A lot has happened since our last blog update: the DECIDE referendum (SCR 002) was passed by both the Senate Education Committee (after dozens testified in favor) and the Senate Finance Committee.
DECIDE -- which represents Colorado's last chance to avoid more crippling and irreversible education cuts for the 2011-12 school year -- now awaits House and Senate floor action in these last days of the legislative session.
The urgent need to pass DECIDE is the subject of a column in today's Denver Post, authored by three individuals representing Great Futures coalition organizations, Ricardo Martinez (Padres Unidos), Kristi Hargrove (Colorado PTA and Great Education Colorado) and Andrew Bateman (Associated Students of Colorado):
If our legislators fail to act, education will remain on the chopping block for the foreseeable future. Colorado will lag in its economic recovery as businesses seek locations with a strong commitment to public schools and colleges and universities, and a well-prepared workforce. Our communities will suffer when we cannot maintain the kind of thriving schools and colleges that attract and retain families and promote strong property values.
We know we face an uphill battle to secure the two-thirds vote necessary in the House and the Senate to put this issue before voters in November. We know it takes political courage to support DECIDE in an election year.
But we believe our legislators will do the right thing when confronted by $400 per student K-12 cuts statewide and the prospect of sending our higher education system off a funding cliff when federal stimulus dollars run out next year.
This is the homestretch for DECIDE -- the time for all legislators to tell us if they are ready to do the right thing -- to trust the voters and let us DECIDE what kind of Colorado we will provide for future generations.
This is your last chance to contact every legislator who does not yet publicly support DECIDE. Link here. |
