Jul 1, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 1, 2020
Statement from Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association, on the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling on requiring in-person signatures for ballot measures:
“We are extremely disappointed by the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision today to reverse a lower court ruling that allowed signatures to be collected via email and mail in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. No one could have predicted the impacts the past four months have had on the world, including the ability for citizens to safely get an initiative on the ballot for the upcoming November general election.
“The idea of a fair and equitable tax system in Colorado enjoys broad support across the state. Restructuring the tax code would mean lower taxes for 95% of Coloradans, and Initiative 271, if passed by voters, would generate more than $1 billion in funding for chronically underfunded public schools. This is even more critical since the Colorado Legislature withheld a record $1.18 billion from students and educators during the 2020 Legislative Session.
“Today’s ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court demonstrates that the institution is out of touch with the realities of most Coloradans. If there was ever a time to enact innovative ways to carry on the work of our democracy, this is it. Today, the Colorado Supreme Court failed in its obligation to the people of the state of Colorado.”
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Jun 24, 2020 | Legal Update
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Jun 16, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 16, 2020
Public education saddled with a $1.18 billion deficit as elected leaders fail to come to agreement on ways to increase revenue for public education
DENVER – Colorado’s 2020 legislative session opened with public education facing a $577 million deficit before the economic crisis caused by COVID-19 ballooned the deficit to an unprecedented $1.18 billion. The 39,000 members of the Colorado Education Association (CEA) engaged in record activism to ensure that legislators heard from front-line professionals about what our educators, students and public schools need, highlighted by the need to make educator pay, ranked 49th in the nation, more competitive and eliminating the budget stabilization (BS) factor by 2022.
In addition to addressing educator pay and eliminating the BS factor, educators called for legislators to support public schools and education professionals by:
- Reducing educator workloads and large class sizes
- Increasing mental health supports for educators and students
- Prioritizing public schools over private corporations
- Updating the educator evaluation and accountability systems
- Prioritize all working families and union values
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, the Colorado Legislature once again cut public education to balance the state budget by more than doubling the BS factor to $1.18 billion. As public education funding continues to be cut, the needs of students and demands on educators continue to increase.
“CEA had a strong presence at the Capitol this session. In response to the new limitations placed on legislative engagement, our members took action, standing up for public education via emails, phone calls and social media activism,” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, a high school counselor and president of CEA.“We emphasized how this current crisis was not a singular occurrence. Public education has been in crisis for over a decade. We cannot afford to continue balancing the state’s budget on the backs of students and educators.”
Determined to address the inequities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing economic recession, CEA focused its efforts on policies that would provide more money into public education and provide educators relief by:
- Advocating for passage of an emergency tax relief bill
- Prioritizing classrooms over corporations by closing corporate tax loopholes
- Redirecting the money spent on high stakes standardized testing and the costly accountability system to support student needs
In the final hours of the 2020 session, House Bill 20-1420, Adjust Tax Expenditures For State Education Fund, passed but is nowhere near as impactful as originally introduced. The amended bill represents a watered-down version that will raise more than $100 million for public education versus the $750 million it was originally expected to generate over several years.
“It’s disheartening to have had several solutions that could have generated hundreds of millions of dollars in relief for Colorado students either killed or gutted,” Baca-Oehlert added.“If there was ever a time to find bold, creative solutions, it’s now. But the advocacy of our members did make a difference this legislative session and we will continue to advocate for funding solutions for the schools our students and educators deserve. We were encouraged that the legislature supported Coloradans by passing major bills including paid sick days, expanded unemployment insurance, whistleblower protections and a process to review the impact of COVID 19 on standardized testing, accountability, accreditation and evaluation.”
CEA thanks those legislators who were willing to bring forward bold and creative solutions this session. CEA members will continue fighting alongside public education supporters toward long term solutions, such as Initiative 271, that will provide much needed resources for Colorado students.
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May 29, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 29, 2020
DENVER – Statement from Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association, on the killing of George Floyd and racial discrimination and violence in America:
“As a union of over 39,000 educators in Colorado, we stand in solidarity with those fighting racial, social, and economic injustice. We will stand and fight for people like George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor because they deserve those who will stand and fight for them. Those in power who allow this to continue must be held accountable. Our children are watching.
“The events over the past several weeks highlight the need for us, as a society, to take a good look in the mirror and ask ourselves, ‘who do we want to be?’ and ‘who do we want our children to become?’ This nation was founded on the principles of the“land of the free,” but that hasn’t been the case for people of color. We must stand together and fight to dismantle these racist systems because, if we don’t, who will?
“As we grieve for innocent souls like George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and countless others who were murdered at the hands of those paid to protect us, we must recognize the institutional and structural racism and white privilege that exists at all levels. In our own schools, Black and Latinx students are more likely to be referred to law enforcement than their white peers. This is wrong and must end. The time is now.
“We want to make it clear: We stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and the protestors who stood against police violence on people of color yesterday in Denver. We also condemn any backlash and treatment against the protestors. The systemic problems that allow this in our country is the problem; not those who choose to stand against it.”
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May 22, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 22, 2020
DENVER – Statement from Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association, on assessment from the Joint Budget Committee that K-12 public schools could lose additional $577 million or more:
“Students who will have more academic and mental health needs when they return to school cannot be expected to grow and thrive under the public education cuts proposed by the Joint Budget Committee. It’s unfathomable that Colorado could withhold $1.15 billion in a single school year ‚Äî the largest Budget Stabilization Factor ever ‚Äî from students who are experiencing trauma from a pandemic and from an education system that has already suffered from more than $8 billion in cuts over the last decade.
“Legislators know our school districts cannot count on the one-time $500 million in federal funds for their day-to-day operating expenses. The Legislature must return next week ready to pass the emergency tax provision in TABOR to provide immediate school revenue and tax relief for 95% of Coloradans. Legislators should pause the costly accountability system and eliminate other areas of K-12 spending that do not help our students thrive. The Legislature must be prepared to make cuts to other departments so that our students and educators are not once again bearing the majority of the burden.
“Coloradans support raising revenue for schools, not cutting resources. CEA’s new public polling reveals that most voters ranked K-12 public school funding as one of the last areas to cut. When offered possible options to close the state’s budget shortfall, 81% of voters preferred increasing taxes over cutting public school funding, with 68% preferring to increase taxes only on those making more than $250,000. All Coloradans can make their voice heard by demanding our senators in Washington pass the HEROES Act for state budget relief, and by encouraging their family, friends and neighbors to support Fair Tax Colorado for a fair tax policy for all. Voters must approve Initiative #271 in Election 2020 so our students, educators and public schools don’t continue to suffer from yet more devastating budget cuts.”
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