THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE ALABAMA EDUCATION ASSOCIATION VOLUME 137, NUMBER 4 APRIL 13, 2020
ALABAMA EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
2019-2020 AEA Runoff Election Results
New AEA Secretary-Treasurer, NEA Directors, and District Directors elected
pg 2
AEA Members - Real Life Superheroes
Educators step up for students in times of crisis and pandemic
pgs 6-7
Have Coronavirus questions? AEA has answers.
AEA answers member questions about COVID-19 and job issues
pg 8
Words of wisdom, humor in this strange time
AEA's Wendy Lang offers words of encouragement in the face of pandemic
pg 9
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced Alabamians to suddenly alter their routines. How they work, communicate, and shop has changed dramatically over the past several weeks. Before March 2020, people would go into brick and mortar stores to shop - just run by the store on their way home to pick up something they need. Now, a few weeks into April, brick and mortar, non-essential stores are closed. Even the people who would typically shop in brick and mortar stores are turning to online shopping to avoid possibly coming into contact with the coronavirus in the few brick and mortar stores still open. As more people are shopping online, the online sales tax collection will continue to rise, while the traditional brick and mortar sales tax will decline. Brick and mortar sales taxes are one of the main revenue sources for the state's education budget. As the revenue streams are predicted to sharply decline due to the coronavirus, now more than ever online sales tax funds are crucial to school funding. When the online sales tax passed in 2015, the state's General Fund was in dire need of propping up after the 2008 recession. In an effort to address the declining revenue in the General Fund, the Legislature passed a law mandating collection of sales tax on online purchases and divided the state's portion of the revenue collected between the General Fund (75%) and the Education Trust Fund (25%). That's far different than the way sales tax collected from brick and mortar stores is distributed, which is 100% of the state's portion going to local schools. The local portion of sales tax collected from brick and mortar stores goes to the local communities. The local portion of online sales tax collected goes to the County Commission and NOT to local schools. Local education dollars pay for additional teachers, aides, programs such as art, theater, communications, etc. Without that revenue, local systems have had to cut back on some of those locally provided programs for their students. Senator Arthur Orr saw the benefit of online sales tax funds and the benefit these funds can provide for local school districts. Senator Orr passed a local law in the 2019 Legislative Session which altered the distribution of the state's online sales tax in Morgan County. The Alabama Education Association answered a call to defend that local law when the Morgan County Commission questioned the constitutionality of the law and illegally withheld money from local school systems in Morgan County. AEA wanted to ensure funding designated for classrooms was sent to classrooms. AEA's efforts in partnership with school districts in Morgan County were successful. Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge James Anderson ruled the local law was constitutional and the Alabama Legislature has the authority to tell county commissions how to spend tax dollars, like online tax receipts. The win in the Morgan County online sales tax case is a victory for all Alabama public education. The local law in Morgan County shows other state legislators they, too, can work to pass a local law to direct online sales tax funds to classrooms in their districts. AEA was the only association willing to step out and sue the Morgan Couty Commission on behalf of those school systems and we will continue to push for all local school systems to receive the local portion of the online sales tax as well. When the state is back open for business and the Legislature reconvenes, budgeting issues will be a major concern. The Education Trust Fund budget will have reduced funding due to lost brick and mortar sales tax dollars collected. When looking for solutions to fill holes in the education budget, AEA asks legislators to follow Senator Orr's example and direct online sales tax funds to fill the gap in education budgets. In a time of such uncertainty, one thing you can be absolutely
sure of is AEA continuing to fight for educators each and every day. AEA has worked
diligently and tirelessly for you during this difficult time for our state, our nation, and the world.
UniServ Directors have been in the trenches with members discussing safety and other
pertinent health issues and AEA has fought hard to ensure that every educator in Alabama gets paid during the pandemic.
The AEA Headquarters building in Montgomery may be closed, but AEA is open and has been available and
advocating for educators since closure. Beginning with working
with State Superintendent of Education Dr. Eric Mackey to make certain all education employees were paid through the pandemic to continuing to work to make certain all local school systems are following the orders issued by the Governor and Dr. Mackey,
AEA is advocating for you. AEA leadership has been involved in
discussions with the Alabama
State Department of Education
(ALSDE) from the beginning and continues to work to ensure educators are not put at unnecessary risk while also making certain the needs of Alabama students are being
met. Whether it's advocating with superintendents or presenting
opportunities for members to gain CEUs, PLUs, and webinars, AEA has been here
for educators. AEA members have stepped
up in this time of crisis and continue to go above and beyond for their students.
From making and handing out or delivering food, to parading
through the neighborhoods of their community schools, educators have shown time and again their love for both the students and the schools and communities they serve.
AEA is proud to work with and reprsent such an amazing group of Alabamians! There are too many instances
of educators demonstrating their dedication and love for Alabama students to cover all of them, but to see a few AEA
superheroes, go to myAEA.org/ AEASuperheroes and see pages
4, 6, and 7 of this issue of the
ASJ .
As educators continue to navigate this new, hopefully temporary, reality, remember to take care of yourselves and your families. It's important to educate Alabama students in whatever way works best for your school system while also maintaining the safety and health of yourself and your families. Now, more than ever, parents understand the importance of teachers and the unique set of skills, education, empathy, patience, and compassion it takes to educate a child. All educators deserve to be recognized for the extraordinary things they
do daily in educating the state's students. During this pandemic, AEA
has kept educators informed through our social media platforms, and in many cases, AEA was the first to report the information. AEA has also set up a webpage, myAEA. org/covid-19 where members can find the latest updates on COVID-19, as well as links to
memos from Dr. Mackey.
Online sales tax revenue proves crucial to education funding
Fighting For the Good of Educators
In these difficult times, AEA offers hope.
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