Michigan Federation of Teachers & School Related Personnel
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Michigan Federation of Teachers & School Related Personnel
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Capitol Report Archives Go to current Capitol Report for links to complete archive. March, 2004 February, 2004 January, 2004 2003-04 Voting Records 2003 2002 2001 2000 |
Graded Scale Premium Bills Introduced Electronic Payment of Employee Wages Union's Right to Collectively Bargain Prescription Drug Coverage Cox Rules ISD Board Members Subject to Recall House Working on Budgets Granholm Signs Social Worker Licensing Bill Lead Poisoning Bills Become Law Legislation Introduced to Replace MEAP Test Bill Would Allow Teachers' Children to Attend School in District State Awards Grant Funding for Freedom to Learn Program School Funding Satellite Video Conference may be found on the Legislative Hotline page of this website.  Return to Top Graded Scale Premium Bills Introduced Representative Mike Pumford (R-Newaygo) has introduced two bills to implement a graded scale premium for future school retirees. House Bills 5682 and 5696 have been referred to the House Committee on Senior Health, Security, and Retirement. House Bill 5682 implements a graded scale premium that would require retirees hired after June 30, 2004, to pay a larger share of their health premium unless they have at least 30 years of service credit. The scale is graded from 10 years of service, at which the system would pay 30% of the premium to 30 years or more, at which the system would pay 100% of the premium. The pension system's share increases by 3% for each year of service credit. The other bill, House Bill 5696, would require members who are hired after June 30, 2004, and who purchase service credits to pay the actuarial value of health benefits. The bill would permit members to pay the entire cost as a lump sum or to pay the retirement system five equal payments over a five- year period. To date, no hearings have been scheduled on these bills. Return to Top Electronic Payment of Employee Wages House Bill 5599 (Hoogendyk, R-Portage) would allow an employer to pay wages by direct deposit or electronic transfer without the written approval of the employee. Currently, the law prohibits an employer from depositing an employee's wages in a financial institution without the full, free and written consent of the employee, obtained without intimidation, coercion or fear of discharge or reprisal for refusal to permit the deposit. House Bill 5599 would strike the prohibition and permit an employer to pay wages by direct deposit or electronic transfer to 1) the employee's account at a financial institution; or 2) if the employee does not have such an account, to an account maintained by the employer in the name of and owned by the employee and accessible to the employee by access device. The House Employment Relations, Training and Safety Committee reported these bills out of Committee and they could be taken up on the floor of the House at any time. Return to Top Union's Right to Collectively Bargain Prescription Drug Coverage Currently there are five bills pending in the House Insurance Committee that would severely limit your union's ability to negotiate for cost savings in prescription drug benefits. The package contains House Bills 4987 (Newell, R-Saranac), 5435 (Hummel, R-DeWitt), 5436 (Richardville, R- Monroe), 5437 (Plakas, D-Garden City) and 5438 (Zelenko, D-Burton), These bills were proposed to ensure that cost of prescription drugs for patients with prescription health care benefits would be the same whether provided by community or mail-order pharmacies, allow community pharmacies to dispense multi-month supplies of prescription drugs, regulate pharmacy benefit managers, and allow companies in Michigan to operate as mail order pharmacies. However, in doing so, they restrict the union's right to collectively bargain for its membership to achieve the best overall prescription drug benefit package. They will reduce competition between mail-order pharmacies and community pharmacies, thus driving up the cost of mail-order programs because of decreased volume. This package of bills will also impact MPSERS health care by increasing costs for prescription drugs thereby increasing the MPSERS rate charged to school districts. Action Needed: Contact your state representative and ask them to vote "NO" on these bills. Return to Top Cox Rules ISD Board Members Subject to Recall Attorney Mike Cox has ruled under Opinion No. 7153, that a member of a board of an intermediate school district who was elected by a body composed of one member of the board of each constituent school district is subject to recall. The petitions for recall must be signed by registered and qualified electors equal to not less than 25 percent of the number of votes cast for candidates for the office of governor at the last preceding general election in the constituent school districts that comprise the ISD. If a member of the board of an ISD who has been elected by school board members of the constituent districts is recalled, the vacancy is filled by the remaining members of the ISD. If the vacancy is not filled within 30 days after it occurs, the vacancy shall be filled by the State Board. The new Election Consolidation Law will remove this recall procedure as an option for ISDs on December 31, 2004. Return to Top House Working on Budgets The K-12 School Aid, Higher Education, Community College, and Department of Education Budgets are all being reviewed by their respective house appropriations subcommittees. Two significant changes were made in the Department of Education Budget in the Senate. The Michigan Department of Education staff began a collaborative effort with the Detroit Public Schools in 2001 to address issues related to the employment of non-certificated teachers in regular classroom positions. In response, the Department of Education developed an alternative teaching certificate known as the Limited License to Instruct. This alternative teacher certification was proposed as a collaborative venture between Wayne State University, Detroit Public Schools, and the Michigan Department of Education. The program enrolled its first 350 applicants in the summer of 2001 and approximately 60 have completed the program and currently hold the Michigan Provisional teaching certificate. The Limited License to Instruct program has reached its initial goal to recruit and train 625 teacher candidates as agreed upon by Wayne State University, Detroit Public Schools, and the Michigan Department of Education. The program has been successful to date. As passed by the Senate, Senate Bill 1065 allocate $150,000 for the Limited License to Instruction Program, but requires that the amount be split between Wayne State University and Central Michigan University for their alternative route to certification program, thus endangering the future of collaboration with Detroit Public Schools. The other significant change in the Department of Education's Budget as passed by the Senate is the elimination of all funding for National Board of Certification Grants. This $100,000 appropriations has been used in past years to help defray cost incurred by individuals seeking national board certification. Action needed: Contact your State Representative and express your concern regarding these budget cuts. Return to Top Granholm Signs Social Worker Licensing Bill Under Public Act 61, signed by Governor Granholm on April 12, Michigan's 26,000 social workers will now have to be licensed. Previously, the state only certified social workers. The new law was given immediate effect and creates two levels of social work licenses:
Some social workers, such as ordained clergy and those that provide some services to non-profit organizations, will not need licenses. Return to Top Lead Poisoning Bills Become Law Governor Jennifer Granholm has signed two new laws that will help identify children who have been exposed to dangerous levels of lead and better protect them from lifelong health complications. She also called on the Legislature to send her the rest of the five-bill package for her signature. Public Act 54 (HB 5119 - Williams, D-Saginaw) requires that the Department of Community Health work to ensure that any provider, facility or health maintenance organization receiving Medicaid payments conduct screenings for lead poisoning in children as required by federal law starting January 1, 2006. Public Act 55 (HB 5117 - Ehardt, R-Lexington) will require any clinical laboratory that has analyzed a blood sample for lead to report its findings to the Department of Community Health electronically beginning Oct. 1, 2005. The other three bills in this package still await legislative action. House Bills 5115 is in the House Judiciary Committee, and House Bills 5116 and 5119 are in the Senate Committee on Families and Human Services. These bills would establish a lead safe house registry to help families determine if their house or apartment is free of lead; create a childhood lead poisoning prevention and control commission within Department of Community Health to study the threat of lead poisoning, review the state's lead poisoning prevention program, and evaluate its effectiveness; and require the commission to develop recommendations for childhood lead poisoning prevention and control in the state. Action needed: Contact your State Representatives and Senators and urge them to pass House Bills 5115, 5116, and 5119. Return to Top Legislation Introduced to Replace MEAP Test Given the problems with getting MEAP test scores back on time, a bipartisan group of senators lead by Senator Wayne Kuipers (R-Holland), chair of the Senate Education Committee, introduced a five- bill package (Senate Bills 1153 - 1157) to create the Michigan Merit Test. Though the legislation cannot specifically name a test, the proposed test would include ACT, the ACT Work Keys, and a new test to cover social studies. The test would first be given to students in 2006. The replacement of the MEAP Test has the support of the House Education Subcommittee on Standardized Testing and Replacement, the Education Alliance of Michigan, Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals, and the Michigan Parent-Teacher-Student Association. During committee hearings held last week, testimony supporting the change included possible cost savings to the state, cost savings to parents of students who now pay to take college entry exams, reduction of testing time from five days to two, the speed of obtaining the results, and the possible increase of enrollment in Michigan's colleges and universities. Concerns regarding the change in testing included any change in the test not further bias toward students attending college, making certain that teachers and administrators have all of the information they need to administer and prepare students for the test. Besides replacing the test, the legislation also calls for limiting the number of written portions in the test as a cost-control measure. They requires the establishment of an advisory board comprised of testing and educational experts to oversee and make recommendations on state testing. Recommendations also included strict deadlines on when schools receive test material and when scores would be returned. Senator Kuipers told the committee that he is not certain how many hearings will be held to take testimony on the issue. Return to Top Bill Would Allow Teachers' Children to Attend School in District Senate Bill 599 (Basham, D-Taylor) would allow the children of teachers or other school employees to attend the a school in the district where the parent works without the approval of the pupil's district of residence. Currently, a district must have the approval of the pupil's district of residence to count the pupil in membership, unless the pupil attends a public school academy, attends classes less than half-time in the district, participates in a school of choice program, has been expelled, is enrolled in Michigan Virtual High School, or meets other conditions. The bill would add to these exemptions a pupil with a parent who is employed by the district. Senate Bill 599 has approved by the Senate Education Committee and is currently awaiting action on the floor of the Senate. Return to Top State Awards Grant Funding for Freedom to Learn Program The Michigan Department of Education has awarded 30 grants for the Freedom To Learn program. The grants to school districts will enable 11,826 Michigan students to participate in a totally integrated education solution that provides districts with wireless computers, technical support, software, professional development for educators, and course content and assessments. Another 2,347 students are slated to participate when their districts have completed a readiness program using additional technology development funds through the program. The Freedom To Learn program is jointly coordinated by the Michigan Department of Education and Michigan Virtual University. This program allocates $6,623,700 of the available $17 million in federal funds to 23 newly eligible school districts and seven programs that served as demonstration sites over the past year. The 2003- 04 program targets middle school students with an emphasis on sixth graders. In 2002-03, more than 7,000 students participated in the program's Demonstration Phase, a pilot for the current program. To be eligible for the grant, districts making application must have had a poverty level above the state average and at least one school building identified for improvement or corrective action under the federal No Child Left Behind law. School districts will be responsible for their own leases and for paying $275 per unit ($250 plus the $25 co-pay) to Hewlett Packard. MFT&SRP districts qualifying for the grants include:
Information about the program is on the Freedom to Learn website at: http://wireless.mivu.org. Return to Top
The K-16 Coalition for Michigan's Future School Funding Satellite Video Conference is a master train the trainer program that will help you understand recent public opinion polling and communication guidelines for your target audience. If you are interested in making the video Conference available for viewing at your school district contact Lisa Bond Brewer as soon as possible with your plans at 517-327-9254, lbrewer@msbo.org, or complete the bottom of this form and fax to 517-327-0768. Invite your internal staff, booster clubs, PTO/PTA representatives, local officers, potential board candidates, and other education stakeholders. After the video Conference, plant to review the action kit, and start dialogue to develop a coordinated plan of action. Companion action kits (including how to communicate with your internal and external audiences, how to solicit support from legislators, and next steps) will be available online at www.msbo.org April 26. Please download and have copies available for all attendees at the video Conference site. Sign Up Now to Host a Downlink Site. School District: _________________________________________________________________ Contact Name: _________________________________________________________________ Phone Number: _________________________________________________________________
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