PTA Responds to State Budget:
Our responsibility to children cannot be cut in bad economic times
Pam Brady, President of the California State PTA, issued the following statement in response to the
Governor’s budget proposal and ongoing negotiations with legislators.
“Don’t think for a minute that we don’t understand the magnitude of the current financial crisis. Families
throughout California are living each day with the realities of the economic downturn. But families also
understand that we have a responsibility to children and their future which cannot be compromised in bad
economic times.
“We believe the smartest economic stimulus plan for California right now is to invest in the future by
investing in the education, health and welfare of our state’s children.
“The latest budget proposal would cut an additional $6 billion to schools. When combined with cuts
already made to our schools in the current year and proposed accounting maneuvers to delay other
payments owed to schools, we’re looking at total cuts of about $11 billion.
“Cuts of this magnitude fail the basic test of good government. They hurt our children.
“These proposed cuts will completely derail efforts to provide a world-class education to all students. We
are already 47th in the nation in terms of how much our state spends per student on education. These cuts
are likely to make us dead last.
“The mission of California State PTA is to positively impact the lives of all children and families. We
cannot and will not back away from that mission during tough economic times. In fact, these are the times
when the children of California need our advocacy the most.
“The 120-member Board of Managers of the California State PTA has voted to launch an aggressive
campaign to protect children from drastic budget cuts.”
The California State PTA is a branch of the 111-year old National PTA, with nearly one million members
statewide. The PTA is the nation’s oldest, largest and highest-profile volunteer organization working on
behalf of public schools, children and families, with the motto “Every child, one voice.” PTA volunteers
work in their schools and communities to improve the education, health and welfare of all California
children and youth. The PTA also advocates at national, state and local levels for education and family
issues. The PTA is non-profit, non-partisan, non-sectarian and non-commercial. For more information,
go to www.capta.org.
This press release is also available as a downloadable PDF.
