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.