[AAACE-NLA]Adult Literacy Advocacy at the State Level

[Norene Peterson]

Montana advocacy



The article below by Donna Bakke, MAACE Legislative Chair, was  taken from our Montana Association for Adult and Community Education (MAACE) newsletter updating its members on Montana's legislative activity.  As an association, we provided postcards to local programs so that they could have students write (pro or con) to their legislators.  Several of our students found this to be a very valuable experience, especially when they received replies from their local legislators.  NP =)

Norene Peterson, MAACE President

Adult Education Center
        415 N. 30th
        Billings, MT 59101
        petersonnh at billings.k12.mt.us

  Well, folks, the state legislature finally hammered out a budget for the biennium. The education budget that was passed left our $250,000 of state funding intact. However, we were not fortunate enough to escape the cutbacks that have affected the Department of Health and Human Services. We have been receiving about $90,000 annually from DPHHS to help serve TANF clients. Those dollars were cut from the DPHHS budget.

  The funding bill for education, SB424, has one complication. This bill, now signed into law, will restrict school districts from using state funds to pay benefits/employment taxes of employees who are federally funded. ABLE sites that are part of a local school district will feel the crunch from this legislation if they used state funds to pay the employment taxes or benefits of ABE teachers paid with AEFLA dollars. 

  On the federal level, the house may take action this week on H.R. 1261. Over the past few weeks I have heard and read many variations of the reauthorization of AEFLA (Adult Education and Family Literacy Act). For one thing, the new legislation is called the Workforce Reinvestment and Adult Education Act of 2003. Notice the emphasis is on workforce, not on education. There is talk of block granting the education and training funds to the states and talk of monies being skimmed from the adult education budget to pay for No Child Left Behind. Again, the most important thing you can do, as an adult educator is stay informed. Norene Peterson has sent out many messages with information about the reauthorization. Read them, go to the websites, and then call your senators and representatives. You need to be active in this arena. I've read the testimony given by Assistant Education Secretary Carol D'Amico on March 4, 2003. It will give anyone who reads it some insight into what the current administration wants from this piece of legislation. You can find the testimony at this website: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/AdultEd/aetest030303.doc. 

  If you cannot find information or have any questions, email me, and I will let you know where you can find additional information. Recently, there was a call out for people to contact Senator Baucus. He was said to be holding a key vote for Carl Perkins reauthorization. 

  As an organization, MAACE can also make a difference.  At the summer Board meeting, the Board will be discussing potential strategies we might use for legislative communication purposes, i.e. email, phone trees, etc.  Just because Montana legislators have gone home does not mean our job is done.  We must continue marketing our programs, not just during the legislative session.  We must continue to seek advocates.  Please let me know if you have any ideas that may help us out.  We can make a difference, one phone call or letter at a time.

  Donna Bakke, MAACE Legislative Committee Chair



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David J. Rosen" <DJRosen at theworld.com>
To: <aaace-nla at lists.literacytent.org>
Sent: Saturday, May 31, 2003 8:27 AM
Subject: [AAACE-NLA]Adult Literacy Advocacy at the State Level


> AAACE-NLA Colleagues,
> 
> Many states face cuts in adult literacy services for FY 04, but many are 
> also involved in campaigns to prevent or reduce the cuts.  What's 
> happening in your area?  Please post information to this list -- we all 
> need to get a better picture of what is happening.  My sense is that 
> there is growing concern in most states, and that urban and state 
> literacy coalitions in many areas have increased their organizing efforts.
> 
> Here's some news from my state to get the ball rolling:
> 
> Some of you know that in November of 2001 our legislature nearly 
> eliminated state funding for adult literacy education (a 50% cut, passed 
> halfway through the year, which would have resulted in severe cuts to 
> federal funding because of failure in maintenance of effort.) Adult 
> learners, practitioners and others, however, were well organized and 
> provided an immediate and overwhelming response (1,000 phone calls a day 
> to the Senate President's Office over a two week period, for example.) 
> The result was restoration of all but 2% of the state adult literacy 
> education budget by January of 2002.
> 
> For FY04 our Governor proposed level funding.  The House and Senate, at 
> this point, have agreed on a 1% cut.  Given that the legislature must 
> cut over $3 billion from a $23 billion budget, and that other education 
> and human services will be cut drastically or eliminated, this is 
> clearly a recognition by both the administration and legislature of the 
> importance of adult literacy education.  Nevertheless, all tolled, our 
> publicly funded programs have faced federal and state cuts the past two 
> years which add up to 10%.  At the same time we have seen a documented 
> rise in numbers of people waiting for services, primarily ESOL classes, 
> from 14,000 to 24,000.
> 
> What's the picture in your state or area, and how are students and the 
> field responding?
> 
> David J. Rosen
> 
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