Friends, It has continued to be a busy time for me in preparation for the upcoming Short Session beginning in two weeks. The House and Senate rules limit what legislation we will undertake in this session (or every session would be a Long Session, I suppose). But, I expect it will be somewhat 'fast and furious'.
I do not have an opponent in the May 8 primary, but I ask you to vote FOR the Marriage Protection Amendment. Let's be clear, the only legitimate reason to vote "no" is if you want homosexual marriage. If that is the case, vote your conscience and we'll agree to disagree.
Don't be confused by the barrage of deceptive ads by those against traditional marriage. Let's consider briefly a few myths versus facts in this debate. The opponents of traditional marriage are using a 'divide and conquer strategy' with odd, conflicting arguments. They know that 30 states already have Constitution protection of marriage. It has passed every time voters have had that opportunity. Every scientifically sound poll indicates a wide margin of NC voters support marriage.
I ask you to apply common sense to their main two arguments. First, they admit that the amendment simply affirms current marriage law and puts it in our Constitution. They argue it is therefore unnecessary. Of course, we know the amendment is necessary to keep a liberal activist judge from trying to challenge the law as in some other states. There is already a lawsuit by an elected official in NC for not allowing "same-sex marriages".
But then, opponents argue that if the amendment passes, all sorts of terrible things will happen. Not only are these claims false, but keep in mind that the definition of marriage between one man and one woman is already the law. No one will lose rights when this amendment passes. These terrible things do not occur now, and they do not occur in the 30 states with constitutional protection of marriage. These false claims are only attempts to confuse voters to oppose the amendment.
Finally, they appeal to 'limited government' conservatives by claiming this is "big government overreach". The truth is that there will be a legal definition of marriage one way or the other. This amendment vote allows citizens to decide, rather than a "big government" activist judge or potential future legislature changing our marriage laws against the will of the people.
All credible polls show the supporters of traditional marriage leading by huge margins even with all the deceptive ads in opposition. But, we cannot depend on polls or take victory for granted. People must be sure to vote. Let's make a strong statement for traditional, biblical marriage. Vote FOR Marriage! For more information, go to www.voteformarriagenc.com. For "Myths vs. Facts", see http://www.voteformarriagenc.com/docs/nc_mythsandfacts.pdf
Announcements: Thanks to all who came out for the Marriage Protection Amendment rally at the Rockingham County Governmental Center last week. The Board of Commissioners voted 3-2 to approve a resolution supporting the Marriage Protection Amendment that evening. Thanks to Commissioners Keith Mabe, James Kallam, and Craig Travis for voting for marriage. There will be another rally in Yanceyville, in the courthouse square in front of the Old Caswell County Courthouse, this Friday, May 4 at 5:30 pm. Please join us if you can for a brief 20 minute rally to affirm biblical, traditional marriage between a man and a woman.
May 1, 2012
March 1, 2012
Legislative Update, Townhall Meetings Continue
Since the last newsletter, I have filed to run for a second term in the North Carolina House of Representatives. I will continue to run and serve on the platform of honesty, integrity and fiscal responsibility. Everyone is invited to examine my stand on important issues at our website, www.BertJonesNCHouse.com. I will continue to serve true to these principles that I believe the large majority of our district shares.
Because of redistricting which the Constitution requires, and the population shifts in our state, the new House District 65 is expanding in geographical size and welcomes our friends in Caswell County. District 65 still includes the majority (about 2/3) of Rockingham County and all of Caswell County. Because Rockingham has a much larger population, about three-fourths of District 65 is in Rockingham County.
District 65 shares Rockingham County with District 91. Because of Rockingham County’s size, we have two House members. The county is too large for only one representative, and too small for two by itself. So, we share District 65 now with Caswell, and share District 91 with Stokes. It is too much to explain here, but these county groupings were not randomly chosen. They were mandated by court-ordered laws that determined the larger statewide plan.
District 91 is represented by Rep. Bryan Holloway, my good friend and an excellent legislator. We are likeminded and enjoy serving together. Among other things, Rep. Holloway is a teacher by profession and serves as Chairman on the House Education Committee on which I am also fortunate to serve. With redistricting, some Rockingham County residents were shifted from one of these House Districts to the other. This was unavoidable. However, Rep. Holloway and I want you to know that we are both delighted to serve you together, regardless which side of the District line you live on.
You can see a map of the House Districts at www.ncleg.net. Click on “Redistricting” on the bar that extends across the top of the page, and then in a gray box you will see “Enacted District Plans”, including the NC House, NC Senate, and Congressional plans. If you have friends or family in Caswell County that would like to begin receiving this newsletter, please reply and let us know so that we can begin to serve them in this way.
On another note, many citizens in the Reidsville area in particular have indicated they would like an update of the upcoming Freeway Drive road expansion project. NCDOT Division Engineer Mike Mills has been very helpful in responding to our request for an informational public meeting, as have the City of Reidsville officials been very cooperative as well. The meeting will be at Reidsville City Hall on Tuesday, March 13 from 5:00-7:00 pm. It is not too late for us to offer good recommendations. For example, we recently were able to get a traffic light approved for the busy Ashcroft Dr. intersection, which was needed for traffic and safety concerns. I encourage you to come to this meeting if you have questions or concerns.
We have continued to have Townhall Meetings around our District, and other opportunities to speak with groups. There is one scheduled at the Wray Center in Eden, Sat. April 7 at 10:00 am. I have enjoyed these meetings, and am told that citizens have found them very informational. If you have a group that might like a presentation regarding our work in the General Assembly or a townhall style meeting, please reply and let us know.
Because of redistricting which the Constitution requires, and the population shifts in our state, the new House District 65 is expanding in geographical size and welcomes our friends in Caswell County. District 65 still includes the majority (about 2/3) of Rockingham County and all of Caswell County. Because Rockingham has a much larger population, about three-fourths of District 65 is in Rockingham County.
District 65 shares Rockingham County with District 91. Because of Rockingham County’s size, we have two House members. The county is too large for only one representative, and too small for two by itself. So, we share District 65 now with Caswell, and share District 91 with Stokes. It is too much to explain here, but these county groupings were not randomly chosen. They were mandated by court-ordered laws that determined the larger statewide plan.
District 91 is represented by Rep. Bryan Holloway, my good friend and an excellent legislator. We are likeminded and enjoy serving together. Among other things, Rep. Holloway is a teacher by profession and serves as Chairman on the House Education Committee on which I am also fortunate to serve. With redistricting, some Rockingham County residents were shifted from one of these House Districts to the other. This was unavoidable. However, Rep. Holloway and I want you to know that we are both delighted to serve you together, regardless which side of the District line you live on.
You can see a map of the House Districts at www.ncleg.net. Click on “Redistricting” on the bar that extends across the top of the page, and then in a gray box you will see “Enacted District Plans”, including the NC House, NC Senate, and Congressional plans. If you have friends or family in Caswell County that would like to begin receiving this newsletter, please reply and let us know so that we can begin to serve them in this way.
On another note, many citizens in the Reidsville area in particular have indicated they would like an update of the upcoming Freeway Drive road expansion project. NCDOT Division Engineer Mike Mills has been very helpful in responding to our request for an informational public meeting, as have the City of Reidsville officials been very cooperative as well. The meeting will be at Reidsville City Hall on Tuesday, March 13 from 5:00-7:00 pm. It is not too late for us to offer good recommendations. For example, we recently were able to get a traffic light approved for the busy Ashcroft Dr. intersection, which was needed for traffic and safety concerns. I encourage you to come to this meeting if you have questions or concerns.
We have continued to have Townhall Meetings around our District, and other opportunities to speak with groups. There is one scheduled at the Wray Center in Eden, Sat. April 7 at 10:00 am. I have enjoyed these meetings, and am told that citizens have found them very informational. If you have a group that might like a presentation regarding our work in the General Assembly or a townhall style meeting, please reply and let us know.
February 1, 2012
Update on Education Spending: The Facts
The recent news has been saturated with Governor Bev Perdue’s withdrawal from her re-election campaign, and her call for even higher taxes and spending in our state. The 2011 legislature took office with taxes and spending at an all-time high, which was fueling the depressed economy and huge job losses. While we wish the best for Gov. Perdue personally as she leaves office, we also call for her to govern responsibly as she finishes out her term.
The governor has criticized the state budget in particular for "extreme cuts" to public education. It is time to get past the hypocritical rhetoric and look at the facts regarding the General Assembly's actual K-12 public education budget compared with Gov. Perdue's budget proposal for 2011-2012.
Teachers often remind us that Gov. Perdue has been no friend to teachers (or parents and students). She consistently supported the bureaucracy and liberal union leadership over the needs of classroom teachers, even choosing to furlough teachers and cut their pay rather than cutting the bloated bureaucracy. Now with historically low approval, the governor has withdrawn from her re-election campaign and is focusing her efforts on increasing taxes and demonizing the legislature which has been charged with the difficult task of cleaning up the fiscal mess in Raleigh. However, the polls have consistently shown that most NC voters are not “buying what she is selling”.
The bipartisan 2011-12 budget passed over her veto, with the help of five moderate Democrats. However, the governor and other liberals insist that an $800 million tax increase (a 16% increase in the state's share of the sales tax) was and is necessary to avoid dire consequences to the public schools.
In the last session with a Democratic legislative majority during the Purdue administration (2009-10), they had passed a $1.3 billion tax increase that sent an already struggling economy into record numbers of bankruptcies, foreclosures, and unemployment. Businesses left, closed, or cut employees as jobs were lost in droves. The nonpartisan Tax Foundation ranked NC in the worst ten states in the nation for businesses regarding taxes and regulations.
Perdue and her liberal allies in the legislature have consistently denounced the 2011-12 budget as devastating to public education (and other core services). This false rhetoric was compounded by the fact that the legislature inherited a budget in shambles with a $3 billion projected shortfall. Even with the highest tax and spend levels in state history, and even spending the $1.5 billion federal “stimulus” in the previous budget, the Democrats still had not given state employees and teachers a pay increase for three years running.
Regarding the 2011-12 state budget, let’s look at the facts: Once the liberals' political shell game is exposed, in reality, Governor Perdue proposed fewer real net dollars for K-12 public education in her proposed 2011-12 budget than the legislature actually adopted. (The legislature also mandated more percentage for the classroom and less for the Raleigh bureaucracy, but that’s another story in itself.)
Consider that the direct appropriation in the K-12 education budget was a mere 0.57% under the governor’s proposal. The numbers look like this: the governor proposed a total K-12 budget of $7.57 billion. The budget that passed is $7.53 billion. This also accounts for $65 million for the More at Four program (which sensibly was moved from the Dept. of Education to Health and Human Services) to make an ‘apples to apples’ comparison. The difference is $43.2 million (0.57%).
However, Governor Perdue's budget included approximately $300 million in unfunded mandates to the counties (and would have added a few more cents to our county property tax rate). Included in this, the governor’s budget would have shifted $74.5 million that had been the state's responsibility onto the local school boards. These items included $35.2 million for school buses, $4.6 million for tort claims and $34.7 million for worker's compensation, totaling $74.5 million.
The General Assembly's budget eliminated these unfunded mandates that our counties simply could not afford, particularly low wealth counties such as ours. As a former county commissioner, I know how such unfunded mandates wreck county budgets. It is a political shell game with tax dollars that the previous majority played for years, and another ploy to borrow, tax and spend more… grow government… and send our children the bill they will never be able to pay.
The governor and the old-style tax-and-spend Raleigh politicians wanted to continue this game, but they failed this year. Their rhetoric has been heated and they will not go quietly. But once you wade through the numbers and the politics, it becomes clear there were actually more dollars available for K-12 education than the governor had proposed. The big difference was that the legislature cut the bureaucracy… the pet of the governor and her liberal allies. Thus we hear their “sky is falling on NC education” mantra constantly. It just is not true.
The 2011 legislature also enacted a number of other notable accomplishments to improve the quality of education in our state. The legislature did the following:
1. We provided for enhanced student enrollment growth in its budget (the governor did not).
2. We removed the cap on charter schools, in response to the heavy demand of parents for this option. Over 20,000 students were on waiting lists, and the previous legislature refused to address this basic parental right to make the best choice for their own child.
3. We eliminated unnecessary End-of-Grade tests, which many teachers and parents agree wasted valuable class time and promoted a ‘teach to the test’ mentality rather than true learning. Now we have only those tests required by federal law. Schools are using true assessments based on national norms to measure student achievement with ACT tests in 8th, 10th and 11th grades.
4. We produced a net gain of state supported teachers despite balancing the budget and eliminating the projected budget shortfall. The reports confirm that the number of state funded education employees actually increased by 3.7 percent (4,720). It is true that federally and locally funded positions decreased by a total of 9,407. People should also realize that many vacant positions were eliminated, and historically there is always considerable turnover. Also, this decrease would have been far greater if Gov. Perdue's $74.5 million “money grab” from local school boards had occurred.
5. We particularly increased teachers up to the third grade level, to emphasize the need for children to learn to read. Too many children fall behind early and never catch up. The poor readers are much more likely to drop out… one-third of ninth graders never graduate. Of those that do graduate and go to college, 60% must take remedial courses. SAT scores have declined, even as the scoring system was changed to inflate the scores. Just spending more money has not addressed this problem… it has worsened over the years as the bureaucracy continued to grow.
6. We passed new legislation to offer educational tax credits to families of children with particular disabilities that allows the parents to choose the best educational avenue for that child. This is a win-win situation: it is better for the child, and also can save significant money to the local school system in many instances. It is being touted as a national model.
7. We provided teachers with the liability insurance they need at no cost to them… saving teachers up to $400 a year. What was happening was that the previous legislature refused to provide the insurance, and many teachers felt forced to pay bloated union dues to get the coverage. The legislature had actually passed a special law to force state employees to do the work of collecting the union dues through automatic deductions, and the teachers would never see the money. Then, a portion of their dues could be funneled to liberal politicians through the NEA/NCAE political action committee. This group had spent $3.5 million to elect Gov. Perdue, and 99% of NCAE PAC dollars went to Democrats (although polling shows that more teachers say they are conservative than liberal).
Such manipulation was deplorable, and underscores the need for reform. It is time to get the politics out of the classroom, let the parents raise their children, and let the teachers teach. The 2010 election brought some change to education politics as usual in our state. Students, parents and teachers have been used as pawns in the system for too long. These changes must continue. Education must be about what is best for parents and their children, not a bureaucracy.
I am delighted to serve on the House Education Committee, and work for better quality education in our state… education we can both afford and be proud of. I will continue to work hard on behalf of parents, students, and teachers to make better education a reality, rather than someone’s campaign slogan.
I appreciate the dedicated service of honest liberals and conservatives alike, but I will continue to report the facts and not succumb to the liberal rhetoric that often dominates the so-called ‘mainstream media’. I hope anyone with questions or concerns will not hesitate to contact me at Bert.Jones@ncleg.net. We can do better by our parents, students, and teachers in this state, and I believe that as we build more new leadership in Raleigh, we will do so.
Best regards, Bert
The governor has criticized the state budget in particular for "extreme cuts" to public education. It is time to get past the hypocritical rhetoric and look at the facts regarding the General Assembly's actual K-12 public education budget compared with Gov. Perdue's budget proposal for 2011-2012.
Teachers often remind us that Gov. Perdue has been no friend to teachers (or parents and students). She consistently supported the bureaucracy and liberal union leadership over the needs of classroom teachers, even choosing to furlough teachers and cut their pay rather than cutting the bloated bureaucracy. Now with historically low approval, the governor has withdrawn from her re-election campaign and is focusing her efforts on increasing taxes and demonizing the legislature which has been charged with the difficult task of cleaning up the fiscal mess in Raleigh. However, the polls have consistently shown that most NC voters are not “buying what she is selling”.
The bipartisan 2011-12 budget passed over her veto, with the help of five moderate Democrats. However, the governor and other liberals insist that an $800 million tax increase (a 16% increase in the state's share of the sales tax) was and is necessary to avoid dire consequences to the public schools.
In the last session with a Democratic legislative majority during the Purdue administration (2009-10), they had passed a $1.3 billion tax increase that sent an already struggling economy into record numbers of bankruptcies, foreclosures, and unemployment. Businesses left, closed, or cut employees as jobs were lost in droves. The nonpartisan Tax Foundation ranked NC in the worst ten states in the nation for businesses regarding taxes and regulations.
Perdue and her liberal allies in the legislature have consistently denounced the 2011-12 budget as devastating to public education (and other core services). This false rhetoric was compounded by the fact that the legislature inherited a budget in shambles with a $3 billion projected shortfall. Even with the highest tax and spend levels in state history, and even spending the $1.5 billion federal “stimulus” in the previous budget, the Democrats still had not given state employees and teachers a pay increase for three years running.
Regarding the 2011-12 state budget, let’s look at the facts: Once the liberals' political shell game is exposed, in reality, Governor Perdue proposed fewer real net dollars for K-12 public education in her proposed 2011-12 budget than the legislature actually adopted. (The legislature also mandated more percentage for the classroom and less for the Raleigh bureaucracy, but that’s another story in itself.)
Consider that the direct appropriation in the K-12 education budget was a mere 0.57% under the governor’s proposal. The numbers look like this: the governor proposed a total K-12 budget of $7.57 billion. The budget that passed is $7.53 billion. This also accounts for $65 million for the More at Four program (which sensibly was moved from the Dept. of Education to Health and Human Services) to make an ‘apples to apples’ comparison. The difference is $43.2 million (0.57%).
However, Governor Perdue's budget included approximately $300 million in unfunded mandates to the counties (and would have added a few more cents to our county property tax rate). Included in this, the governor’s budget would have shifted $74.5 million that had been the state's responsibility onto the local school boards. These items included $35.2 million for school buses, $4.6 million for tort claims and $34.7 million for worker's compensation, totaling $74.5 million.
The General Assembly's budget eliminated these unfunded mandates that our counties simply could not afford, particularly low wealth counties such as ours. As a former county commissioner, I know how such unfunded mandates wreck county budgets. It is a political shell game with tax dollars that the previous majority played for years, and another ploy to borrow, tax and spend more… grow government… and send our children the bill they will never be able to pay.
The governor and the old-style tax-and-spend Raleigh politicians wanted to continue this game, but they failed this year. Their rhetoric has been heated and they will not go quietly. But once you wade through the numbers and the politics, it becomes clear there were actually more dollars available for K-12 education than the governor had proposed. The big difference was that the legislature cut the bureaucracy… the pet of the governor and her liberal allies. Thus we hear their “sky is falling on NC education” mantra constantly. It just is not true.
The 2011 legislature also enacted a number of other notable accomplishments to improve the quality of education in our state. The legislature did the following:
1. We provided for enhanced student enrollment growth in its budget (the governor did not).
2. We removed the cap on charter schools, in response to the heavy demand of parents for this option. Over 20,000 students were on waiting lists, and the previous legislature refused to address this basic parental right to make the best choice for their own child.
3. We eliminated unnecessary End-of-Grade tests, which many teachers and parents agree wasted valuable class time and promoted a ‘teach to the test’ mentality rather than true learning. Now we have only those tests required by federal law. Schools are using true assessments based on national norms to measure student achievement with ACT tests in 8th, 10th and 11th grades.
4. We produced a net gain of state supported teachers despite balancing the budget and eliminating the projected budget shortfall. The reports confirm that the number of state funded education employees actually increased by 3.7 percent (4,720). It is true that federally and locally funded positions decreased by a total of 9,407. People should also realize that many vacant positions were eliminated, and historically there is always considerable turnover. Also, this decrease would have been far greater if Gov. Perdue's $74.5 million “money grab” from local school boards had occurred.
5. We particularly increased teachers up to the third grade level, to emphasize the need for children to learn to read. Too many children fall behind early and never catch up. The poor readers are much more likely to drop out… one-third of ninth graders never graduate. Of those that do graduate and go to college, 60% must take remedial courses. SAT scores have declined, even as the scoring system was changed to inflate the scores. Just spending more money has not addressed this problem… it has worsened over the years as the bureaucracy continued to grow.
6. We passed new legislation to offer educational tax credits to families of children with particular disabilities that allows the parents to choose the best educational avenue for that child. This is a win-win situation: it is better for the child, and also can save significant money to the local school system in many instances. It is being touted as a national model.
7. We provided teachers with the liability insurance they need at no cost to them… saving teachers up to $400 a year. What was happening was that the previous legislature refused to provide the insurance, and many teachers felt forced to pay bloated union dues to get the coverage. The legislature had actually passed a special law to force state employees to do the work of collecting the union dues through automatic deductions, and the teachers would never see the money. Then, a portion of their dues could be funneled to liberal politicians through the NEA/NCAE political action committee. This group had spent $3.5 million to elect Gov. Perdue, and 99% of NCAE PAC dollars went to Democrats (although polling shows that more teachers say they are conservative than liberal).
Such manipulation was deplorable, and underscores the need for reform. It is time to get the politics out of the classroom, let the parents raise their children, and let the teachers teach. The 2010 election brought some change to education politics as usual in our state. Students, parents and teachers have been used as pawns in the system for too long. These changes must continue. Education must be about what is best for parents and their children, not a bureaucracy.
I am delighted to serve on the House Education Committee, and work for better quality education in our state… education we can both afford and be proud of. I will continue to work hard on behalf of parents, students, and teachers to make better education a reality, rather than someone’s campaign slogan.
I appreciate the dedicated service of honest liberals and conservatives alike, but I will continue to report the facts and not succumb to the liberal rhetoric that often dominates the so-called ‘mainstream media’. I hope anyone with questions or concerns will not hesitate to contact me at Bert.Jones@ncleg.net. We can do better by our parents, students, and teachers in this state, and I believe that as we build more new leadership in Raleigh, we will do so.
Best regards, Bert
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