Movement in Springfield. Pressure on IEA leadership.
If you asked Springfield observers a month ago about the possibilities of defeating the 2% increase in teacher contribution to their retirement system, the governor’s two-tier proposal for TRS and the increase in the state income tax, the answer would have been slim to none.
There now seems to be a shift.
It is no time to let up on the pressure and we have been encouraging every member of our local to hit the phones this weekend, possibly the final weekend before the end of the legislative session, and call their state reps and senators. The pressure may be working.
Maybe.
The 2% increase has already been pulled back by the governor.
There seems to be a growing legislative consensus to retreat on the two-tier TRS plan. There is some talk of setting up a commission to study the state retirement systems instead, a political exit strategy.
I’ve already posted about support for Senator James Meeks’ plan to increase the state income tax an additional half point over the governor’s proposal, dedicating a good portion of the increase to education and raising the per student foundation level.
This is all happening in spite of almost universal editorial attacks on teachers and the analog media’s lies about who pays for the teacher retirement system (teachers do).
Other unusual things have happened in Springfield this week. Even in the face of an all-out mobilization by Mayor Richie Daley in opposition, the legislature passed a version of Cynthia Soto’s anti-school closing bill.
Why is this happening? We have worked the phones, e-mails and contacts with state legislators. But we’ve done that before.
One thing that is different this time is that our IEA leadership has been as much a target as our legislators.
“Are you going to stand firm, even in the final hours of the legislative session?”
This has been our question every time we have talked with state union leadership and lobbyists. No excuses. “This is the best we could get,” won’t fly this time.
“Show some spine. Stand firm.” This has been the rank and file refrain.
So far, so good.
