[BHS etree] BUSD: Stand Up for Schools - Write to State Legislators

[bhs at idiom.com]

Do not reply to etree contact Mark Coplan, BUSD Public Information 
Officer mailto:Mark_Coplan at berkeley.k12.ca.us

Thanks to the Cragmont Etree for forwarding this important letter on the
state budget from the California State PTA President. I have included the
contact information for our elected representatives at the bottom, and it
is important to communicate with our representatives, even when we know
that they are fighting this budget battle in Sacramento to confirm that
they are speaking for us. This is a critical point in the budget and our
letters can make the difference, especially those to the Governor.

Mark Coplan, BUSD Public Information Officer
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To All Californians:

PLEASE HELP STAND UP FOR CHILDREN NOW!

Children across California are back in school, but we don't yet have a
state budget.

Way back in January, PTA and our nearly one-million volunteer members
around the state raised their voices in opposition to the initial "cuts
only" budget proposal that would have slashed funding for education,
health and other services for our state's single most important
constituency - our children.  We gave that initial budget a grade of "F,"
and we rallied people across the state to "flunk the budget, not our
children"

Throughout the spring and early summer we've continued to call on
legislators to do the right thing by preventing deep cuts to our schools
and children. In July, a legislative committee with representatives from
both houses introduced a "balanced approach" proposal. It would close the
state's $15 billion deficit with new, ongoing revenues and some cuts. Even
this proposal isn't ideal. It still makes dramatic cuts and merits only a
"barely passing" grade. But in this very difficult economic year, we
recognized that this conference committee proposal reflects a realistic
compromise.

Unfortunately, this proposal has not yet been approved by either the
senate or assembly. What's worse, in recent weeks, both houses seem to be
straying farther from it.  We now have counter-proposals calling for all
sorts of short-term fixes and stopgaps. We oppose these short-term
approaches and urge you to as well. After a record-setting budget-delay,
our state legislators and the governor must not simply pass the buck for
another year by approving a budget that relies on additional borrowing,
gimmicks, or that cuts even more deeply into education, children's
programs and the future of California.

We still need now what we needed in January -- a real budget solution with
permanent new revenues to provide our children with the education and
services they need to be successful.

We know you share our concern for California's children, because they
represent the future of our great state.  I urge you to forward this
letter along to as many people as you know.  Ask them to please do this
one thing for all children in California:

Call or email your elected state leaders this week.

Urge them to stand up for children. Ask them to prevent deeper cuts to
schools and children's services. Ask them to support additional, ongoing
revenues for schools. And call upon them, as our elected representatives,
to make the tough decisions that must be made now to ensure a prosperous
future.

I appreciate your time and attention to this critical matter. There is no
job more important than ensuring that our children are given every
opportunity to be successful.  If we do that, we all win!  If you would
like additional information about the state budget, I encourage you to
visit our website at [ http://www.capta.org ]www.capta.org
Thank you for taking the time to stand up for our state's children!

Sincerely,

Pam Brady
President
  California State PTA
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Contact Information for State Elected Officials

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

Phone: 916-445-2841
Fax: 916-558-3160 ( new number )
http://gov.ca.gov/interact

The Honorable Don Perata
Senate President pro Tempore
California State Senate
1515 Clay Street, Suite 2202
Oakland, CA 94612

510.286.1333
510.286.3885 (f)
Senator.Perata at sen.ca.gov

The Honorable Loni Hancock
California State Assembly
712 El Cerrito Plaza
El Cerrito, CA 94530

510.559.1406
510.559.1478 (f)
Assemblymember.Hancock at assembly.ca.gov

The Honorable Sandre Swanson
California State Assembly
1515 Clay Street, Ste. 2204
Oakland, CA 94612

510.286.1670
510.286.1888 (f)
Assemblymember.Swanson at assembly.ca.gov


==========================================

Mark A. Coplan
Public Information Officer, BUSD
510-644-6320 Cell: 510-472-3811
Mark_Coplan at berkeley.k12.ca.us
Berkeley Unified School District
2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way
Berkeley, Ca 94704-1180