FIGHT FOR FAIR FUNDING FOR SCHOOLS, by JOHN ALDEN. 

-- John Alden of San Rafael is the chair of the Marin Democratic Party.  He can be reached at johnalden@comcast.net

   Schwarzenegger campaigned for governor on a promise to support schools.  But so far, he has done nothing but slash school funding.

CALIFORNIA FACED a mammoth budget crisis last year.  State services of all kinds faced cuts.  The education community agreed to accept a one-time suspension of the Proposition 98 guarantee, which amounted to a $2 billion cut as its fair share.

In exchange, the governor promised that if revenues increased, the cuts would be repaid.  But when the time came for him to honor this promise, he broke it by not only proposing a budget that failed to pay back the Proposition 98 guarantee, but shifted more costs to public schools.

To make matters worse, he has also proposed that the state abandon its responsibility for the statewide teachers retirement fund (CalSTRS), which provides retirement and disability benefits for 754,000 teachers in California.  Instead, he wants our school districts to bear that responsibility, which will shift millions more in costs to schools.

Added to the mix is a vague, un funded and unpopular proposal for teacher merit pay, further increasing the financial burden on schools.

Schwarzenegger campaigned for governor on a promise to support schools.  But so far, he has done nothing but slash school funding, which is now down nearly $10 billion from four years ago. According to Education Week, California is now 44th among the states in per pupil funding.

Only ONE PERCENT of STUDENTS IN CALIFORNIA attend schools that spend at least the NATIONAL AVERAGE of $7,734 per student. And California spends only 3.5 PERCENT of its total taxable resources on education, compared with a national average of  8 PERCENT.

These cuts in funding have taken a terrible toll on the quality of education offered.  Our student-to-teacher ratio is second worst in the country, and our counselor-to-student ratio is the worst.  Stories of schools lacking books and supplies and cutting key programs have become daily reading in our newspapers.

How can we make a difference?  Democrats in Sacramento are already fighting these proposals.  But they need your help to succeed.  Let your elected officials, from your local school district up to your legislators, know that you will stand by them as they fight the governor for fair funding for schools.  And write to the governor to urge him to keep his promise to fund education.

Showing your support for schools now is especially important because the governor has promised to put these issues on a special ballot in November if he can't win the in the Legislature.  In fact, a proposal to privatize teacher retirement is already in the pipeline to qualify for the ballot.

Proposals from his Republican allies to weaken Proposition 98's guarantees to schools are also headed for the ballot.

A special election will cost another $50 million, money we could be spending on education.  So, even if we prevail in Sacramento, we still have a fight at the ballot box this fall.

Locally, Democrats are organizing to fight for education.  Several regional Democratic organizations are planning a forum in the spring to discuss the propositions Schwarzenegger has proposed for the ballot.

here in Marin, we are preparing to organize volunteers and raise funds for a November campaign.  You can keep track of these activities on our web site:  www.marindemocrats.org

These issues will dramatically shape the future of education in California for years to come.  If you care about the education of our children, this is the year to do your part.  Write to our elected officials, stay informed and get ready to volunteer this fall.