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If you recall, one of the five #REDforED demands last spring was not to introduce new tax cuts until per pupil spending reaches the national average. Shockingly (or not?) JD Mesnard is now sponsoring a bill to cut taxes before addressing the continuing education funding crisis.

Arizona has the opportunity to put up to $230 million into public education funding. But rather than directing those additional revenues to better prepare for the next economic downturn or toward increased investments in our public schools, Senate Bill (SB) 1143 and House Bill (HB) 2522 will direct money toward a tax cut that will benefit the wealthiest Arizonans. It doesn’t make sense to cut taxes when we know Arizona’s students desperately need those funds.

We need to take action TODAY to convince our legislators that this is a horrible idea.

• Contact your legislators and urge them to vote no on these bills.
• Have a site meeting and share information about the bills. Post on social media and tag your legislators. One idea: take a picture with a sign with the number four (for the 4th AEU demand) and write what your school could do with that money.
• Use the AZ Legislature Request to Speak system to officially register your opposition to these bills.

It’s time again … the Arizona Legislature is back in session. We made great strides last spring and worked hard to elect pro-education candidates in the fall … but we still need to be vigilant during this session to hold our supporters accountable and prevent bad bills from being passed (including those that are intended to punish us for speaking out).

How can you help? We’ll be talking about lots of ways to help, but an easy one is to subscribe to the AEA Legislative Update. This subscription will bring you the latest news on what’s happening at the capitol (including ways you can take action) delivered to your inbox. Subscribe today, and stay tuned for more ways you can be engaged in what’s happening at the capitol.

Governor Ducey gave his state of the state address this evening and was predictably vague about his plans for public education funding. Besides repeating his 20 by 2020 pledge, there was nothing new offered: no talk of increased funding beyond 20 by 2020 (which still leaves our schools well short of 2008 funding levels), and no discussion of identifying a dedicated funding stream for public education.

This isn’t acceptable. Our students and our schools deserve better. Please call Governor Ducey at 602-542-4331 and tell him that we need a bipartisan solution on education funding during this legislative session. Visit this site for more details and ideas on what to say in your call.

Our election is less than 10 days away! Whether you have yet to send in your early ballot or you prefer to vote in person on November 6, it’s important to be informed about the candidates and how they will (or won’t) support public education in Arizona and in Chandler. CEA has updated our online Voter Toolkit to include information on candidates recommended by NEA, AEA, and CEA, as well as candidates who have signed the Invest in Ed Pledge. This resource also gives you all the information you need on the logistics of casting your ballot.

This truly is a critical election for our country, our state and our district. Please visit our Voter Toolkit at chandlerea.org/votertoolkit to become informed, engaged voters, and feel free to share it with others!

Join CEA and other East Valley local education associations for #KNOCKtoberfest this Saturday as we canvass for pro-public education candidates Steve Weichert and Jennifer Pawlik in Legislative District 17. We will also be canvassing for Bob Rice and Lara Bruner, our recommended CUSD Governing Board candidates. These are crucial elections for our district, and every vote matters!

We will be meeting at Tumbleweed Park in Chandler at 9:00 am near the Recreation Center. Look for our staging location with the political signs.

After canvassing ends at 12:30 pm we will be heading to SanTan Brewing in Chandler for KNOCKTOBERFEST! SanTan Brewing will be providing happy hour drink discounts for teachers! Be sure to bring your school ID to receive your discount!

Get full details on our Facebook event page.

This November, there will be an election to fill two vacant CUSD Governing Board seats. Although there are many excellent candidates, and we look forward to partnering with any of them to meet the challenges our district faces, our CEA PAC has decided to recommend two candidates who we believe rise above. The CEA PAC is proud to recommend Lara Bruner and Robert Rice for CUSD Governing Board. Bob is a current member of the board who has done a great deal to make CUSD a top school district in the country, while Lara is a lifelong educator and advocate for all students, as well as a parent in the CUSD community. If you live within CUSD boundaries, be sure to make an informed vote in this important election!

Visit our Governing Board Election page to see video of the CUSD Governing Board Candidate Forum and to read answers from all candidates to a CEA-created questionnaire.

Ballots are dropping, and the clock is ticking on making an impact for this critical election. Join in on the AEA EdWave Day of Action this Saturday! Special guests will include AEA recommended candidates David Garcia (Governor), Steve Weichert (LD17 Senate) and Jennifer Pawlik (LD17 House). If everyone does their part, we have a real shot at getting leaders in office who will truly support public education. RSVP for the AEA LD17 #edWave Day of Action!

Fall break is halfway over … have you made time to canvass yet? LD17 is a winnable district with candidates who are amazing supporters of public education, but they need our help to get out the vote. LD17 is also right in our backyard, so we have a unique ability and responsibility to make a difference there.

CEA is challenging every site to get at least one team of 2-4 people to canvass just once during our fall break (canvassing more is encouraged, too!). There are literally LD17 canvassing opportunities every day and the weather is amazing right now … so no excuses! These canvasses are targeted to knock on doors of moderate, persuadable voters who are willing to listen to hard-working teachers. After we built up respect and credibility during #REDforED, we cannot afford to waste an opportunity to talk to voters who want to support us but may not know how to do that.

Check out our EdWave Canvassing page for more details … let’s do this, Chandler!

In addition to all of the important statewide races on the ballot in November, there are six people running for two openings on the CUSD Governing Board. This critical race will obviously have a huge impact on the direction of our district, so if you live within CUSD boundaries, it’s important to make an informed vote. To help our members learn about these candidates, we asked each of them to complete a candidate questionnaire, and we are posting their responses to the questionnaire on our CUSD Governing Board Candidate page. On this page, you can also find video of the CUSD Governing Board Candidate Forum held on Thursday, September 27. Even if you don’t live within CUSD boundaries, please take the time to learn about these candidates!

We cannot let all of the energy behing #REDforED lead to the same politicians holding office in November. Please join an AEA EdWave canvassing opportunity tomorrow! This is a great way to have conversations with friendly, targeted voters who are willing to vote for pro-public education candidates and listen to why this election is so important.

Tomorrow (September 22) there are two canvassing opportunities especially for CEA members:

Legislative District 17 (RSVP)
9:00 am & 1:00 pm
1450 W Warner Rd, Suite 124, Gilbert, AZ

Legislative District 18 (RSVP)
9:00 am
725 E Guadalupe Rd, Suite 723, Tempe, AZ

You can also visit the INVESTinED website to find future canvassing events.