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I received the following email and thought it would be beneficial to all to take notice and action.

The following is an excerpt from an email sent out on Friday, April 25, 2008 from Jackie Swigart, Assistant to the Chief Financial Officer of Orange County Public Schools.
OCPS Operating Budget Q & A
2008-09
What is causing the current budget crisis?

• Significant reduction in State sales tax revenues as well as documentary stamp and intangibles tax collections primarily because of the housing market
• Reduction of corporate income tax collections because of economic downturn
• Slowdown in property tax revenues because of the housing market and Amendment 1
• Overall reduction of $1.9 billion in state revenues as compared to current year. Part of a $3 billion reduction for the current year plus next year due to deteriorating economic conditions

The following is and excerpt from an email sent out on Wednesday, April 23, 2008 from Grace B. Lias, Senior Executive Director, Human Resources, Orange County Public Schools:

• About 585 annual contract teachers were notified earlier this month that we could not commit to another year of employment for them. 
• Beginning this afternoon, over 300 probationary classified staff will be notified that their employment will not be continued next year.

Whether you have a child in public school or not, you know the affect the housing market has on the OCPS budget and (vice versa) you know the affect that cutting this budget will have on the future housing market.

The email below is from a Kindergarten teacher at Riverdale Elementary (near Dean Rd. & University Blvd). Please take her suggestion and take a quick moment to email each of the people she has listed to get them to use some of the “Rainy Day Fund” that was established back in 1992 for this purpose.

Feel free to forward this on to anyone. These stats are from Orange County, but the entire state of Florida’s public school system is undergoing these budget cuts.

And here is the email from the kindergarten teacher:

After going to the CTA Rally downtown last night, I learned that the last time we had this big of a cut in Public Schools, was 1992.  At that time Florida set up a fund in case this were to ever happen again.  This fund is called the “Rainy Day Fund” and has 1.3 BILLION dollars in it.  On Friday, CTA is meeting to ask for 100 million of those dollars to help get teachers’ jobs back and balance out Orange County’s budget!  In order for CTA to be successful at this, they need our help.  Please help by contacting the following people by phone or e-mail.  These people hold the support and approval we need for this to go through.  Remember-they meet THIS FRIDAY-there’s not much time to let your voice be heard.  Here are the people you need to contact and what you should say or write in your e-mail:

Speaker of the House:  Mr. Marco Rubio
850-488-1450
Marco.rubio@myfloridahouse.gov
Say or write:  No more tax cuts until schools are fully funded and in the National ranking of 25^th or higher.

President of the Senate:  Mr. Ken Pruitt
850-487-5088
Pruitt.ken.web@flsenate.gov
Say or write:  Please support the use of the Rainy Day Funds for our children’s education.  They need and deserve a quality public education. 

Governor Charlie Crist
850-488-4441
Charlie.crist@myflorida.com
Say or write:  Please approve the use of the Rainy Day Funds for Education.  Our children in Florida need and deserve a quality public education.