Public Safety Protection Act Of 2012

For the example in this memo, I will be focusing on the funding of educational programs. As you are aware, 38% of the property taxes fund school programs such as athletics, arts, and all day kindergarten. Due to the great recession, property values here in the Knoxtown area were greatly affected and a majority of properties lost nearly 50% of their assessed value. A significant portion of our constituents also lost their homes. Due in some part to these two factors, our projected revenue was not met. The overall revenue for the city was down 42% resulting in a serious budget shortfall. The loss of these property taxes resulted in the cutting of many school programs. The children of our constituents not have fewer athletic and arts programs to choose from as well as eliminating full day kindergarten for the next term. If corrections to the budget are not made, some bus services and reduced lunch programs will also be eliminated.

I would have rather paid a measly 200.00 to the government than to have Proposition 13. This is a slap in the face as a teacher, they are truly hurting the wrong things. Most people knew that it would do this and it did. I was resentful and how many ways can we express ourselves? I thought this was like throwing the baby out with the bathwater. What was even worse was that it undercut and there had to be reductions to meet constraints and we had to go backwards. Also the two-thirds vote should have been majority. Another impact was that other states followed California and the taxpayers wanted to send a message, I believe Oregon passed one. There is only one way to get around this proposition and that is mellow rues."

Aside from school funding and protecting Children’s Healthcare, Proposition 55 will also maintain low taxes for families whose income is low. Proposition 55 will only keep higher taxes on the rich because as many say, they are able to afford it. According to Protecting California, these high taxes will only “apply to singles that make $250,00 and couples who make $500,000 or more a year.” (Protecting California) This shows that it really does only tax higher to those who really are able to afford it. Voter’s Guide is also stating how it will, “Only affect the wealthiest Californians who can most afford it, ensuring they continue to pay their share of taxes.” (Voters Guide) Ergo meaning that, the high taxes being taxed will indeed be paid because

Okay, education time for all you prop 55 supporters. A temporary tax is that TEMPorary. Prop 30 that passed in 2012 was to take care of the lost revenue only during the period of recession. If Mr. Brown and the unions support prop 55 we should read between the lines. Look at SB1530 as an example of why we should fear what the unions support. In SB1530 the unions protected teachers involved in serious or egregious unprofessional conduct from dismissal. Currently, the appeals processes and dismissal of permanent employees is wasteful. The unions do not put the students ' safety as the priority.

Approved by the governor of California in July 7, 2011, the objective of this law was to ensure the ensure students, defined as pupils, of public schools their rights to attend classes in a safe and secure environment. As a way to avoid the development of criminal behavior, the state government has coordinated with schools, community leaders, and local law enforcement agencies to prevent school-related violence such as hate crimes and bullying. While

Although Proposition 47 may seem benign from the deceptive title, reaching out to the meagerly funded schools and protecting neighborhoods, reading further into the proposition illustrates a different story. Proposition 47, or the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, was passed on November 4, 2014 in the entire state of California. The Act’s intent was to reduce non-serious and nonviolent crimes from felonies to misdemeanors to reduce the number of prison inmates residing in the cells. The greater the number of inmates, the greater the amount of money needed to fund the prison. Therefore, reducing the number of inmates would expand the state budget funds to be used towards schools. By cutting down the number of prison inmates, Proposition 47 enacted to “reduce the penalties of the following crimes: theft of any property, shoplifting, receiving stolen property, writing bad checks, forging checks, and possession of any drugs worth $950 or less will always now be a misdemeanor (Votersguide.ca.gov 1).” The proposition went immediately into effect on November 4 throughout the state, releasing thousands of convicted prisoners due to amendment from felony to misdemeanor in certain crimes. The two main changes that put law enforcers in a frenzy are the two bolded aforementioned above; theft of any property and possession of any drugs worth $950 or less. Despite the fact that schools will now receive a plethora of money from this act, the expense for this is the release of a horde of

The state of California currently has a consistent population growth, where birth rates are 49% of the population, immigration 51% and older Californians are about 20% of the total population. Since California borders the country of Mexico, the number of young hispanics in California is steadily increasing. The population is mostly young and effects the state in California in its work force and education. The large Hispanic community faces trouble as many do not have the qualifications for high paying jobs, and there is a low amount of low skilled jobs available in the state in fact, “ Californians of modest or low incomes are challenged by the high cost of housing, inadequate heath care for the one-fifth of Californians who are uninsured, and the increasing costs of public high education opportunities”. The state of education faces a problem with the high number of hispanics and other minorities in California because, “one-forth of the Children in Californians public school are considered “English Learners”, with some large school districts serving as many as 80 language groups”. Since the great recession in 2008 it has become difficult for people to be able to own a house, this has placed a huge effect on minorities such as hispanics. School quality

The policy that intrigued me to research is the “Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools to end the Exploitation of Children Today Act of 2003” or “PROTECT Act” (GPO, 2003). The law was passed at the 108th Congress and was given the law number of 108-21 on April 30, 2003 (GPO, 2003). The agencies that were involved with passing the law and maintaining the law today are Homeland Security, FEMA, and the US Department of Justice (DHS, 2015).

As mentioned by Thompson (2010), in the Associated Press, “Lawmakers bridged a $19 billion shortfall, more than 20 percent of the $87.5 billion general fund spending plan”. This shows that the state was heading towards a financial crisis and more deficit creation. Moreover, Thompson (2010), in the Associated Press also points out that “It includes no tax or fee increases but uses a combination of cuts, funding shifts, delayed corporate tax breaks and assumptions about money the state hopes to receive”. The budget gave rise to other dependent costs such as delayed tax refunds. It was uncertain that the State will receive the required funds from the federal government to ensure that the important programs will function the way it used to be until the funds are received.

The SAFE Act is considered “reactionary” firearm legislation, essentially being rushed through to pass. It was designed to prevent criminals and the dangerously ill from purchasing firearms through a universal background check, and greatly affects mental health professionals. The SAFE Act did not get consideration from any mental health professionals though, and did not ask for their input. The Act required mental health professionals to report patients they believe are “likely to engage in conduct that would result in serious harm to self or others” to county authorities. Even if the professional believes the patient would benefit from treatment, and doesn’t even know if they have access to firearms, they must report them. The SAFE Act effectively

There are many challenges that law enforcement agencies faces when it comes to enforcing public safety at the same time protect the rights of individuals. This paper will focus on several key topics involving the relationship between public safety and individual rights. The first topic is the statutory authority and responsibilities of government officials, security personnel, and private citizens. The next topic involves the practices or laws relating to search, seizures, and surveillance by police, corrections, private citizens, and security personnel. This paper will also compare the laws relating to the use of

Cory Turner of National Public Radio, writer of Why America’s Schools Have A Money Problem, has the answer; “…45 percent local money, 45 percent from the state and 10 percent federal…why is it that one Chicago-area district has $9,794 to spend on each of its students, while another, nearby district has three times that? Two words: property tax,” (Turner 2). The authors of Equity Is the Key to Better School Funding, Marin Gjaja, J. Puckett, and Matt Ryder, say, “Giving kids in high-poverty areas an equal opportunity to succeed requires spending more money on those students,” suggesting that in those low-income areas, local and state government regulations alone and predominately will not be beneficial (Gjaja, Puckett, and Ryder 1). Property taxes when associated with funding for education are insufficient in low income areas, and in return are insufficient for the school. Leaving local and state governments with the responsibility of fulfilling a majority of education costs is a concept we should correct. Turner also mentions that one Arizona school has four-day weeks to save money from electricity bills, as a result of poor rates of property taxes. Budget cuts also contribute to the impairment of districts with lower property taxes and lower income families, an implied point from Michael Leachman’s article, Most States have Cut School Funding, and Some

Clark thanked Scott Anderson for his patience with the process and Board member Jewett for his experience and wisdom. Ms. Clark reviewed the committee members, and why we need a parcel tax. She reviewed the background and the history of the parcel tax and the Measure C ballot language, noting that the parcel tax is not to be used to cover administrator salaries. Measure C specifies there must be an oversight committee whose responsibility is to monitor the expenditures of the parcel tax. An accountability model was developed to assure that the parcel tax funds are used appropriately. This year they are transitioning to a new model in which PTOC can review the District’s financial reports through the fiscal year to ensure that identified expenditures are consistent with the parcel tax ballot language. The parcel tax will fund 73.8 FTE classroom teachers (salaries and benefits). The PTOC concludes that after analyzing all information, the parcel tax funds were spent in accordance with Measure C for the 14-15 administrative year and that no administrative salaries were

Proposition 30 is going to bring billions of dollars to the school system, It is going to insure budget cuts will not take any immediate effects, and help to revitalize the already crumbling school system. Proposition 30 increases the state sales and use tax rate .25 percent for four years (from January 1, 2013 through December 31, 2016); and increases personal income taxes for single taxpayers with a taxable income exceeding $250,000 – adding three new tax brackets of 10.3 percent, 11.3 percent, and 12.3 percent – for seven years (2012 through 2018). The initiative was sponsored by Governor Jerry Brown and the California Federation of Teachers. (CalTax “Prop 30”, 1)

Schools have a number of various sources. The primary sources are federal, state, and local funding. The majority of funding comes from state and local sources; whereas a small percent (usually 9-12%) comes from the federal level. The method by which schools receive funding is through the taxation process. At the state level, taxes are levied from taxpayers, both corporate and citizens via sales and income tax. At the local level, school funding comes from property taxes. Let’s explore the how the various sources of school funding. “According to the National Center for Education Statistics, state and local funding accounts for approximately 93 percent of education expenditures” (Woodruff, 2008, ¶ 2). Let’s examine these various sources of revenue and funding and different formulas for allocation along with their pros and cons.