Post-Election

January 2005

What Now?

The post-election bad news: budget woes, vouchers, and a blurred line between church and state. The good news: A golden opportunity to reshape the Republican Party.

The votes have been counted, the analyses rendered, the congrats passed along to newly re-elected President George W. Bush. Now, says NEA President Reg Weaver, the real work begins—and seeking common ground with the Administration in the name of great public schools tops the NEA agenda.

But first draw a deep breath. The President's own plan calls for, among other things, the partial privatization of Social Security, a fight to secure a role for faith-based charities in government programs, a renewed push for private tuition vouchers, and expansion of the so-called No Child Left Behind law (NCLB), including more high-stakes testing in high schools.

More daunting: Public education, which barely surfaced as a voter concern in November, must compete head-on in the next budget with other domestic programs, to a backdrop of record budget deficits, supplemental appropriations for the Iraq war, and Administration plans to extend existing federal tax cuts.

Not bleak enough? NEA chief lobbyist Randy Moody says labor organizations, which largely backed the presidential candidacy of John Kerry, can likely expect anti-union legislation, microscopic federal audits, and Administration attempts to privatize government work "at every opportunity."

But Moody, a longtime Republican, says NEA members don't have to accept the rightward drift of GOP policies. NEA Republicans, who comprise one-third of the Association membership, need to become much more active in the GOP, "from the precinct level up to change this from a party with an anti-public education majority to one with a pro-public education majority."

A precedent for this realignment already exists in Congress, Moody points out. Republican (and Democratic) moderates have consistently opposed school vouchers and "realized the importance of federal education programs; they don't want to see them dry up," he notes. "They recognize how federal support for Title I and special education programs are key to the financial solvency of states and school districts." NEA will build on that bipartisan support in the GOP-dominated 109th Congress by lobbying in these key areas:

Federal funding. Push to maximize federal funding for public education, particularly for Title I, IDEA, teacher quality, Pell Grants, E-Rate, and other critical programs. Work to block any newly proposed subsidies of private and religious K–12 education and minimize further erosion of the federal government's overall revenue-raising capacity.

No Child Left Behind law. Advance a proactive agenda in anticipation of Administration high school "reform" efforts and the congressional reauthorization of NCLB in 2007. Seek funding needed to effectively implement NCLB requirements and work to alter the definition of "highly qualified teacher" to include teachers with full licensure/certification under state standards. Work to give states more flexibility in measuring schools' "adequate yearly progress" and in applying sanctions to schools identified as needing improvement. Seek provisions that would require supplemental service providers to fully comply with federal civil rights laws and that would require states and local school districts to fully fund the costs of testing, continuing education, and training of paraeducators seeking to meet new quality standards.

Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision. Work for their full repeal, while opposing mandatory Social Security coverage. Fight to ensure economic security of retirees, through maximized benefits or preservation of at least the benefit level provided by the current system. 

Teacher preparation programs. Lobby for support of quality innovations such as distance learning and increased program access, including strengthened student aid, in the upcoming congressional reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.

Tax relief. Seek to increase, expand, and make permanent the teacher tax deduction for out-of-pocket expenses; aim to increase and expand Qualified Zone Academy Bonds for school modernization; and work to promote tax credits for teachers in high-need areas.

Health care and prescription drugs. Work to counter burgeoning costs and promote access to affordable health insurance plans by NEA members, children, and the public.  

Vouchers. Fight to block passage of measures that would divert public resources to private, religious, or home school K–12 use. Fight any nationwide voucher or voucher demonstration program and any federal tax credits or deductions for private, religious, or home school K–12 expenses. Work to "defund" vouchers for District of Columbia schools.

For more on NEA's legislative program, go to www.nea.org/lac.

Winning at Home

NEA affiliates score impressive gains in state races, ballot initiatives.

• Pro-education candidates backed by the Colorado Education Association gained control of both the state House and Senate, while in Montana, MEA-MFT-backed candidates swept statewide offices, won two slots on the state Supreme Court, and gained a majority in the state Senate and a near-majority in the House.
• Evergreen State residents voted by a 59 percent margin to support an initiative, backed by the Washington Education Association, to repeal a charter school law recently passed by the legislature.
• Nevada voters ratified an Association-backed initiative requiring the legislature to set the education budget prior to approving other program funding.
• Taxpayers approved three gaming-related initiatives backed by the Oklahoma Education Association—establishing a state lottery to fund public education, setting up a lottery trust fund for education, and creating a state tribal gaming pact.
• The South Dakota Education Association helped defeat a proposal that would have allowed districts to pay for transportation and food services in private schools.
• Maine voters defeated a proposal to set a strict cap on property taxes, which would have undermined education funding.
• Florida and Nevada voters ratified increases in the minimum wage, a big boost for underpaid education support professionals.

Bye-Bye Secretary Paige.
Hello NEA Activist!

Photo by DigitalVision

Join the growing movement to fix and fund NCLB. A broad alliance, including NEA and 29 other education, civil rights, disability, and citizens' organizations, have forged a joint statement calling for essential changes—such as shifting the federal law's emphasis from applying sanctions for failing to raise test scores to holding states and localities accountable for making the systemic changes that improve student achievement (to read the joint statement and the list of co-signers, go to www.nea.org/neatodayextra). Do your part by educating politicians at all levels on the need for NCLB reform. NEA's NCLB expert, Joel Packer, suggests that educators document NCLB-related problems at the local level—such as seasoned teachers or paraeducators forced out by the law's "highly qualified" provisions—and "get state and local officials to advocate to Congress for changes in the law."

Chat it up with the neighbors. When they hear stories about the promise and problems of your school district, they're more likely to get involved in a movement for change. During nearly 4,000 NEA "house parties" across the nation on September 22, this networking successfully began, and teachers and support professionals now have thousands of potential new allies to rally around local needs.

Speak loudly—and publicly. At her house party in semi-rural Milton, Delaware, high school English teacher Angela Dunmore urged public education supporters to communicate directly with lawmakers—and for good reason. "For every phone call they get," she told her friends, "elected officials think there's 20 more out there like you." But don't stop there. Keep the heat on policy makers through letters to the editor, calls to local talk radio, education "conversations" with senior citizens and other community folks, and mass visits to school board meetings.

Support politicians who do the right thing. In the 2004 primary and general elections, NEA recommended 22 Republican hopefuls for the U.S. House and Senate "out of a total of 298 candidates," notes NEA chief lobbyist Randy Moody. That support can grow, but only if Republican educators "get active in GOP leadership, especially in the 'red' states," he says. "Our members can have a significant impact on party policy."