To: FAME_NET-L@LSERV.FLDOE.ORG
Subject: FAME Legislative Update - March 25, 2005
Date: Fri, 25 Mar 2005 13:21:44 -0500
FAME Legislative Update March 25, 2005
The House and Senate have just released their preliminary
budget drafts this week. The Senate has released a full
bill draft with detail including projects. The House budget
documents released to this point only show major budget
entities without revealing project level information such as
whether additional funding is available to expand the State
Virtual Library to school students, provide for SUNLINK or
library media materials.
Senate Budget Details
The Senate budget can be reviewed by clicking the following link:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/
bills/billtext/pdf/s7068pb.pdf
The document is searchable. Items that you may be
interested in include:
Ø Item 6A relating to a
³turkey² project for Questia; o Would provide $821,249;
o Pilot project for 3 districts;
o High school level only; and
o Proviso seems to pit the vendor project against
current school based library media centers.
Ø Item 75 relating to FEFP Instructional Materials
o Fully funds textbook increases per FADIMA study; but
o Does not fund increase for library media materials
($15 million is funded).
Ø Item 80 relating to non-FEFP Instructional Materials
o Provides $878,240 for SUNLINK; and
o Provides $200,000 for materials for partially sighted
students. Ø Item 76 relating to Instructional Technology
o Funded at last year¹s level of $49.9 million; and
o Does not include FETC supported proviso concerning
training.
In a separate budget document, we know that the current
Senate position did not fund the Virtual Library¹s request
for $750,000 to expand one licensed database for use by
school students.
House Budget Details
The official budget document will not be available until
Monday, March 28. I have been told the following:
Ø Library Media Materials was funded at $15 million
without the increase supported by the Governor; and
Ø SUNLINK was funded at $878,240.
We do not know whether the Virtual Library¹s request to
have $750,000 to provide one licensed database to school students was accepted
by the Transportation and Economic Development Appropriations Committee as
their budget detail will also be released on Monday.
FAME members who wish to help with the budget should contact
their legislators with requests to increase the funding for
library media materials to $18 million and to fund the
expansion of the Virtual Library. Both were requested by the
Governor. The item for library media materials has not been
increased in several years even as the number of students
and school has grown tremendously. Improving school library
media centers is a critical part of improving student
reading scores. An electronic version of the 2005
Legislative Platform is available at the following link:
http://www.sbac.edu/~media/FAMELegBrochureREV.pdf.
Library Media Specialist Subject Area Certification Issue
For the first time in recent memory, there is not a DOE
sponsored certification bill moving in the Legislature. The
only bill currently filed that would seem to be germane to
having our certification issue language amended onto right
now seems to be the Governor¹s A++ Bill. As such, we need
the support of the DOE and the Governor¹s office in order
to get such an amendment accepted. I have begun working with
one of the members of the State Board of Education to see if
the DOE will reconsider its opposition to our amendment or
if a rule change that would also fix the issue could be
considered. I expect more information on this issue to be
available next week.
Career Ladder for Classroom Teachers
We are hearing strongly positive messages from Legislators
about the possibility of repealing the career ladder for
classroom teachers (BEST Program). FAME is opposed to the
program because only classroom teachers are eligible and
because it could cost as much as $1 billion to fully
implement. At a minimum, we hope to be able to delay
implementation for an additional year as was done last year
through the state budget.
31-Day Rehire Issue
Bills are filed in both the House and Senate that would
expand the 31 day rehire provisions that are currently
available only to classroom teachers who fully retire to all
administrators. FAME and other groups that represent
instructional personnel that are not classroom teachers are
poised to amend these bills if they are heard to include all
instructional personnel.
Be Active, Be Positive!
After a tough and emotional week for the all of the members
of the Legislature, it will be time for all of the members
to buckle down and get to work on all of the other issues
facing the Legislature during the final six weeks of
session. It is important to raise our level of contacts
with legislators now to bring attention to all of our
priority issues. It is critically important that we keep our
contacts positive as legislators from all political
viewpoints have been faced with overwhelming and sometimes
negative pressure over the past couple of weeks.
Members who are interested in supporting the FAME
Legislative Efforts should contact Bob Cerra at
rcerra@infionline.net.