Contact Key Legislators NOW!
The House budget has 10% cuts for higher education for next year. Contact key House members with phone messages or Fax before Sunday night to urge that they match the Senate budget which contains no more cuts for higher education next year.
Contact Key Legislators NOW. Our Message “No more cuts for higher education”
House Contacts:
Larry Cretul, Ocala, 1-352-873-6564 or 1-352-955-6407 or 1-850-488-1450; Fax: 1-352-873-6566 or Fax: 1-352-955-6408
Bill Proctor, St Augustine - 1-904-823-2550 or 1-850-488-2977; Fax: 1-904-823-2552
Steve Precourt, Winter Garden - 1-407-814-6138 or 1-850-488-0256; Fax: 1-407-814-6163
Rachel Burgin, Tampa - 1-813-740-7655 or 1-850-488-9910; Fax: 1-813-740-7657
H. Marlene O'Toole,The Villages - 1-352-750-1671 or 1-850-488-5991; Fax: 1-352-315-4447
Pat Patterson, Deland - 1-386-736-5100 or 1-850-488-9873; Fax: 1-386-736-5102 or Fax: 1-850-414-6882
David Rivera, Miami - 1-305-227-7630 or 1-239-434-5094 or 1-850-488-7897; Fax: 1-305-227-7632 or Fax: 1-888-864-3377 or Fax: 1-850-488-1506
Adam Hasner, Delray Beach – 1-561-279-1616 or 1-850-488-2234; Fax: 1-561-279-1618
No More Cuts for Higher Education Talking Points for Legislators
The fastest way out of a recession, leaving Florida with a stronger workforce than when the recession began, is to increase funding for higher education. When people are unemployed, they need access to higher education so they can upgrade their credentials and skills and emerge ready for a better job. Without education, workers eme rge from a recession less able to contribute to the workforce, pay taxes, and support themselves without reliance on social programs. Supporting higher education during a recession makes a state’s economy stronger. Cutting funds makes it weaker. The fastest and strongest way to leave a recession is to fund higher education.
The student-faculty ratio is now the worst in the nation for universities -- worse than Louisiana after Katrina, which ranks 49th. Public colleges have 50,000 new students this year with no additional full-time f aculty to teach them. More cuts mean faculty layoffs, fewer classes, and fewer qualified faculty to teach essential subjects. Supporting higher education increases the quality of preparation and training for Florida’s workforce.
If students seeking to enroll are denied access in a recession, they join the ranks of the unemployed -- swelling joblessness. If students who are already enrolled cannot get the classes they need for graduation, they waste time and money as they seek their degrees. Supporting higher education reduces the ranks of the unemployed and allows students to use their time constructively and efficiently during a recession.
The quality of higher education is already in jeopardy. The staffing necessary to run20programs is on the brink of collapse after a brain drain lasting several years. (The annual turnover rate in the universities is 14%.) This means the range of courses students need to complete a degree, with faculty qualified and ready to teach specialized courses, is in peril. Supporting higher education allows universities and colleges to offer the specialized courses that students need to complete studies and receive the education they are expecting.
For two decades funding for higher education has been shrinking as a portion of20the state’s budget. The result is that programs are stretched to the limits. Since September 2007, Florida’s universities have suffered cuts of 11.4% ($425 Million), and public colleges have been cut 12.8% ($153 million) in program and lottery funds. Further cuts will force layoffs of faculty and a collapse of many programs. In other words, students who are enrolled at a Florida university and have made financial sacrifices for an education will have to defer their dreams. Supporting higher education means retaining the faculty that students need to get their degrees.
We can fund higher education (with no more cuts) by closing tax loopholes and eliminating tax giveaways. New revenue comes from everyone paying a fair share of taxes which are then invested in Florida’s economy and in the future of student s. If the 2009 Legislature cannot agree on how to pass this legislation, then it should pass a temporary sales tax increase until legislators can agree on tax reform. (This is the proposal of the Florida Education Association.) Supporting higher education can be achieved through immediate tax reform or through a temporary sales tax increase followed by comprehensive tax reform.
Contact Legislators Now
Leave a brief voice message or Fax for legislators. (Use personal phone or Fax Machine.) It’s the quantity, not the length, of messages received by each legislator that counts. If you know about an example of damage from cuts on your campus, you can refer to it, but details are not necessary. Our Message “No more cuts for higher education”
