Referendums cover school levies, charter schools, minimum wage

California voters defeat healthcare initiative

Election 2004 voters weighed in on state and local ballot initiatives and referendums that ranged from raising the minimum wage to school levies to healthcare reform.

In November, Florida became the 13th state, along with the District of Columbia, to raise the minimum wage. Floridians voted overwhelmingly (72 percent to 28 percent) to raise the state’s minimum wage to $6.15 an hour, a dollar above the federal minimum wage, which has remained $5.15 since 1997. The new Florida law automatically will adjust the minimum wage for inflation each year. The wage increase will affect an estimated 300,000 workers statewide.

The Florida Education Association, a merged AFT-NEA state affiliate, was on board early in support of the referendum. The FEA and its members worked closely with the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), the organization that led the grass-roots campaign for an increase in the minimum wage, and the Florida AFL-CIO. Members of FEA helped gather signatures on the petition to get the minimum wage referendum on the ballot, FEA spokesman Mark Pudlow says.

“We were behind it 100 percent,” reports Pudlow.

In Washington state, voters rejected a referendum to enact a law that would have allowed charter schools to operate in the state. Referendum 55 was rejected by a vote of 58 percent to 42 percent. It is the third time Washington voters have rejected charter schools in the past decade.

The state Legislature passed a measure authorizing the creation of 45 charter schools over six years, and it was signed into law by Gov. Gary Locke in spring 2004.

AFT Washington stood in opposition to the charter school legislation because it would have taken money from public schools and would divert attention from the effort to improve schools, says Wendy  Rader-Konofalski, AFT Washington’s legislative liaison. In fact, lawmakers budgeted $260,000 to go toward the charter school initiative. Although the amount wasn’t very dramatic, the money would have increased over the years, says Rader-Konofalski. “It was just the tip of the iceberg.”

The union knew that most of its members were solidly against charter schools; however, each of the charter school initiatives had well-funded campaigns, so the union, along with the Washington Education Association, conducted a major campaign of its own to reach out to members with phone banking, work-site talks and campaign literature, says Rader-Konofalski. The union also cited the AFT’s recent charter school report that shows charter school students underperform or score no better than regular public school students.

“This vote shows that people in Washington support public education and [that] our schools do work,” Rader-Konofalski says.

Ohio voters back funding

In Ohio, voters passed school levy measures on the ballots in Cincinnati and Toledo.

Voters in Cincinnati renewed a five-year operating levy that raises $65 million a year for its schools. The AFT-affiliated Cincinnati Federation of Teachers began developing literature for the levy campaign months before the election. The local also worked with a broad coalition that put together a number of activities to garner support for the school measure.

As the election drew closer, the CFT polled its members to find out where they stood on the issue. The key was getting teachers to understand what the impact would be if the levy failed, CFT president Sue Taylor says.

“The measure faced stiff opposition, but we were able to form a very strong grass-roots alliance,” says Taylor.

The levy, most of which is a tax increase, was endorsed by more than 50 community groups. Money generated from the levy pays for school district operating expenses, including teacher salaries, textbooks and supplies. By passing the levy, “the community gave a vote of confidence” to Cincinnati’s public schools and lessened the likelihood that there will be a reduction in the teaching workforce, says Taylor.

In Toledo, voters approved an operating levy that generates $15.7 million a year for five years for the Toledo Public Schools. The Toledo Federation of Teachers and the school district emphasized the district’s improved academic performance to sway voters to back the levy. The measure passed with 64 percent support.

“Toledo is the only urban school district in Ohio with continuous academic achievement. Our teachers are responsible for that. It was their exemplary work and instruction that resulted in higher student achievement,” says Francine Lawrence, president of the TFT.

Over the past two years, budget deficits forced the district to lay off hundreds of teachers and paraprofessionals, Lawrence points out. “This will provide stability through this school year. Now we can avoid additional teacher and paraprofessional reductions.”

Calif. union remains upbeat

Voters in California narrowly defeated a measure that would have required businesses with 50 or more employees to either insure their workers directly or pay a fee to the state to do the job, starting in 2006. State lawmakers passed the California Health Insurance Act in 2003, but the measure was challenged by the business community, which fought to have the issue decided by a public referendum. Proposition 72 was rejected by 51 percent of voters, but the margin was narrow: only 202,854 votes.

The close vote is very encouraging, says Mike Weimer, a legislative representative for the California Federation of Teachers. Passing the initiative was a high priority for the CFT.

“This measure was the first step toward reaching more comprehensive healthcare in California, and we worked with our locals to help them communicate the need for healthcare reform,” says Weimer.

But the CFT is not dwelling on the past; it has moved on by endorsing legislation that would establish a single-payer healthcare program in California. The CFT says the single-payer program could solve the problems created by for-profit healthcare insurance corporations.

“We are a major supporter of this bill and will support any other effort for healthcare reform,” says Weimer.