Yesterday the Arizona Supreme Court declined to accept jurisdiction of the special action petition filed by the Arizona Education Association this past November, which challenges laws enacted during the second special session of the 49th Arizona Legislature. The AEA will pursue the action in a lower court.

“The laws created are targeted at teachers’ rights and have already harmed public education in Arizona,” says AEA President John Wright. “These laws were passed behind closed doors without public debate. That’s why we are continuing our legal challenge – not only are the policies bad for our schools, but they were passed in an unconstitutional manner.”

Lawyers representing the AEA say that the Court’s decision is not based on the merits of the case presented by the organization. The Court merely declined to accept jurisdiction of the special action petition at this time without offering any explanation or reason for its decision.

The AEA anticipates moving quickly to another venue to argue the merits of its case while continuing to engage with legislative leaders who have the authority to address these policies during the upcoming session. Wright explains, “The AEA is confident that through public debate, whether in a courtroom or committee hearing, public officials will recognize that these policies are not right for Arizona’s public schools.”

Let us know what you think about the Court’s decision by leaving a comment below.

Today the Arizona Education Association filed a special action petition with the Arizona Supreme Court against Governor Jan Brewer and the 49th State Legislature targeting policy changes made in the 3rd special session of the Arizona State Legislature aimed at teachers and other school employees. The policy changes allow arbitrary reductions in salary, prohibit seniority as a criterion for reduction in force, eliminate deadlines for issuing contracts, and limit employee rights to engage in professional association activities.

John Wright, president of the Arizona Education Association, said, "These policies represent a complete abandonment of legislative leadership. The special session was called to address Arizona's budget deficit; instead, the legislature mysteriously determined that removing contract security and allowing salary reductions for career educators was a more appropriate focus. The interests of Arizona's families, students, and economy were completely ignored."

The policy changes were passed by the legislature and signed into law by Governor Brewer as part of the 3rd special-session budget package. According to attorney Roopali Desai, HB 2011 violates the state's Constitution and thus is null and void.

Desai, an attorney from Coppersmith Schermer & Brockelman PLC., said, "In House Bill 2011, the Legislature violated the Arizona Constitution in at least four ways. The bill modified teachers' employment contracts in an emergency special session that was called for the purpose of creating a budget, even though the employment terms that were changed are not related to the budget.

"This violates provisions of the Constitution intended to prevent precisely what happened here---the use of a special session to pass unrelated legislation that likely could not have been passed during regular session."

The special action petition states that, "The Arizona Legislature exceeded its authority under the Governor's call for special session when it enacted Sections 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, and 76 of HB 2011, which modify existing legislation relating to the employment of teachers by public school districts. These provisions are not appropriations and are not related to the state budget. In addition, the Legislature's enactments fail to comply with constitutional provisions requiring single subject legislation and prohibiting impairment with contractual obligations."

An excerpt from the special action suit as it was filed with the Supreme Court:

I. SECTIONS 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, AND 76 OF HB 2011VIOLATE THE ARIZONA CONSTITUTION BECAUSE THEY ARE UNRELATED TO, AND GO BEYOND THE SCOPE OF, THE SUBJECTS IDENTIFIED IN THE GOVERNOR'S CALL FOR SPECIAL SESSION.

II. SECTIONS 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, AND 76 ARE VOID BECAUSE HB 2011 VIOLATES THE ARIZONA CONSTITUTION BY ENCOMPASSING MORE THAN ONE SUBJECT AND COMBINING UNRELATED LEGISLATIVE GOALS, WHICH ARE NOT EXPRESSED IN THE TITLE OF THE ACT.

III. SECTIONS 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, AND 76 ARE VOID BECAUSE HB 2011 VIOLATES THE ARIZONA CONSTITUTION BY COMBINING GENERAL LEGISLATION AND UNRELATED APPROPRIATIONS IN A SINGLE, NON-GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS BILL.

IV. SECTIONS 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, AND 76 VIOLATE THE CONTRACT CLAUSES BECAUSE THEY NULLIFY EXISTING RIGHTS AND BENEFITS IN PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS' EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS.

V. SECTIONS 16 AND 76 OF HB 2011 ARE VOID FOR VAGUENESS.

This week the real impact of the legislature’s inept management of the state budget is showing up in classrooms.

• Teachers have larger class sizes.
• School employees are forced to take furlough days.
• Districts have ordered freezes on purchasing instructional materials.
• Staff has been reduced and work that supports the instructional process is not getting done.
• School employees have had salary reductions and have been warned that if the legislature’s new budget makes additional cuts, the salaries levels in their current contracts may be reduced during the school year.

What is your story? How many kids to you have in our class? What is the impact on your job? How are your students impacted?

Speculation about what will happen in the State Senate today is running wild. Nobody knows if they have the votes. Anything could happen. They could pass the budget today, delay until tomorrow, or even delay until next week. Map to the Capitol

This is a very dynamic situation, and our ability to communicate and change plans at a moment's notice is essential to our success.

The schedule as it stands now:

Senate Gallery at 1:00 p.m.
If at all possible, be at the capitol and gather in the Senate gallery just before 1:00 p.m. today. Before you come, make a telephone call to your Senators and let them know you are coming in support of public education and will be in the gallery watching today. Ask them to introduce you from the gallery.

If the Senate does not have the votes and decides to adjourn for the day, an immediate communication will be sent out on this email list, Facebook, and Twitter. If you are coming to the capitol later in the day, check to see if there are any changes in plans.

Demonstration on the Mall at 4:00 p.m.
There will be a rally between 4:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. on the mall of the capitol beginning at 4:00 p.m. If the legislature is attempting to push out the budget today or have passed it by then, this demonstration will be a critical tool to stop the budget.

If the Senate adjourns, this rally may be postponed. Please watch for updates. Visit www.march4schools.com for the latest news.

The Senate is scheduled to convene at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, August 4. The Governor and Senate President Bob Burns are desperate to pass the budget tomorrow so the Governor’s sales tax can be on the November ballot. By all accounts the vote is extremely close and the budget has already passed the House. This is the last chance to stop this devastating budget.

We need you at the capitol tomorrow to let legislators know that we will not stand idly by and let them make massive cuts to our public schools. We are meeting in the Senate Gallery at 1 p.m. tomorrow and will hold a demonstration at 4 p.m. on the mall in front of the capitol. Your participation at one or both of these times is critical to stopping this budget! If you cannot arrive until later than 4:00 p.m., come and join us then. Visit www.march4schools.com for more information. Below are links with more information.

• Summary of Legislative Majority Budget Proposal
• What could happen if this budget passes
• Latest updates on budget news
• Call your legislators and the governor
• Email your legislators and the governor

July 31
8:00 a.m.

Despite desperate attempts by Senate President Bob Burns and Governor Jan Brewer, the Senate does not have enough votes to pass a budget. It is time for them to realize that this flawed budget does not deserve to be passed and to go to work through a bipartisan process on a new budget solution.

But rather than admitting this budget does not have support, they continue to use strong-arm tactics to force senators to vote for this partisan budget.

At 6:00 a.m. the Senate President finally told Senate members they could go home and sleep, but he did not adjourn the Senate. Instead, it is recessed until 1:00 p.m. this afternoon.

At 6:00 a.m. the governor and Senate President Burns were still holding Senator Pamela Gorman (R-Anthem) in the Senate President's office attempting to convince her to change her vote, although she strongly opposes the budget.

Minutes ago, the 1:00 p.m. meeting of the Senate was cancelled, and the Senate is officially adjourned until 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 4.

One hundred AEA March4Schools activists led by AEA Vice President Andrew Morrill kept vigil at the capitol during the process yesterday and there were still fifteen teachers, parents and education supporters in the gallery at 6:00 a.m. this morning when the Senate President finally recessed the Senate. When the Senate decided to recess, there were more education supporters in the gallery than Senate budget supporters on the Senate floor,

Constant March4Schools contact with key senators, testimony, and visible coverage by the media have helped support senators who are attempting to hold firm against this budget - a budget that contains massive education cuts and huge tax breaks for the rich.

Continued citizen action is needed to force the governor and Republican leadership to sit down with the Democratic leadership in the Legislature and negotiate a budget that moves Arizona forward in these difficult times.

Mark your calendars to be at the capitol Tuesday afternoon August 4 to continue the AEA March4Schools protest of the budget. Go to www.march4schools.com for details on exact times and logistics.

July 30, 8:30 p.m.

Appropriations Chair Predicts Future Special Session with Deeper Cuts to Education Even if Sales Tax Passes

By appointing a new committee member to get a quorum and making a deal with a Maricopa County Republican Senator to cut funds for the Rio Verde Project in Tucson, the Republican Leadership has found a way to put together enough votes get the budget bills out of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

In the process, Senate Appropriations Chair Russell Pearce explained that any revenue from a temporary sales tax would be used to help pay down Arizona's debt rather than restore any education budget cuts. The Governor says she wants to use any revenue that will be generated from her temporary sales tax referral to restore public education cuts that are included in this budget package. It is clear the language in the bill will allow the legislature to decide if they want to restore education cuts with the sales tax revenue or use it for other purposes. Based on testimony of Senate Appropriations Chair Pearce, even with the passage of the sales tax he plans on another special session with further cuts to public education and no restoration of education cuts.

This bill is becoming more flawed and harmful to Arizona and its economy in order to gain the support of extreme right wing Senators like Jack Harper of Surprise, Arizona. Harper opposed the budget because it included a sales tax increase referral. But he apparently agreed to support the budget package if a provision to cut off sales tax funding revenue to Pima County's most important economic development project was added.

The entire package of bills passed the Appropriations Committee on a party line vote.

AEA Vice President Andrew Morrill and AEA Republican Caucus Chair Chris Ackerley (Amphitheater High School Teacher) both testified to the damage that this budget will do to our schools, the damage it will do to our economy, and its irresponsible fiscal polices.

For a summary of the budget package and the harm this budget will do if passed, view AEA's website.

With the exception of the amendments passed in Senate Appropriations today, the budget has passed the Senate and House Appropriations Committees in identical form. If the House and Senate have enough Republican members to provide a majority vote on the floor (16 in the Senate and 31 in the House), the budget will proceed to the Rules Committee, Caucus Meetings, and the floor for a vote tonight.

If not, the process will stall.

Do they have the votes? Stay tuned and take action to stop this budget.

Take Action:
Call your legislators and the governor
Email your legislators and the governor
Join other March4Schools activists at the capitol www.march4schools.com
Watch the deliberations on your computer

July 30, 5:30 p.m.

It appears that Senate Republican President Bob Burns is once again struggling to find enough Republican Senators to pass a budget that includes massive cuts to public education and other vital services. So, once again he is attempting to manipulate the legislative process to get what he wants.

After adjourning yesterday and regrouping this morning with the Governor and House Speaker Kirk Adams, Burns scheduled the Senate Appropriations Committee to meet at 3:30 p.m. to get the budget passed and sent to the floor of the Senate. But when two Republican Senators who oppose the budget failed to show up today, there were not enough present to make a quorum for the committee.

To solve this problem, Senator Burns called the whole Senate back to the floor to appoint an additional member to the Appropriations Committee so there would be a quorum and the budget could be moved. But, there were only 15 Senators who attended the floor session, falling one short of a quorum for the Senate. Senate President Burns declared a quorum anyway and appointed John Huppenthal as an additional member of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

So, now the Appropriations Committee is meeting with Senator Huppenthal as a new member.

The question remains, do they have the 16 votes needed to pass this budget once it gets to the floor?

Take Action:
Call your legislators and the governor
Email your legislators and the governor
Join other March4Schools activists at the capitol www.march4schools.com
Watch the deliberations on your computer

6:00 p.m. 7/29/09

The House Appropriations Committee is passing a package of budget bills that punishes teachers by taking away some of the basic rights, gives huge tax breaks to the wealthiest Arizonans and largest corporations, and includes massive cuts to education. But, it is not clear if this partisan has the support of enough legislators to go any further.

Prior to the Appropriations meeting, over 100 AEA March4Schools supporters packed the lobby of the Governor's Tower and held an impromptu news conference where AEA Vice-President Andrew Morrill spoke for the majority of Arizonans who want a balanced approach to balancing our budget that supports funding for public schools and vital services through a fair and adequate tax system.

The AEA March4Schools news conference followed a news conference organized by the Governor, House Speaker Kirk Adams, and Senate President Bob Burns which was designed to put pressure on Republican Senators who are not committed to supporting this harmful budget. Interestingly, Senator Burns was a last minute no-show to the Governor's news conference fueling speculation that once again, the Senate is having difficulty getting enough votes to pass the budget.

Please come down and join our protest and contact the governor's office and your legislators asking them to oppose this budget. Learn more at www.march4schools.com.

You can watch on your computer here.

July 29 - 3:30 p.m

The House and Senate have convened and then recessed until the sound of the gavel while budget bills that will decimate the future for Arizona school teachers and children in are being drafted. Over 120 March4Schools supporters are gathered in the House gallery and House Appropriations Hearing Room waiting for the bill process to begin.

Details of the Republican leadership budget are becoming available. A "Budget Stabilization Bill" that has been drafted is specifically designed to take money from our schools and vital state services and put it in the pockets of the wealthiest Arizonans and largest corporations while increasing the sales tax that impacts working families and the middle class. This harmful bill will also pave the way for additional cuts to education and vital services that have been mandated by voters and, up to now, protected from the legislature by changing the constitution.

Here is a summary of the bill:

Marries a three year temporary sales tax to a three year spending cap. The temporary sales tax increase will be 1 cent in the first two years and ½ cent in year three. The spending cap will limit Arizona's under funded schools and other vital state services to the amount of expenditures budgeted in June of 2008. These two measures will be referred to voters as one question on the November 2009 ballot.

This bill will also include permanent tax cuts that benefit the wealthiest Arizonans and largest corporations. A combined personal income tax cut, corporate income tax cut, and school equalization tax cut will drain more than $650 million per year from our state, permanently. As an example, the personal income tax cut will give a tax cut of over $600 to a person who earns $200,000 per year, but only provide a $60 tax cut to a new teacher who earns $30,000 per year.

Refers to the November ballot a suspension of the "Voter Protection Act of 1998" for three years. This constitutional provision currently requires the legislature to protect funding for programs passed by Arizona citizens on the ballot, such as Proposition 301 that provides classroom funding through the collection of a previously approved sales tax.

The overall impact will be less revenue for the state with a huge budget deficit and under funded schools and vital services and huge budget deficit hole in future years that will force more cuts.

This is just one of several bills being considered. Other bills are not yet available, but will include massive cuts to public schools and other vital services.

The big question is: Do they have the votes?

Come join AEA March4Schools at the Capitol today and contact the governor and your legislators to help prevent this budget from passing.