Legislative Agenda
Life in schools today is shaped as much by lawmakers as by educators. As a result, it is incumbent upon principals to become politically involved. Without more input into the political and legislative processes, principals can only accept and work under political realities that have been created by others. Too often these people have their own agenda and know less about what is good for schools than do principals.
Understanding this reality, both the NAESP and NASSP have actively lobbied Congress on behalf of their members. Currently, national efforts are focused on several issues: full funding for IDEA, a reduction in paperwork related to special education, more federal funding for principal professional development, and a strong opposition to any of the proposed voucher plans. NAESP and NASSP have also worked hard on the re-authorization of "No Child Left Behind" to improve the original legislation by retaining its strengths (school accountability and a commitment to serve the best interests of all of America's children) and eliminating its weaknesses (use of high-stakes testing, narrowing of the curriculum, unfunded mandates that diminish state and local resources, unrealistic goals and the belief that a schools could be improved through a punitive approach - to name but a few). For more information on the political and legislative agendas of NAESP and NASSP, consult their websites at www.naesp.org and www.nassp.org
The Rhode Island Association of School Principals has worked on behalf of the national political agenda as outlined above. Annually, a leadership team from RIASP goes to Capitol Hill in Washington to meet with the Rhode Island delegation. Those face-to-face meetings have enable RIASP to establish a working relationship with each of Rhode Island's two congressmen and two senators. RIASP is pleased to report that the state's congressional delegation has been receptive to the RIASP agenda and has been very supportive of principals in general.
At the state level, RIASP has stepped up its efforts to keep principals informed about events at the General Assembly through a weekly "Legislative Update" that is emailed to members each Monday. In addition, RIASP presents "the principals' perspective" whenever key issues are debated in the legislature or in the media. In the newspapers and on the talk shows, RIASP has repeatedly stepped forward to inform public discussions about student achievement, school rankings, student discipline, and racial bias, among other issues.
Principals are encouraged to give feedback to RIASP about the issues that are important to them. You may contact either of the two legislative liaisons on the Board of Directors (Collen Limoges, Principal of Hoxie Elementary School in Warwick, and John Haidemenos, Principal of Jacqueline M. Walsh High School in Pawtucket) or either John Golden or Pat Hines at the RIASP office.
When the 2008 Rhode Island General Assembly created a special commission to consider “all things related to the Rhode Island pension system,” many of us became nervous. Later, when the 2008 session ended and the special commission had failed to produce a final report as originally required, we all breathed a sigh of relief. No pension system news in 2008 was good news indeed for everyone in the state retirement system.
The news for 2009 is not likely to be so good. The special commission is almost certain to submit a report of its findings in 2009 and the legislative body will – in all probability – enact pension reform legislation before the end of the session. What the reformed pension system will look like is anybody’s guess; there are many possibilities.
The most radical option would be a change from the current Defined Benefit Plan (DBP) to a Defined Contribution Plan (DCP). The first guarantees a fixed payment to retirees from the fund; the second guarantees a fixed contribution by the state into the fund. In a DCP a retiree’s pension is determined by the type and quality of his/her investments. States prefer a DCP over a DBP because the cost to the state can never exceed its initial contribution, thus making unfunded pension liabilities a thing of the past. Eventually, most states – including Rhode Island – will move to a DCP pension system.
However, it is unlikely that RI will move to a DCP in the next year because the current state fiscal crisis requires an immediate remedy, and the benefits of a DCP are long-term, with significant up-front expenses.
Given that, there is a fair chance that the Special Commission will recommend an expansion of the pension changes made three years ago to everyone in the retirement system. You will recall that the 2005 legislation, which applied only to those not yet vested in the system, established a minimum retirement age, required 38 instead of 35 years of service for full retirement and reduced the top pension percentage from 80% to 75%. Those changes came with little opposition or public debate, but any effort to impose the same changes on the vested members of the retirement system is certain to spark a stiff legal challenge.
The prospect of a legal challenge, however, may not be enough to dissuade the legislature from acting. Sadly, those with less than ten years of service (those not vested) are likely to get hit again because legislators see them as fair game. But even the vested are not safe, and there is a real chance that the legislature will reduce their retirement benefits.
With that in mind, I offer two recommendations: First, prepare yourself to engage in the coming pension debate. Whether you are close to retirement or not, all educators count on their state pensions to sustain them throughout their retirement years, so everyone has a lot at stake in this discussion. As a result, every educator should be prepared to become politically active this spring.
The second recommendation is for those who are close to retirement: start preparing for the worst. We hope that the legislature will do the right thing and will protect the benefits promised to the educators whose professional lives have been dedicated to our schools and our children, but you need to be ready to act quickly if unfavorable legislation passes. If you haven’t already done so, go to the Rhode Island Retirement System Office to get your personal pension information. Armed with that information, you will be ready to weigh your options and make an informed decision about what you should do if the legislature moves to change the state retirement system in the spring of 2009.
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