
On Thursday, March 4, the Obama administration announced the finalists for phase one of the Race to the Top grants, totaling $4.3 billion.  Arizona was not one of these finalists, but will be eligible to apply for funds in phase two. The state is expected to reapply for the second round, which is due on June 1. Around $2 billion is expected to be available and a third round is also a possibility. States that receive money in the first round are not eligible for the second round of money.

Budget:
The legislative votes to pass a budget fell apart this week in the Senate.  The House lost its key 31st vote when Representative Frank Antenori was appointed Senator as Senator Jonathan Paton resigned to run against U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords.  In response, Governor Brewer has called a special session Monday at 2 PM to address the budget.

Currently, two budgets are moving forward: one reflecting the passage of the one-cent  sales tax and a second, more drastic budget, that does not include this additional revenue. 

Charter students are targeted for $100 per student cut, according to the Governor’s proposal.  Charter students are underfunded, on average, $1,624, from their district peers, according to the recently released 2008-09 Superintendent's Report.

We sent out an Action Alert this week, and legislators received over 200 emails from those who wished to voice their opinion that legislators should review a school or district’s total revenues per-pupil when considering K-12 budget cuts. Dollars from all sources must be considered in balancing budgets: not just one source of funds. Failure to do so will disproportionately impact Arizona's lower funded charter schools and school districts. The Governor's proposed cuts are not equitable and will unduly burden schools serving kindergarten pupils and are unfair to districts and charter schools that have no access or limited access to additional revenue streams.

A Look Back At Bills in Education Committees:
House Speaker Kirk Adams and Senate President Bob Burns suspended committee work this week to focus on the budget. In addition to the fiscal 2011 deficit, the current-year budget remains about $700 million out of balance.

A Look Forward At Bills Coming Up Next Week in Education Committees:
Committee meetings will again be suspended to focus on the budget.

Association-supported legislation:
HB 2514 passed out of the House in a unanimous vote.  Arizona statute allows a tax exemption for school district consumption of food and drink, but that tax exemption has not been extended to charter schools.  The Arizona Department of Revenue stated charter schools are taxed for the consumption listed in A.R.S § 42-5061, and the bill removes the tax for charter schools.

SB 1275 passed out of the Senate Education Committee 5 to 2 and is still awaiting rules committee hearing.  This bill creates additional authorizers for charter schools. The list of entities that may sponsor a charter school is expanded to include a state university, a community college district with an enrollment of at least 15,000 FTEs or a consortium of community college districts with a combined enrollment of at least 15,000 FTEs.

For more information on pending bills and the Association’s position, please review the weekly bill tracking list.

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