Partisanship Intensifying as Session Winds Down

Last month on our website and e-mail network, PAGE presented members with both the House version of the FY 05 budget as regards salary and health benefits and the version put forth by Governor Perdue and the Senate. A record number of PAGE members have registered their views on the two plans, with the vast majority supporting the House version.

The House version would delay the 2% across the board salary increase until January 2005. It would also delay the new L-6 Step increase for veteran educators having 21 or more years of experience until January 2005. It would not delay any other step increases. The House version of the budget also includes funds to offset a projected 10% increase in health care premiums and House leaders say that their budget will make smaller cuts to the QBE funding formula, thus reducing financial pressures on school systems considering staff and/or programmatic cuts.

Governor Perdue and members of the Senate have presented budget plans which would provide for the 2% across the board salary increase and all step increases � including the new L-6 Step - to take effect at the start of the school year. They note that under their plan approximately 75% of all educators will receive a 5% increase when the across the board and step increases are taken into account.

Today is Day 39 of the legislative session and both sides remain far apart with regard to an agreement on the FY 2005 Budget. There is the possibility of a special session being required to resolve the budgetary differences.

It has been reported by the Georgia School Superintendents Association that last year, boards in 73 school districts raised property tax rates. Many of those increases were blamed on state budget cuts. A recent survey of 149 of the state's 180 school superintendents showed that virtually all of them expect tax rates to be increased or to remain the same this year. Respondents in 122 districts said they expected to make spending cuts, including job cuts in 116 districts and larger class sizes in 67.