Rehiring Annuitants/WRS Retirement Age Bill Circulated
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | November 14, 2019
Representative Felzkowski and Senator Stroebel are circulating a bill that would allow retired public employees to return to a WRS-covered job for a three year period while still collecting their WRS annuities. The bill would also increase the minimum retirement age for general classification employees from 55 to 59.5. Under the bill, the retirement age change would impact current employees under the age of 40 on the bill’s effective date.
Numerous SAA members have already contacted the SAA with their concerns regarding the staff recruitment/retention implications of the retirement age provisions of the bill. Please contact the SAA with any questions or concerns you may have about the bill.
See the bill here.
Topics: SAA Capitol Reports, SAA Capitol Reports with Email Notifications, SAA Latest Update | No Comments »
SAA Members Testify on Tobacco 21
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | November 6, 2019
The following SAA members testified in support of Assembly Bill 422, the so-called Tobacco 21 bill at a public hearing today before the Assembly Committee on Substance Abuse and Prevention.
Jim Karedes (Delavan-Darien) Testimony
Chris Medenwalt (Monroe) Testimony
Gregg Wieczorek (Arrowhead) Testimony
Hats off to these High School Principals for taking time out of their busy schedule to advocate on behalf of the students they serve.
Topics: Legislative Action, SAA Capitol Reports, SAA Capitol Reports with Email Notifications, SAA Latest Update | No Comments »
Priority Legislative Alert on Tobacco 21
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | October 30, 2019
The SAA is issuing a Priority Legislative Alert on Assembly Bill 422, the so-called Tobacco 21 legislation.
As we reported last week, AB 422 has been scheduled for a public hearing before the Assembly Committee on Substance Abuse and Prevention at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, November 6th in the North Hearing Room (2nd Floor North), State Capitol. The SAA strongly supports the bill.
See the Public Hearing Notice here.
We urge SAA members to take action now! For those interested in testifying at the public hearing, please contact the SAA so we can help coordinate and facilitate your testimony. We also encourage all SAA members to contact your legislators and ask them to support AB 422.
In your communication, please consider using the talking points below as well as any of your own points about the importance of the bill based on your experiences and expertise.
Talking Points:
- Wisconsin schools are on the front lines in dealing with fallout from rising teen nicotine addiction.
- As e-cigarettes and vaping products have become more widely available, we have seen an explosion in the numbers of young people using these products.
- In Wisconsin, one in five high schoolers use e-cigarettes. Additionally, one in nine middle schoolers have tried e-cigarettes. These are self-reported numbers. Actual usage may be higher.
- As health officials across the country investigate hundreds of cases of a potentially deadly illness related to e-cigarettes, we believe there is greater urgency to take action now to protect our kids.
- AB 422 would raise the minimum sales age for all tobacco and nicotine products to 21, up from the current 18. Eighteen-year-olds are suppliers to their younger peers. Raising the minimum sales age will reduce the number of high schoolers who can legally purchase these products for others in their social circles.
- Just like raising the legal drinking age from 18 to 21 helped remove alcohol from high school campuses, we hope this bill will produce similar results when it comes to e-cigarettes and other dangerous products that harm the health of young students and disrupts learning environments in schools.
For your convenience in contacting your legislators, we have provided links to the Assembly Directory, the Senate Directory and Who Are My Legislators.
If you should have any questions, please email me or call me at (608) 242-1370. Thanks for listening and, as always, thank you for everything you do on behalf of Wisconsin school children.
Topics: Legislative Action, SAA Capitol Reports, SAA Capitol Reports with Email Notifications, SAA Latest Update | No Comments »
Wisconsin’s 2019 NAEP Scores Hold Steady
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | October 30, 2019
According to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), Wisconsin’s results on the 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as the Nation’s Report Card, remained statistically unchanged, in a year when the nation saw significant declines on three out of four measures. At the same time, achievement gaps persist for Wisconsin.
For more information, see the DPI News release here.
Topics: SAA Capitol Reports, SAA Capitol Reports with Email Notifications, SAA Latest Update | No Comments »
Assembly Education Committee Executive Session
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | October 30, 2019
Yesterday morning, the Assembly Education Committee recommended for passage several bills that the SAA has an interest in (see below). Please note, no action was taken on AB 368, relating to declining enrollment relief. The SAA continues to work with the authors to modify the bill to soften a potential first-year loss for some districts under the bill.
AB-368 School Revenue Adjustment (Quinn, Romaine) The school district revenue limit adjustment for declining enrollment and the prior year base revenue hold harmless adjustment. No action taken. SAA Neutral.
AB-442 Categorical Aid (Felzkowski, Mary) Whole grade sharing categorical aid for school boards and making an appropriation. Am. 1 adopted, 13-0. Passage as amended recommended, 13-0. SAA Support.
AB-441 Shared Services Aid (Felzkowski, Mary) A shared services aid program for school districts, granting rule-making authority, and making an appropriation. Am. 1 adopted, 12-0. Passage as amended recommended, 13-0. SAA Support.
AB-456 Feasibility Study Grants (Kitchens, Joel) Grants for feasibility studies of school district consolidation or whole grade sharing and making an appropriation. Passage recommended, 13-0. SAA Support.
AB-461 Equalization Aid (Hutton, Rob) The timing of equalization aid payments to school districts. Am. 1 adopted, 13-0. Passage as amended recommended, 13-0. SAA Support.
AB-531 ID Card Info (Stafsholt, Rob) Requiring that student identification cards include contact information for suicide prevention hotlines. Am. 1 adopted, 12-0. Passage as amended recommended, 12-0. SAA No Position.
AB-528 Suicide Prevention Grants (Duchow, Cindi) Grants to support peer-to-peer suicide prevention programs in high schools, granting rule-making authority, and making an appropriation. Passage recommended, 13-0. SAA Support.
AB-529 WISH Grant (Schraa, Michael) Grants to the Wisconsin Safe and Healthy Schools Center and making an appropriation. Am. 1 adopted, 12-0. Passage as amended recommended, 12-0. SAA Support.
Topics: Legislative Action, SAA Capitol Reports, SAA Capitol Reports with Email Notifications, SAA Latest Update | No Comments »