Tuesday, March 21, 2023

Play

Texas lawmakers consider legislation to prevent cities from self-governance, Connecticut considers policy options to alleviate an eviction crisis, and Ohio residents await community water systems.

Play

Gov. Ron DeSantis breaks his silence on Trump's potential indictment and attacks Manhattan prosecutors, President Biden vetoes his first bill to protect socially conscious retirement investing, and the Supreme Court hears a case on Native American water rights.

Play

The 41st state has opted into Medicaid which could be a lifeline for rural hospitals in North Carolina, homelessness barely rose in the past two years but the work required to hold the numbers increased, and destruction of the "Sagebrush Sea" from Oregon to Wyoming is putting protection efforts for an itty-bitty bunny on the map.

WV Teachers Lambast Governor’s Proposed Tax Cuts

Play

Tuesday, January 17, 2023   

West Virginia's teachers' union warns that new proposed tax cuts will further shrink school budgets and drive more educators out of the profession. A crippling number of vacancies are straining school operations, and the number of non-certified teachers that have left their jobs has doubled since 2018, according to the state's Department of Education.

Dale Lee, West Virginia Education Association President, said he welcomes the governor's 5% pay raise for state employees, but added it is not enough to reverse the worsening teacher shortage in public schools.

"We have over 1,500 classrooms across the state of West Virginia without a certified teacher in it," Lee said. "We're doing harm to kids. We have to address that issue."

Last week, the governor proposed slashing income taxes by 50%, pointing to the state's budget surplus and said residents' paychecks would see a boost. But the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy said one in every six dollars in tax cuts would go to the wealthiest households, while most communities would pay the price in reduced public services.

A recent National Education Association survey found more than half of teachers nationwide say they will likely leave the profession earlier than they had planned. Lee said that will also be the case in West Virginia without a significant boost in teacher pay.

NEA data show West Virginia ranks at the very bottom in teacher salaries nationally. Lee said a strong core of educators in workforce helps ensure more West Virginia students are prepared for college or vocational training.

"This legislature has to make a commitment to educators that that 1,500 number is going to reduce," he said.

Research shows that elementary school children nationwide are beginning to catch up from pandemic-related learning losses, but math and reading achievement levels among middle-school and high-school students continue to lag.


get more stories like this via email
The VOTES Act also ensures the Commonwealth joins the Electronic Registration Information Center, or ERIC, a multi-state consortium which aims to keep voter registration rolls up to date, encourage voter registration and prevent voter fraud. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

Voting rights advocates in Massachusetts are applauding Governor Maura Healey's budgetary backing of new policies stemming from last year's passage of…


Environment

Climate-change groups are calling attention to the environmental destruction linked to the wood pellet industry - even as California is considering a …

Social Issues

Many Nebraskans know how crucial a family caregiver is to one of their family members. Now AARP research has put a dollar value on that unpaid care - …


Going back generations, many Indigenous cultures developed strong ties with bison and relied upon them for sustenance, shelter, and cultural and religious practices. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

South Dakota is home to one of the nation's largest American Indian reservations, and the area is part of a movement among tribal nations to take …

Health and Wellness

As the cost of food, medicine and rent continues to climb, new data shows the benefits miners receive are now 40% less than what they received in 1969…

Stedman farmer Demi Tucker has been growing mushrooms on her family's land for the past few years. (Demi Tucker)

Environment

With the cost of farmland up by more than 8% percent in North Carolina, the state's Black farmers are struggling to purchase additional acreage or …

Environment

By Zachary Shepherd and Kelsey Paulus for Kent State News Lab.Broadcast version by Nadia Ramlagan reporting for the Kent State-Ohio News Connection Co…

Social Issues

Republican-sponsored bills and amendments in the Legislature would eliminate the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth. More than 1.5-million …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021