March 16, 2005 - Media Advisory - De La Torre stands up for Prop. 98

Media Advisory - De La Torre stands up for Prop. 98

What:		Assembly Member Hector De La Torre (D-South Gate) and education leaders from the 50th Assembly District will discuss Governor Schwarzenegger's education budget and call on him to honor the promises he's made to California's schoolchildren.
Where:		Old River Elementary School 11995 Old River School Road Downey, CA 90242
Who:		Hector De La Torre, Assembly Member, 50th Assembly District Barbara Samperi, President, Downey USD Board of Education Rich Buonocore, President, Bellflower USD Board of Education Marcella Calderon, President, Montebello USD Board of Education Guadalupe Rodriguez, President, Lynwood USD Board of Education Dan Vaughn, Teacher, California Teachers Association Board of Directors Wendy Doty, Superintendent, Downey Unified School District Pamela Box, Principal, Old River Elementary School Robert Becker, Downey Education Association Rick Kemppainen, Superintendent, Bellflower Unified School District Edward Velasquez, Superintendent, Montebello Unified School District Local parent groups
When:		Friday, March 18, 2005 11:00 a.m.

BACKGROUND:

Last year, public schools and students sacrificed $2 billion in an agreement with the Governor to help balance last year's budget. In return, Governor Schwarzenegger promised that the Proposition 98 funding would be fully restored in this year's budget.

The Governor's January budget proposal, however, breaks his pledge with the education community and California's schoolchildren despite the fact that state revenues are actually higher than what was projected when the agreement was reached last year. Furthermore, Governor Schwarzenegger's so-called budget "reform" measure would permanently reduce school funding by nearly $4 billion.

Additionally, a recently-released study from the non-partisan RAND Corporation found that California has the largest classes in the nation, as well as the second-highest student-to-teacher ratio. In another survey, released by "Education Week," California ranked 44th in the nation in per-pupil funding.

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