February '09 Newsletter
February 1, 2009 -
January session started on January 5th with a Committee Chair training and, before I could catch my breath, I was smack-dab in the middle of the State's budget crisis. The next day brought a joint meeting of the Education and Cultural Affairs & Appropriations about the Governor's supplemental budget, meant to decrease the current budget to bring it in line with the money we're actually bringing in. Every single agency within the Education and Cultural Affairs came before both committees to share what the cuts would mean to their agency.
Those agencies are:
- Department of Education;
- State Board of Education;
- school finance, governance and administration;
- school budgets;
- school facilities;
- curriculum, instruction and assessment;
- teachers and administrators;
- special education and child development services;
- Governor Baxter School for the Deaf;
- career and technical education;
- alternative education, school choice and home schooling;
- truancy and dropouts;
- educational services at juvenile correctional facilities;
- adult education;
- Maine Education Policy Research Institute;
- University of Maine System;
- Maine Community College System;
- Maine Maritime Academy;
- postsecondary education finance and governance;
- student assistance programs at Finance Authority of Maine;
- and cultural affairs, including Maine Arts Commission, Maine State Library, Maine State Museum and Maine Public Broadcasting Corporation.
Over the course of the next two weeks, the Education Committee deliberated every item of the supplemental budget that falls under Education & Cultural Affairs' jurisdiction. I spent a good deal of my time trying to learn more about each line item, and where I could squeeze some more money out for every agency. I met with the Department of Education Commissioner Susan Gendron, ran different funding scenarios with Jim Rier from the Department of Education and met with legislators. In the end, I could not find substantial dollars, and the Education Committee voted almost unamiously to accept the governor's education cuts. Our major victory was finding enough money, $284,000, to save the cuts to Adult Education and thus avoided losing federal funding.
On Tuesday, January 27th, I voted with the majority of Senators to pass the supplemental budget (31-3). It was a bittersweet vote. It was my first roll call and to see my name light up was a rush. However, it was very difficult for me to vote for a budget that cut so much for education and health care, and will truly affect the life of every Mainer.
Another first from January was running my first public hearing. The second bill of the day, LD 96 "An Act to Authorize the Implementation of Modified School Year Calendars" brought every TV station from across the state. This bill would allow Commissioner Gendron to give municipalities authority to schedule the 900 hours of class time each year. School committees could then create four day weeks, could take of January when heating the school would be most costly or whatever they deamed fit. Of course their are major downsides, like parents figuring out childcare, union contracts and athletic challenges. Please email me what you think.
Before I close my January newsletter, my head out my hats off to the hardy Peaks Island Council who on January 28th still met (the entire state had shut down because of the storm). I ferried out to the Peak Island Council meeting and listened to council deliberate on their challenges with parking on the island (during storms) and on the mainland, about their wind power research, and how their housing work. Thank you to the Island Council!
Finally, please check out the bills that I have submitted this session. All bills had to be submitted by January 16th and many in the community had great suggestions that become bills. Thank you.
