KY 120 United AFT is a union of professionals that advocates for a high-quality public education along with delivering quality public services that will allow for our Commonwealth to grow and thrive. We are committed to advancing these principles through community engagement, organizing, collective bargaining, and political activism, and especially through the work our members do. Together we are stronger, and every voice matters.
Union brothers and sisters,
We have 16 days left of the Kentucky General Assembly 2022. Despite all the attacks and the exhaustion we feel, we press on. We continue to fight. Let’s jump right in.
House Bill 9 will create the funding mechanism for charter schools across Kentucky. It also provides school choice lobbyists what they have advocated for–scholarship tax credits statewide. On Monday, March 7th, we hosted our first 120 Rundown of the session. To say this live is a must watch is an understatement. Click on the link to watch. 120 Rundown on HB 9: Charter School Funding. Along with calling and emailing, you can sign the KASA petition concerning public education funding. KASA Petition
With a vote of 56-35, House Bill 51 passed on the House floor on Tuesday. This bill outlaws mandating masks in schools. With the ongoing pandemic and preschoolers under the age of 5 not having access to a vaccine yet, we must continue to fight this measure. Masking policies should remain under local control for every district.
House Bill 7 includes language that will remove 300,000 Kentuckians from Medicaid. Not only will this affect the health care of students and citizens, but Medicaid services that are provided in our schools-including free and reduced lunch programs-will be impacted as well. If a family loses their Medicaid, they will also lose their SNAP assistance.
Tyler Murphy, chairman of the Fayette County Board of Education and teacher at Boyle County High School, has written a wonderful op-ed concerning SB 138. Click the link to read. SB 138 Op-Ed by Tyler Murphy
House Bill 8 will drastically cut taxes for the wealthy, thus impacting the resources available to critical services for our state. You can read more about this from Jason Bailey with the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy. House Tax Bill Would Devastate Kentucky’s Budget for a Giveaway to the Wealthy, as well as sign their Action Network petition against this bill. KCEP House Bill 8 Action Network Petition. Based on the polling of our members, we agreed to Governor Beshear’s budget proposal. Despite the overwhelming needs of our state, the majority of the General Assembly voted to give themselves a raise beginning in 2023.
Our organizing team has been conducting monthly virtual meetings with Dr. Jason Glass, KDE Commissioner. During the last meeting, we expressed to him concerns about employee sick time due to COVID-19 based on our survey data with membership positivity rates. We will continue to inquire and advocate for this need.
We are excited to announce that we now have a website for purchasing 120 AFT merchandise! Click on the link to create a login for ordering. KY 120 United AFT Store
As always, we must seek to recruit members to AFT. Have you talked with a coworker about our advocacy? Can we double our membership the next two weeks? Anyone can sign up on our website. KY 120 United AFT
As always, you can email our organizing team at ky120unitedaft@gmail.com or send us a private message on our public page with any concerns you may have.
Solidary.
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