By FITSNews || Rather than eliminating unnecessary spending in the hopes of “balancing” South Carolina’s $20 billion budget, Palmetto state lawmakers are once again nickel-and-diming teachers and state employees on the front lines of government.
According to a controversial budget proposal approved Monday by the House Ways and Means Committee, state workers (including teachers) would be forced to furlough for five days during the coming fiscal year. Teacher reimbursements for school supplies would also be capped.
The teacher furlough would save $100 million, according to House budget writers. It’s unclear how much the reimbursement cap would save, although the fact that teacher pay and school supplies are going to be the very first things to feel the budget axe should make parents’ skin crawl.
After all, according to figures compiled by the S.C. Budget and Control Board, administrative funding for public education increased last year by $220 million – part of a record allocation of $8.4 billion during the one of the longest, deepest economic recessions in America history.
So here’s our question … if the state’s revenue situation is so bad, then why not just cut all the administrative excess we added last year?
Seriously … why are we targeting this pain directly to teachers and front-line workers? After all, only around half of the money we spend on education even makes it to the classroom to begin with.
Also, as we’ve noted previously, furloughs are awful public policy because they presume that all government agencies and positions are created equal. Well, they’re not, although try explaining that to a low-grade moron like S.C. House Ways and Means Chairman Danny Cooper.
Once again S.C. lawmakers are proving that in addition to being unable to spend money intelligently, they can’t cut spending intelligently either.
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By Maratha Washington February 23, 2010 at 12:00 am
Never never never! does any media EVER say anything about all the damn illegal aliens in the schools.It’s one of those federal mandates that we need to stop participating in. The state sovereignty bill should go further and say NO illegal aliens in the schools. O set up a payment system where people can PAY to go to public school-pay their own way.
Approximately 5-7% of all students are illegal aliens. Multiply that times the recently suggested number of $13,000 per student…THAT’S A LOT OF PESOS!
By Mrs. Ethel Krabitz February 23, 2010 at 5:34 am
What is wrong with our legislature?
Here’s a novel idea: cut out all SCDE administrative travel and associated stipends. Cap administrative perks like gas and car allottments. Cut out all the big catered lunches held yearly by the SCDE. Then move the same cuts down to the administrative levels of each school district. VOILA!!
What non-thinking DIPSHIT would cut teachers pay ( that’s what furloughs do) ? Way to raise morale and attract teachers to SC!
By Cancerman February 23, 2010 at 7:12 am
Thats right keep fucking what loyal state employees you have left motherfuckers, pack your bags because you all are own the way out you bastards. It is so funny they leave the rehired employees spcefically their buddies who they brought back at ungodly pay alone. We see what you are doing to the state employees balancing the budget again on their backs. Well there is not one original thinker up there at the statehouse just a bunch of self serving pricks.
By John Steinberger February 23, 2010 at 7:19 am
Cut the fat out of every level of government. The City of Charleston has a Director of Sustainability – excuse me! Charleston County School District has “teacher coaches” who don’t actually teach. There are also numerous Assistant Superintendents. This nonsense has got to stop!
By Ynotfirst February 23, 2010 at 7:42 am
there is such a thing as an ” essential employee”…
these are the people who work no matter what.
Let’s look at prison staff furloughs too.
Ok so you have less guards guarding the prisoners; maybe that’s ok.
But then there is the ” infirmary” and the infirmary is operated under federal regulations. When the nurse is furloughed, an agency nurse is brought in to meet staffing requirements. The agency nurse costs lots more than the state employee… say 60 bucks an hour ( salary + benefits, maximum) for the furloughed employee versus 100 bucks an hour for a contract agency nurse.
Same thing with teachers probably. You can’t have an empty classroom can you? Do the kids just sit in the furloughed teachers room during the furlough period? Does the district get a substitute? How much does that cost? What is the price we are willing to sacrifice to take SC out of number what… 49 in education and put the schools back on track??
Furloughs for essential employees are different than furloughs for State Senators and Congressmen and their office employees.
By countryboy February 23, 2010 at 8:04 am
Cutting the cost of government might begin with cutting the Ways and Means staff of eleven.
By Skidmarks February 23, 2010 at 8:22 am
Maratha, are we still recruiting foreign teachers to go to places like Allendale?
By HMMM February 23, 2010 at 8:42 am
Where would you suggest Allendale go to find teachers?
By Old Bike Dude February 23, 2010 at 8:45 am
Excellent post. We waste half of our education dollars on nepotism, cronyism, and just being raatarded(pc). I believe the entire State BOE could be replaced by a copy of Quickbooks and a clerk.
By beentook2 February 23, 2010 at 8:46 am
Top 10 why South Carolina is the Cockroach Capitol of the Universe:
1. Educational system that takes young minds and turns them into mush in 6 years or less.
2. Fairfield County School Board
3. Dumping ground for all the world’s nuclear waste and garbage.
4. Dillon County Boss Hog Czar Hayes
5. Kenny Bigham whose head is so slick he could shove it up a fly’s ass.
6. Boss Hog Knotts who has already been notified by the Devil that he too damn mean and ugly to enter Hell.
7. Andre Bauer, a boil on the ass of mankind
8. Boss Hog McConnell who ,if had he been born in the correct era,would have been the first Confederate Lt. shot by his own troops.
9. Boss Hog Leatherhead, proof that crap can be piled 4’10″ high.
10.A Legislature whose collective IQ is 70 and that is giving them 5 points for breathing.
By countryboy February 23, 2010 at 9:46 am
The obvious answer is to vote every MF holding office out and try a new batch. But it won’t happen. When the rubber hits the road the incumbents usually win and voters blame other politicians. I would bet that fat bastard Spratt wins because people will blame Pelosi, Reid, Barack Hussein, etc. even though his fat ,senile ass votes with them 97% of the time. I think this time I am going to do something I never did before which is to vote against every single incumbent, even if they are unopposed.
By Walking Around Money February 23, 2010 at 9:52 am
Maratha or maybe you meant Martha,
While I don’t completely disagree with you that we need to stem the tide of illegals whether through amnesty for those now or some penalty and tax, you cannot hold the innoncemt kids responsible, because they are likely here LEGALLY if they were born in the US, and the ones that aren’t will be here and it’s best to educate them so they can be productive. The mentality of rounding up all the illegals and sending them packing while nice for the 15 second media, is completeley asinine and unrealistic.
By countryboy February 23, 2010 at 11:54 am
Here are the Ways and Means proposed ammendments:
http://www.scstatehouse.gov/citizensinterestpage/Ways&MeansMeetingHandouts/xerox001.pdf
By Unbelievable February 23, 2010 at 1:00 pm
Another year and not even cost of living? Truely amazing that Leatherman would rather build Green Bean musems…..
That man is as stupid as they come…. His day is comming….
Will be glad when he goes….
By Halftime February 23, 2010 at 2:32 pm
While I agree that furloughs are almost always bad ideas, it occurs to me that furloughing teachers would be much easier than what you will see in other state agencies. You deduct the 5 days’ pay from their checks starting the beginning of the FY and have them take a few teacher work days and/or summer holiday days as furlough. You spread the furlough days over the 24 pay periods so that it minimizes the financial impact. No ‘teacherless’ classrooms and no having to pay overtime/comp time or substitute teachers.
Much more creativity is needed to furlough people from, say, SCDC (whose employees have already taken up to 5 furlough days in the last FY). Federal Law requires minimum staffing levels be maintained (24/7) and you are cutting off your nose to spite your face if you furlough a corrections officer and then have to bring in overtime to cover the position. It will require much more planning and creativity to furlough w/o actually INCREASING costs. It takes staff out of the prisons and makes an already dangerous job that much more perilous.
By Another Opinion February 23, 2010 at 3:50 pm
Beentook2: Could not have said it better. You hit the nail on the head.
By A person that knows February 24, 2010 at 1:34 am
Well there has been only one candidate for Superintendent campaigning against the furloughs. Kelly Payne has been doing it and the answer is reducing funding streams and making funding more transparent. Cutting administration as well. Of course Beentook2 will respond by making some unnessecary remark, but the facts are facts!
By countryboy February 24, 2010 at 8:17 am
Kelly Payne has my vote.
By Just a thought February 24, 2010 at 9:58 am
Education policy and funding are directly related to the decision by businesses to relocate to an area. Businesses will move to NC or Ga before SC because thier key employees would not move to a state where they believe thier children will be hobbled by an underfunded and terrible system. Furloughs only re-enforce this reputation. Any teacher with any experience will look to move out of state for a more stable employment. Consequently, this state starts from scratch every few years.
By Huhhh??? February 24, 2010 at 10:11 am
If this were the old days, school teacher Kelly Payne would have long ago been fired for moral turpitude.
But, that don’t apply to Bible thumping Republicans, do it?
By Stumpy February 24, 2010 at 10:41 am
Some good ideas expressed here. Here’s another. Need to cut down on the number of school districts in the state. I can’t think of one county that needs more than one school district. Might even combine some like Allendale and Barnwell if they aren’t already combined.
By Tank McNamara February 24, 2010 at 12:15 pm
sic, since when have you EVER given a rat’s ass about state employees? you and the majority of the poster’s here) would rather have them lose their jobs than take furloughs.