BATs LEGISLATIVE ACTION TEAM WEEKLY UPDATE
NATIONAL LEVEL
On Monday, January 11th the Supreme Court will hear Friedrichs vs. CTA. In a nutshell, if the Court rules in favor of Friedrichs we will become a RIGHT TO WORK NATION. It is important that we all spread the word about this. Here are some materials that you can share which describe what this case is really about!
http://www.badassteacher.org/the-art-of-deception-friedrich-vs-cta/
http://badassteachers.blogspot.com/2015/08/the-deception-goes-deeper-friedrichs-vs.html
http://edit.aflcio.org/Blog/Political-Action-Legislation/What-s-This-Friedrichs-Case-Really-About
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/09/us/politics/union-fees-friedrichs-v-california-teachers-association.html?_r=0
http://www.thenation.com/article/this-supreme-court-case-could-make-all-public-unions-right-to-work/
STATE LEVEL NEWS
Massachusetts- Amy Wolpin
Charter School Expansion (H3804)
"A bill raising the cap on the number of charter schools allowed to operate in Massachusetts was passed in the House in the 2013-’14 session, but did not pass in the Senate. [Gov] Baker has come out in favor of raising the cap, as has Boston Mayor Marty Walsh. Both testified in favor of the bill in October.
In recent months, senators have been holding a series of closed-door meetings in an attempt to find common ground on the issue in the current session. On Monday [1/4/16], Senate President Stanley Rosenberg said he is trying to determine if there is enough support for the bill to bring it up, adding it is a “politically and substantively complicated issue.” The Senate may very well opt not to take up the matter this session, leaving it instead to the voters to decide. A referendum calling for the cap to be raised will likely be on the ballot in November 2016."
http://www.wbur.org/2016/01/06/key-2016-bills-massachusetts-legislature
Alabama- Terri Michal Rector
Sen. Del Marsh (R-AL) has released a bill he will propose in the upcoming legislative session beginning on Feb. 2. The RAISE Act is a Performance Pay scam that basically will pay teachers up to $4,000 a year in increased salaries and stipends to give up their tenure. It will also tie students assessments to evaluations through a VAM formula. Up to 67% of the teacher's final score will be based on student assessments. The bill also will allow for the revocation of tenure for new teachers that chose the tenure pathway instead of the performance pay pathway if they have two poor evaluations in a row. It does not stipulate any specifics on what actions will take place to aid teachers that are struggling, it simply states the teachers should 'seek PD' and that they will reimburse up to $1,000 for PD for teachers that score in the lowest category. Of course, since they can fire teachers that do not have tenure for any reason I doubt they will be dishing out too many thousand dollar bills. It also increases the number of years it takes to earn tenure from 3 to 5.
http://www.alreporter.com/marsh-unveils-controversial-tenure-reform-bill/
Hawaii - Mireille Christianne Ellsworth
Hawaii State Teachers Association announced last month its bill for Schools Our Keiki Deserve ("keiki" means children in Hawaiian). Our state president, Corey Rosenlee, announced tBadass Teachers Association: