An email from Mónica García, President – Los Angeles Board of Education
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Dec 8, 2011 :: As you may know, on November 16th the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) declared that the California General Fund in 2011-12 would be $3.7 billion below the level assumed in the budget package passed in June 2011.
The immediate $3.7 billion shortfall translates into $2 billion of trigger cuts to various state programs, and over $1.1 billion in cuts to K-12, including $248 million in home-to-school transportation (school busing) statewide.
Altogether, 85% of the possible state cuts are aimed at education (K-12 and higher education). The actual trigger cuts will be made based on the revenue projections from the LAO report and the upcoming California Department of Finance, which will be announced no later than December 15.
What does this mean for LAUSD students...
For LAUSD, the impending trigger cuts are approximately over $150 million, which includes $38.2 million in cuts to school busing.
The cuts to transportation could eliminate home-to-school transportation effective January 1.
The $150 million in cuts is equivalent to approximately 1,700 full year positions (but we are already halfway through the year, so to achieve this reduction, the effect would be double that number).
FOR LAUSD BUSING THE CUTS COULD MEAN:
- Eliminating transportation funding for ALL students in the Magnet Programs, or
- Eliminating transportation funding for students with special needs for the remainder of the current school year, or
- Eliminating half of our 1,640 bus routes for the remainder of the current school year, or
- Transporting students to school in the morning, but not being able to bring them home.
These are only a few potential scenarios on the impact of the budget cuts to school busing.
The cuts disproportionally affect our poorer students and special education students.
CALL TO ACTION
SEND A LETTER TO GOVERNOR BROWN ASKING HIM TO STOP THE CUTS TO HOME TO SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION
Attached is a draft letter opposing the potential Home to School trigger cuts. The letter was prepared by the California School Employees Association (CSEA) and is addressed to the Governor and the Director of Finance and will be cc’d to all the members of the Legislature.
Several union leaders, school district officials and student transportation service providers will be signing this letter. I will sign-on, as well.
CSEA has agreed to allow other groups to use this as a template in case your organizations are interested in sending similar correspondence to your State representatives.
Send a letter to Governor Jerry Brown and urge him to reexamine the proposed cut to school transportation and search for alternatives that would not have such a disproportionate impact on our students’ future.
THESE TRANSPORTATION CUTS TAKE EFFECT January 1.
Send letters to:
The Honorable Jerry Brown
Governor, State of California
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814
Ana Matosantos,
Director, California Department of Finance
State Capitol,
Sacramento, CA 95814
Fax letters to: (916) 558-3160
To submit your letters by email: click here.
More information
More information on the cuts please click here.
In the spirit of hope,
/s/Mónica
TEMPLATE FOR LETTER TO GOVERNOR
December 8, 2011
The Honorable Jerry Brown
Governor, State of California
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814
Ana Matosantos,
Director, California Department of Finance
State Capitol,
Sacramento, CA 95814
Re: Opposition to School Transportation Trigger Cuts
We are writing to express our strong opposition to the proposed “trigger” cut of up to $248 million to home to school transportation. This cut will have a devastating impact on school transportation services across this state, and will put the safety and lives of public school children at risk. This deep cut disproportionately impacts California’s neediest students, including students with disabilities and those who are economically disadvantaged.
If pulled, the impact of these cuts will be felt immediately, including:
- Putting small school children in harms way. These cuts will force small children to walk miles to school, often in horrible weather. In many rural areas, public transportation is not an option and the roads are very dangerous for them to walk alone on. Elsewhere, children will have to walk through dangerous neighborhoods and on busy streets to get to school. Children walking alone on the streets of California are also exposed to the risk of being approached by child predators.
- Forcing parents to make unthinkable choices. Parents may be forced to drop their children off at school before it opens, with the children left on campus unattended. Other children will not attend school at all. Some parents may be forced to choose between their jobs and ensuring that their children make it to and from school safely. This is not a choice any parent should have to make
- Stressing our already fragile economy and high unemployment rate with the mass layoff of school bus drivers. We should be protecting jobs that support our economy and not adding to our economic problems by laying off bus drivers and putting them on the unemployment line. In fact, school districts with higher unemployment rates a faced with a bigger cut should the trigger be pulled.
- Reducing school funding because of a drop in attendance. Denying children home to school transportation services will inevitably lead to a drop in school attendance. As a result, schools will receive even less education funding from the state. This creates a downward funding spiral for many of California’s neediest school districts.
For all of these reasons, we urge you to reexamine the proposed cut to school transportation in the event that the “trigger” must be pulled and search for alternatives that would not have such a disproportionate impact.
Sincerely,
(NAME, TITLE)
cc: All Members, California State Legislature
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