Biweekly news digest from the California State University Employees Union
If you would like to receive CSUEU E-News directly via email, please sign up at the CSUEU site.
BUDGET UPDATE
PRELIMINARY GC ELECTION RESULTS
ONLINE DIRECTORY LAUNCHED
SPANISH-LANGUAGE KNOW YOUR RIGHTS FLYERS
WEB UPDATES
UPCOMING EVENTS
* * *
Budget Update
Governor Schwarzenegger has incorrectly interpreted the May 19 election results to mean that voters want no new taxes. In fact, recent polls confirm what all CSU unions already know: voters understand that new revenues are needed, and they want legislators to solve the budget puzzle successfully.
Far from supporting any and all budget cuts, the public wants education to be spared. In those recent polls, fully 70 percent of those surveyed opposed cuts to higher education.
At this point, it will take more than polls to shift the slash-and-burn mindset of the Governor and many legislators. They are intent on downsizing our way to solvency, even though common sense should tell them that you can’t get out of accumulated debt simply by spending less—at some point, you need to get your hands on the cold, hard cash to pay off those debts.
Under the governor’s new budget proposals, presented on May 10 and revised on May 26, hundreds of thousands of university students could lose their main source of support to pay for school. The governor’s Cal Grants proposal would save the state about $1 billion by eliminating hundreds of thousands of grants to college students. Students who now have Cal Grants would keep them until they graduate, but no new grants would be issued. Nearly 300,000 students in the CSU, UC and community college systems receive some form of Cal Grant support. Read a May 27 Contra Costa Times article detailing this proposal.
On May 21, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) rolled out analysis and recommendations for closing the budget gap that included a five percent reduction in non-instructional support at CSU (yes, that means CSUEU-represented staff).
Even more draconian are proposed cuts to services, including health insurance for children, as reflected in a California Budget Project fact sheet updated just yesterday. Its headline: More than 940,000 children would lose health coverage if the Healthy Families Program were eliminated.
It’s expected that the Governor will continue proposing yet more cuts—up to $3 billion more—over the next couple of weeks, each followed by LAO analysis a few days later.
The Governor’s proposals are only recommendations and can’t be implemented without approval by a joint budget conference committee that’s meeting over the next two weeks. Senate members of the committee are Denise Ducheny, Bob Dutton, Mark Leno, Alan Lowenthal, and Mimi Walters, while Assembly members are Robert Blumenfield, Kevin De Leon, Noreen Evans, Roger Niello and Jim Nielsen. Their charge is to assess the impacts of the proposed cuts and to send their resulting new version of the budget to the legislature for its approval.
Chair Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa) has started a new blog in which she questions the current budget process, which is destined to bring so many cuts to vital services, K-14 and higher education. “In reaction to these cuts at today’s hearing, a member of the public testified that a society which is able but unwilling to provide for its most vulnerable citizens is contemptible,” she stated in yesterday’s entry.
Use Capwiz to send an email to key committee members, urging them to invest in the CSU as California’s economic engine.
Chancellor Reed, joined by the president of the UC and chancellor of the community college systems, will speak to the Budget Conference Committee this Monday, and CSUEU President Pat Gantt is scheduled to speak on Monday as well.
The Chancellor is set to unveil a budget allocation plan to CSU campus presidents this Wednesday, June 3, that will provide complete details on budget cut impacts from the CSU perspective. Until then, we’ll continue gathering information and conducting analysis of the potential impacts on staff.
Preliminary GC Election Results Announced
Preliminary results of elections for CSEA General Council (GC) delegates were posted late last week to Inside CSUEU, VP for Organizing Ronnie Grant’s blog. Results are preliminary pending final allocation of delegate seats by CSEA.
GC takes place at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites in downtown Los Angeles over the Labor Day weekend, September 4-7.
Online Directory Launched
With the launch of a new online CSUEU directory, it’s now be easier than ever to find up-to-date contact information for CSUEU leaders and staff members. Augmenting existing information on the Contact Us page, the online directory provides a database of CSUEU leaders and staff members searchable by last names, chapters, committees, bargaining units and staff names/titles.
Thanks to CSEA webmaster Steve Aunan for the directory design and to Malia Plummer at CSUEU headquarters for her assistance in inputting and maintaining all the data. Please contact Malia if you have any updates, (916) 319-4800 x. 102.
Spanish-Language Know Your Rights Flyers Now Available
Four popular Know Your Rights (KYR) flyers have just been translated into Spanish and are now available for download in the Library’s KYR folder:
#3: Injury on the Job
#10: Layoffs
#14: Reasonable Workload
#15: Performance Evaluations
Three of them include new Spanish-language membership application forms as well.
“CSUEU has a diverse membership, and it’s important for our materials to reflect this diversity,” says CSUEU President Pat Gantt. “Know Your Rights flyers are helpful member resources, so it’s fitting that they are among our key materials to be made available in Spanish.”
Web Updates
We’ve just gone live with a new page devoted to the next BOD. It includes a map and committee meeting information; eventually all committee agendas will be available here as well. It’s available off the home page from both the “Home” pull-down menu and the “About CSUEU” box. The BOD takes place June 26-28 in Millbrae, near SFO.
Check out the new flyer on workload issues available in the Communications folder of the Library (go to the PR/Campaign Materials subfolder by clicking on the plus sign). It can serve as a good reminder to all members to be on the lookout for increased workload as staff sizes decline.
* * *
UPCOMING EVENTS
Friday-Saturday, June 5-6
CSEA Board of Directors Meeting
San Jose
Friday-Sun, June 26-28
CSUEU Board of Directors Meeting
Millbrae (near SFO)
* * *
See back issues of CSUEU E-News, distributed every other Thursday.
— End —