Following is an Advocacy Alert from the PTA of Garden City Schools:
Transformation and reform are the focus of Governor Cuomo’s NEW, New York agenda! The agenda calls for both a property tax cap and a state spending cap BUT FAILS to address the BIGGEST issues crippling the system: Pension and Retirement Benefits System, Tenure Reform, Unfunded State Mandates, and repealing state laws that are inefficient and out dated.
Here's what you can do:
1. Join your fellow PTA members across NYS to send a message to Albany. Follow this link and send an email today, through a free service offered by NYS PTA: CAP WIZ. It takes 5 minutes. Please click here to take action!
2. Join our Board of Education (and others on Long Island School Districts) in a grass roots letter writing campaign. Form letters and contacts can be found on the district website. Please click here to take action!
3. Send Albany a message on your own in your own words. Follow this link to a list of representatives.
Our School District is Facing Higher Costs and Less State Aid Due to State Legislative Decisions
Combined with a the loss of $1.3 billion in Federal Education aid severe cuts in education aid combined with a tax cap could result in staggering reductions in school staff, effectively gutting educational programs.
For Garden City:
- The Governor’s budget proposal decreases Garden City state aid by 13.61% or approximately $600,000.
- Over the last 5-years our district has seen a 25% reduction in state aid.
- GC’s contribution to NYS pension/retirement system is increasing 2.63% to 11.25% for teachers and administrators and increasing 4.5% to 15.9% for all other employees.
- Budget expenses (90% of which are contractual or mandated) are going up 3.19% year over year in the proposed 2011/2012 budget. A 2% cap, without addressing NYS mandated expenses, would only result in significant program reductions and increases in class size.
- Be a presence at Board of Education meetings. This is absolutely essential!
- Our Board of Education along with others on Long Island has joined to send a message as one voice – demanding responsible mandate reform before imposing a tax cap.
GCPTA and NYS PTA Making a Difference Together
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