June 4, 2020 - Modesto, CA – Representative Josh Harder (CA-10), a member of the House Education and Labor Committee, on Wednesday sounded the alarm on possible teacher layoffs this summer, resulting from Governor Newsom’s proposed eight percent budget cut to districts’ general fund, as a result of a state law which expressly allows mid-summer layoffs. In a letter to Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and Senate President Toni Atkins, Rep. Harder encouraged suspension of the relevant education code.

“During the pandemic, parents got a better sense of how hard it is to be a teacher and how important it is to have kids in school. We can’t let teachers and our kids become casualties of the economic chaos resulting from Coronavirus,” said Rep. Harder. “Larger class sizes coupled with fewer teachers and staff hurt our kids’ ability to learn. It’s common sense, but also every study out there says that students learn better in smaller groups. We have to do everything we can to prevent teacher layoffs.”

“The decisions we make during these times are critical because they will have a significant impact on how prepared we are in upholding the essential services to our community by way of distance learning. Any mid-Summer staff layoffs will not only be premature but will be counterproductive to the significant investment that school districts have thus far poured into retooling educators and staff in preparation for the following fall,” said Kevin Quiñones, Modesto Teachers Association. “In addition, layoffs will add thousands of more workers to the already overburdened unemployment pay rolls, and will further compound efforts to jumpstart our economy as we transition back to normalcy. What’s critical is that we consider the implications of these decisions and the effects they will have not only on our educational establishments, but also on the health and overall wellbeing of our community.”

Representative Harder has been a leader in the fight to protect public education during the Coronavirus pandemic. In March, at the outset of the pandemic, Harder asked Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to do more to help rural districts – including Knights Ferry in Stanislaus County – to adapt to distance learning. After hearing concerns from leaders in Stanislaus County, Rep. Harder contacted the national Head Start office to protect $2.5 million in federal investments for local districts. Rep. Harder also partnered with Republican Brian Fitzpatrick to introduce legislation to allow 2020 college graduates to defer their student loans. More recently, Rep. Harder pushed for an education representative on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, advocated for changes to the student loan system in light of the pandemic, asked Governor Newsom to prioritize funding for rural districts, and fought to prevent Secretary DeVos from diverting public education funds to private schools.

The text of the letter is below and an original copy is available here.

Dear Speaker Rendon and Senator Atkins,

Thank you for your leadership taking meaningful actions to help and protect Californians during this pandemic. I write to you today to urge the legislature to reject Governor Newsom’s proposed budget cuts and suspend the provision in the Education Code, CA Educ Code § 44955.5 (2019) which would trigger a mid-summer layoff period of our state’s educators.

The proposed 8 percent budget cut in funding to the districts’ general fund would activate a state law that would put into motion an optional layoff period through the middle of August. The effects of such layoffs would result in larger class sizes, higher teacher-staff-student ratios, and overcrowding – a contributing factor to the reduction in overall student academic achievement. Suspending this provision has been successfully enacted twice, most recently prior to the 2011-2012 school year. Suspending these layoffs is vitally needed for our students who are relying on teachers, faculty members, and administrators now more than ever before to navigate the unprecedented challenges of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now is not the time to add more uncertainty for our students.

It is imperative that we guarantee a stable and effective educational experience for all of our students across the state.  Additionally, it remains unclear as to what the reopening of our nation’s campuses will look like. Our students and teachers, and administrators will face potential challenges such as staggered start times, smaller class sizes, and extra safety precautions regarding food preparation and transportation when these campuses are reopened. Because of this, we need teachers on hand to ease the transition back to the classroom now more than ever.

It is our job as leaders of this state to ensure that that our students are provided a quality education – which is why I urge you to suspend the provision in the Education Code which would allow for a mid-summer layoff period if Governor Newsom’s proposed cuts are approved. Thank you for your consideration and I look forward to your response.
Source: Congressman Josh Harder