Saturday, February 24, 2007
Money, Big Money, And Public Education
The multi-billion dollar lawsuit between education bureaucrats and taxpayers took another nasty turn yesterday with the Council for Better Education -- love that name -- requesting a trial.
The Lexington Herald Leader, in a news story, has this nugget:
And as we waste a million and counting on this lawsuit, two bills in the General Assembly would add tens of millions more to the same rat hole. Kentucky law now requires children to stay in school until age sixteen. HB 221 and HB 279 provide an end-run around the lawsuit by requiring the state to pay school systems to warehouse thousands of teenagers who don't want to be in school.
The great thing about this scheme, from the CBE's perspective, is that if you add in the test scores of the would-be dropouts, they will have a built in excuse to lobby for more money still to combat the lower test scores.
What we need is an incentive for education bureaucrats to think as creatively about educating students as they do about ways to game the system for more tax dollars.
We really, really need to break up the school monopoly and inspire these folks by having them deal with the competition brought on by school choice.
The Lexington Herald Leader, in a news story, has this nugget:
The legislature has spent $487,000 defending the lawsuit while the CBE has spent $391,000 on the case filed in 2003.
And as we waste a million and counting on this lawsuit, two bills in the General Assembly would add tens of millions more to the same rat hole. Kentucky law now requires children to stay in school until age sixteen. HB 221 and HB 279 provide an end-run around the lawsuit by requiring the state to pay school systems to warehouse thousands of teenagers who don't want to be in school.
The great thing about this scheme, from the CBE's perspective, is that if you add in the test scores of the would-be dropouts, they will have a built in excuse to lobby for more money still to combat the lower test scores.
What we need is an incentive for education bureaucrats to think as creatively about educating students as they do about ways to game the system for more tax dollars.
We really, really need to break up the school monopoly and inspire these folks by having them deal with the competition brought on by school choice.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Taped Phone Calls? What Taped Phone Calls?
Just saw this post on another thread:
From what I have heard, many phone calls were made to stop a Louisville fundraiser for Secretary of State Trey Grayson after he mentioned at Fancy Farm the possibility of running for governor himself.
If there are tapes out there, it would obviously make front page news.
Weatherman said...
This all pales in comparison to the spending and other habits of Ernie the Drunken Sailor. And wait until the phone tapes are released on Ernie's efforts to stop Trey Grayson's fundraiser last summer.
From what I have heard, many phone calls were made to stop a Louisville fundraiser for Secretary of State Trey Grayson after he mentioned at Fancy Farm the possibility of running for governor himself.
If there are tapes out there, it would obviously make front page news.
We Don't Need Senior Judge Program
The best justification for making the senior judge program permanent is that it lightens the workload on our judges and helps move cases faster. While that may be true, it comes at a heavy price. The family courts were created for the same purpose and are now a permanent institution.
We have an opportunity to cut loose some double-dippers in state government and we should jump at the chance. Tell your state representative to vote against Welfare for Judges, HB 465.
We have an opportunity to cut loose some double-dippers in state government and we should jump at the chance. Tell your state representative to vote against Welfare for Judges, HB 465.
Would We Resent Illegals Less If They Paid Their Fair Share?
One good reason for scrapping state income taxes and replacing them with consumption taxes is that doing so puts the underground economy back on the books.
The states which currently have no income tax are Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. Additionally, New Hampshire and Tennessee limit their state income taxes to dividends and interest income only.
We should seriously consider joining them.
The states which currently have no income tax are Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. Additionally, New Hampshire and Tennessee limit their state income taxes to dividends and interest income only.
We should seriously consider joining them.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Northup Goes After Fletcher Defense Fund
In an e-mail statement today, Anne Northup called on Governor Ernie Fletcher to divulge information about his legal defense fund.
Great.
Now, how about giving us some ideas to empower students and their parents in the public education process? What about a plan to help lower the cost of health care? Any ideas about taxes or what to do with the public employee pension crisis?
Just curious.
Great.
Now, how about giving us some ideas to empower students and their parents in the public education process? What about a plan to help lower the cost of health care? Any ideas about taxes or what to do with the public employee pension crisis?
Just curious.
Time For Another Sick Day, Harry
It was great Tuesday when Rep. Harry Moberly called in sick. I'm guessing his physical condition was fine, but he didn't want to show up to see his Secrecy Bill roll over and die.
It's time for another sick day, Harry.
Moberly is bottling up the AMC repeal bills. One man shouldn't have the power to hurt businesses like this.
It's time for another sick day, Harry.
Moberly is bottling up the AMC repeal bills. One man shouldn't have the power to hurt businesses like this.
2007 Dem Update: Capitalism Doesn't Work
The floor debate in the House yesterday on the minimum wage was a little contentious and sprinkled with memorable quotes. The Lexington Herald Leader got several of them, but missed this goody from Rep. Jim Wayne (D-Louisville):
That's pretty rich coming in the middle of a state ravaged still by the War on Poverty, in which a generational cycle of dependency created by a misguided hope to ameliorate the shortcomings of capitalism has held us back for decades.
"Raw capitalism does not work for vulnerable people."
That's pretty rich coming in the middle of a state ravaged still by the War on Poverty, in which a generational cycle of dependency created by a misguided hope to ameliorate the shortcomings of capitalism has held us back for decades.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Jody Richards: Germane Means What I Say It Does
Speaker Jody Richards needs a dictionary, not the additional power he seeks.
House rules require an amendment to a bill be related to the original bill, or germane. Rep. Brad Montell's amendment to exempt part-time workers from the minimum wage increase was judged not germane to HB 305, the bill that raises the minimum wage in Kentucky.
The bill and the amendment are by any definition except Richards' completely germane.
If Richards can't follow a simple House rule like this in front of everyone, what would he do to the merit hiring laws behind closed doors?
House rules require an amendment to a bill be related to the original bill, or germane. Rep. Brad Montell's amendment to exempt part-time workers from the minimum wage increase was judged not germane to HB 305, the bill that raises the minimum wage in Kentucky.
The bill and the amendment are by any definition except Richards' completely germane.
If Richards can't follow a simple House rule like this in front of everyone, what would he do to the merit hiring laws behind closed doors?
Sending Veterinarians To Jail For Being Mean
The Kentucky Senate just unanimously passed a bill (SB 23) that would fine up to $1000 or jail up to 30 days a veterinarian who refuses to treat assistance dogs without prior payment of the dog's owner.
Very few veterinarians are going to turn away a disabled person who needs help with his dog, but do we really want to throw them in jail for exercising the freedom the rest of us take for granted to tell a non-paying client to get lost?
Very few veterinarians are going to turn away a disabled person who needs help with his dog, but do we really want to throw them in jail for exercising the freedom the rest of us take for granted to tell a non-paying client to get lost?
Improving Health Care Options
The biggest thing holding back health insurance reform in Kentucky is an unholy alliance between corporate lackeys beholden to the status quo on one hand and big-government throw-the-baby-out-with-the-bath-water types who will only be happy when we go all the way to socialized medicine.
A commonsense bill which would open the door to greater consumer choice in the state is being shut down in the Senate. SB 135 would simply lower the mandate on insurance companies' coverage of pre-existing medical conditions. It wouldn't require any coverage to be lessened and would have no impact on anyone who already has coverage. What it would do is bring four companies back into the state and provide some much needed competition in the marketplace.
Can you think of any reason such a bill does not deserve our full-fledged support?
A commonsense bill which would open the door to greater consumer choice in the state is being shut down in the Senate. SB 135 would simply lower the mandate on insurance companies' coverage of pre-existing medical conditions. It wouldn't require any coverage to be lessened and would have no impact on anyone who already has coverage. What it would do is bring four companies back into the state and provide some much needed competition in the marketplace.
Can you think of any reason such a bill does not deserve our full-fledged support?
"Lifetime Employment Of K-12 Teachers Is Off-The-Charts Crazy"
Steve Jobs of Apple Computer risks a big chunk of his business by speaking up for education.
Read it here.
Read it here.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
This Should Be The Easiest Thing To Pass In KY
Giving Kentucky parents the right to choose how the tax dollars allocated to educate their children are spent should be very easy to implement. That is school choice. Call it vouchers if you want to.
Taking the power from the teachers union and giving it to parents makes a lot of sense in terms of creating competition for our struggling schools. Competition will make our education process stronger and it can be done without any additional costs to the taxpayers.
All we need is a little leadership. Billy Harper was the only gubernatorial candidate to show up at the school choice rally today in the Capitol. His staff worked vigorously to get him a speaking role in the event and deserves a ton of credit for their efforts. Harper's words in support of school choice set him apart in the Republican primary. I know Governor Fletcher and Anne Northup had other events scheduled this morning, but where are they on school choice now?
Back in 2003 while in Congress, both Northup and Fletcher voted for parents and children in Washington D.C. to have access to a pilot charter school program. The program has been so successful, the worst thing critics can say about it is too many families want in.
Surely Fletcher and Northup don't want to deny Kentucky families the same thing they saw fit to grant families who live in Washington D.C.
Taking the power from the teachers union and giving it to parents makes a lot of sense in terms of creating competition for our struggling schools. Competition will make our education process stronger and it can be done without any additional costs to the taxpayers.
All we need is a little leadership. Billy Harper was the only gubernatorial candidate to show up at the school choice rally today in the Capitol. His staff worked vigorously to get him a speaking role in the event and deserves a ton of credit for their efforts. Harper's words in support of school choice set him apart in the Republican primary. I know Governor Fletcher and Anne Northup had other events scheduled this morning, but where are they on school choice now?
Back in 2003 while in Congress, both Northup and Fletcher voted for parents and children in Washington D.C. to have access to a pilot charter school program. The program has been so successful, the worst thing critics can say about it is too many families want in.
Surely Fletcher and Northup don't want to deny Kentucky families the same thing they saw fit to grant families who live in Washington D.C.
HB 184 Scuttlebutt
Looks like Rep. Harry Moberly has called in sick today so his noxious HB 184 should be sidelined for this afternoon's session. May he have a speedy recovery and may his bill die a painful death.
Major Endorsement For Northup Coming
The Northup campaign is set to announce a major endorsement next Monday.
Speculative Update: Congress is not in session next week. I'm guessing it will be Rep. Geoff Davis.
Speculative Update: Congress is not in session next week. I'm guessing it will be Rep. Geoff Davis.
Teaching Tuesday
Rep. Stan Lee's HB 30 Special Needs Scholarship bill will be the focus of a 10 AM press conference this morning in the Capitol Rotunda.
The Bluegrass Institute has an interesting article about why education bureaucrats are all twisted up because some people want to improve choices for families with kids who need extra help in school.
Republican candidates for Governor would do well to weigh in on this subject.
The Bluegrass Institute has an interesting article about why education bureaucrats are all twisted up because some people want to improve choices for families with kids who need extra help in school.
Republican candidates for Governor would do well to weigh in on this subject.
Monday, February 19, 2007
Jonathan Miller On Board Against HB 184
I have to admit I thought it was great in 2005 when the budget negotiators in Frankfort secretly returned $13.7 million to the General Fund that had been taken to fill the actuarial hole in the money-losing KAPT program. And seeing that Treasurer Jonathan Miller is still chapped about it did cause me to giggle just a little bit:
Despite the fact he is nearly $300k off in his telling of the story -- only a rounding error for our not-so-precise state Treasurer -- Jonathan Miller deserves credit for expressing opposition to HB 184 the day before it comes up for a vote in the House.
This should serve as a lesson to those complacent souls who plan to sit quietly by while our General Assembly shuts us out of the legislative process. The sneakiness they seek to legitimize tomorrow won't always go your way.
We saw how harmful this practice could be when this procedure was used to try to raid $14 million from the KAPT (Kentucky's Affordable Prepaid Tuition) program, a trust fund we established to help Kentucky families save for their children's higher education. Even though 95% of the legislature supported KAPT and would have opposed this attempt to rob the KAPT families of their hard-earned savings, they were misled by a few of their leaders and were forced to vote on this huge budget bill that they had not had a chance to digest completely.
Despite the fact he is nearly $300k off in his telling of the story -- only a rounding error for our not-so-precise state Treasurer -- Jonathan Miller deserves credit for expressing opposition to HB 184 the day before it comes up for a vote in the House.
This should serve as a lesson to those complacent souls who plan to sit quietly by while our General Assembly shuts us out of the legislative process. The sneakiness they seek to legitimize tomorrow won't always go your way.
The Junk In Steve Beshear's Trunk
John Stamper has the story of Steve Beshear's economic development press conference from earlier today. While I can agree that making corporate tax credit information public is a good idea, if that is the centerpiece of Beshear's campaign, he has trouble. And then he pops this one out:
This would have to come as an unpleasant surprise to employees, suppliers, and customers of Toyota, UPS, Walmart, Ford, Amazon, ACS, IBM, Kroger, and all the other companies without which Kentucky's economy might make xenophobics happy but would be pretty rough on the rest of us.
And since Beshear's foundation seems to be casino gambling, I can't imagine he did himself any favors by showing up today.
"We need a governor who understands that Kentucky's economic growth will come from Kentucky-based businesses," Beshear said.
This would have to come as an unpleasant surprise to employees, suppliers, and customers of Toyota, UPS, Walmart, Ford, Amazon, ACS, IBM, Kroger, and all the other companies without which Kentucky's economy might make xenophobics happy but would be pretty rough on the rest of us.
And since Beshear's foundation seems to be casino gambling, I can't imagine he did himself any favors by showing up today.
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