Say Fund with State Savings from Pension Reform and Bureaucracy Reductions, Not Tax Increase
SACRAMENTO
– Voicing their commitment to higher education as one of the highest
priorities of the state, Assemblymembers Katcho Achadjian (R-San Luis
Obispo), Jeff Gorell (R-Camarillo), Kristin Olsen (R-Modesto) and
Cameron Smyth (R-Santa Clarita) sent a letter to Speaker John
Pérez to reaffirm their support for AB 1501, his measure to create a
middle class scholarship program, and to urge the Speaker to consider
alternative funding options for the program.
In
the letter, the Members state their opposition to the Speaker’s current
funding mechanism for the program, AB 1500, saying that raising taxes
would pit students against jobs and, therefore, hurt the very students
they are trying to help by making it even more difficult for them to
find a job in California upon graduation.
The
Members urged the Speaker to fund the program by implementing
governmental reforms and budget savings that have already been
identified by Governor Brown and the Legislative Analyst including
pension reform, contracting reform and bureaucracy reductions.
They
concluded that this important scholarship program can and should be
funded without tax increases if the Legislature makes higher education
funding a priority.
The full text of the letter is below:
May 31, 2012
Speaker John A. Pérez
California State Assembly
State Capitol, Room 219
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: Assembly Bills 1500 and 1501
Dear Speaker Pérez,
Yesterday,
we were proud to support Assembly Bill 1501, your measure to create a
scholarship program for California’s college students from middle income
families. We stand solidly behind the idea that these scholarships are
needed to fill a tuition funding gap created by years of budget cuts and
fee increases.
Investing
in higher education is critical to rebuilding a strong economy, and we
agree with your assessment that "if we are to restore prosperity and
opportunity for every Californian we need to ensure that higher
education remains accessible and affordable."
Nevertheless, we oppose your companion measure Assembly Bill 1500, the proposed funding mechanism for the scholarship program.
Because
of the $1 billion tax increase it imposes on California job creators,
we believe AB 1500 would cause employers to move jobs out of state by
increasing the cost of doing business, and would therefore pit jobs
against college students. Unfortunately, by making it more difficult to
find jobs upon graduation, AB 1500 will hurt the very students we are
seeking to help.
We
are still suffering from record high unemployment levels in our state,
and our students graduating from college face considerable difficulty
finding work. Our efforts to make higher education more affordable and
accessible must be done in a way that does not adversely affect
California jobs.
We
are committed to higher education being one of the state’s top
priorities and to finding ways to relieve the pressure of rising public
university fees.
We
want to work with you to find an alternative funding source for the
middle class scholarship program. This relief should be funded with
state savings from bureaucracy reductions and pension reform, not a tax
increase. We urge you to support Governor Brown’s pension reform
proposal and move the bills introduced by Republicans out of conference
committee and to the floor for a vote.
Many
governmental reforms and budget savings have already been identified by
Governor Brown and the Legislative Analyst that, if implemented, would
free up general fund resources that could be used to fund the
scholarship program including pension reform, contracting reform and
bureaucracy reductions. Higher education can be funded in California,
but it must be a budget priority of the Legislature.
California’s public universities are the pillars upon which the Golden State has built the world’s 8th
largest economy and developed such a rich and diverse culture. Without a
prepared, confident, well-educated workforce, California will lose its
ability to compete in the high-tech global marketplace of the future.
We
know your commitment to this program runs as deeply as ours, so we are
confident that working together we can find a way to fund this essential
program.
Sincerely,
<s>
Jeff Gorell
37th Assembly District
<s>
Cameron Smyth
38th Assembly District 
