News Release
Urge Congress: Pass Permanent Classroom Expense Tax Deduction
In
2002, Congress passed legislation giving teachers and
paraprofessionals a $250 federal tax deduction for out-of-pocket
expenses for instructional materials and classroom supplies. The
legislation represented an acknowledgment — for the first
time — that teachers and paraprofessionals are spending their
own money to equip their classrooms. The deduction expired at
the end of 2005, but educators can claim it on their 2005
taxes. Congress is expected to extend the deduction this year.
Representative Dave Camp (R-MI) has introduced
the NEA-supported
Teacher Tax Relief Act (H.R. 2989), which would make the
deduction permanent, increase it to $400, and expand it to cover
professional development expenses. Senators Susan Collins
(R-ME), John Warner (R-VA) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA) have
introduced the Senate version (S. 1621).
NEA
supports this proposal.
Tell your U.S.
Senators and Representative: Support the Teacher Tax Relief Act.
I'm ready to take action:
March 10, 2006
Not
Much To Celebrate on Fourth Anniversary of 'No Child Left
Behind'
NEA President Reg Weaver Evaluates Bush
Administration's Education Policy
WASHINGTON -- National Education
Association (NEA) President Reg Weaver issued the following
statement on the fourth anniversary of the so-called No Child
Left Behind's adoption:
"Four years of President Bush's signature education policy is
sufficient to weigh facts, examine data and understand this
so-called 'No Child Left Behind' (NCLB) Act through the
experiences of millions of education professionals across
America. If we distill these into one observation, it is that
the anniversary marks four years of winning rhetoric and failing
substance. From its inception, NCLB has been overemphasized,
under funded and sugarcoated at the expense of public school
children.
"New data illustrates our conclusion. It shows that more schools
failed to achieve 'adequate yearly progress' (AYP) under NCLB in
2005-06 than ever before. Schools that earned high ranks, honors
and distinctions for achievement and improvement under their own
states' models of standards and accountability failed under the
Administration's federal mandate, which leaves those schools,
their students, their parents and instructors discouraged, not
empowered. In remarks earlier this week in Maryland, President
Bush finally agreed with NEA in declaring that 'one size doesn't
fit all.'
"If Congress previously has accepted none of the blame for this
policy of artificial inadequacy, it cannot avoid it now. In the
final hours before its December recess, Congress adopted cuts of
more than $1 billion to NCLB, sentencing even more of America's
schools to failure on the fast track in 2005-06. The choice
represented the most blatant disregard for the futures of the
nation's children to date by our leaders.
"While many members of Congress have praised the so-called No
Child Left Behind Act in their stump speeches, they clearly have
little regard for it in this budget. When it came time to match
money with rhetoric, Congress voted to cut funding in support of
NCLB by $1 billion, which brings funding below the level
provided THREE years ago.
"NEA has sought to fix and fund the policy, issuing
recommendations to aid the Administration in eliminating
statutory flaws and establishing legislative funding priorities,
all for the sake of America's children for four years now. Our
data-driven recommendations remain on the table while public
school children across the nation fall farther behind. NEA has
joined with 66 other national organizations in calling for 14
specific improvements to the law. We strongly encourage others
to look at the facts and tell Congress that our children need
more than rhetoric."
Data illustrating state-by-state federal funding losses due to
recent budget cuts, AYP failures under NCLB, and the joint
statement from the 67 groups may be found at www.nea.org.
Jan. 11, 2006
Proposed
NEA/NY Merger With NYSUT
April 2005- Merger information
from the NEA/NY Website:
In an historic vote, the 2005
NEA/NY Delegate Assembly overwhelmingly approved a motion to
move forward with a merger between NEA/NY and the New York State
United Teachers (NYSUT). The new organization will be the
largest and most powerful state education union in the United
States and will be affiliated with the 2.7 million member NEA
and the 1.3 million member AFT.
The merger document, entitled Fundamental Beliefs to Create a
Single State Union, sets forth in broad strokes the shape of the
new organization which, when accomplished in 2006 will represent
97% of all education employees in New York State. The document
is the product of an intensive 10-month negotiation between the
leaders of the two organizations.
The margin of victory, 78% to 22%, was even larger than
anticipated with near unanimous support for merger outside of
the Buffalo Teachers Federation, NEA/NY’s largest local and
delegate block. The actual vote count was 398 to 111.
The more than 500 delegates who came to Albany from every region
of the state to participate in this historic decision made this
year’s Delegate Assembly the largest in NEA/NY’s history.
Several things still must occur before the merger is achieved.
In July, the NEA Representative Assembly in Los Angeles must
approve a bylaw amendment that will create a narrow exception to
one of its standards of affiliation in order to allow the merger
to go forward. Following that, NEA/NY and NYSUT must work out
many details relating to staffing and other issues in order to
effect the transition in a way that will be consistent with the
general guidelines set by the merger agreement. Finally, a new
constitution and bylaws for the single state union must be
written and then approved by the respective conventions of each
organization in 2006.
The NEA/NY Executive
Board feels that a merger with the NYSUT greatly benefits its'
members. Among the benefits are:
-
NYSUT has 450,000 members and NEA/NY
has only 35,000. Clearly, there will be "power in
numbers".
-
NEA/NY, due to a small membership
and escalating costs has had to continuously increase dues.
The merger will ease this financial burden for NEA/NY members.
Eventually, we would benefit from lower NEA/NY dues.
-
NYSUT has various program and
benefits. We will be able to avail ourselves of these and
other activities that NYSUT members currently enjoy.
In addition to the
unity vote, NEA/NY became the first major statewide organization
to endorse the candidacy of NYS Attorney General Elliot Spitzer
for Governor in 2006. The nearly unanimous vote followed a
rousing address by Spitzer to the convention and reflected the
delegate’s recognition of Spitzer’s numerous achievements as
Attorney General in fighting for economic justice and the rights
of working people.
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