Education

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Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced his support Tuesday for a bill sponsored by Sen. Bob Huff that would end the practice of laying off teachers strictly based on seniority, quickly drawing criticism from the state's powerful teachers unions.

The legislation would allow districts to lay off and transfer teachers based on effectiveness and subject need. Currently state law requires such employment changes to be made based on seniority.

The proposal, SB 955, will be debated in the Senate Education Committee today in an urgency hearing called by chairwoman Gloria Romero, D-Los Angeles, who supports the legislation.

"When we are thinning the herd, why are we just focusing only on how many years you have in place, instead of looking at who are the energetic young teachers? Why are we getting rid of them, rather than someone who probably should have retired 10 years ago?" asked Huff, R-Glendora.

But the California Teachers Association argues the measure would lead to cronyism and discrimination in layoff and rehiring decisions, resulting in schools losing years of experience. They said it also would eliminate due process for teachers.

"Nothing in this legislation will solve the problems in schools. The real problems our schools are facing are budgetary. They are just using this as an opportunity to scapegoat teachers," CTA spokeswoman Sandra Jackson said.

The CTA quickly launched a lobbying effort to kill the

legislation. And in an election year, the group may find success among Democrats who typically rely on union