Superintendents, parents, teachers, school board members and other education leaders detail devastating impact of budget cuts to schools in Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo

50 protest Governor’s Slash and Burn Budget on San Luis Obispo County Visit
Posted on 27 March 2008 by Mark

SAN LUIS OBIPSO – More than 50 people protested outside The Tribune March 26 when the Governor visited San Luis Obispo County to pitch his slash and burn budget, according to the San Luis Obispo Education Coalition.

There was a tremendous coalition on hand — teachers, school board members from three districts, classified staff, Code Pink, retired teachers, PTA, community, and students. (To see slides of the event click here.)

Their message was simple and clear. There is no support for the Governor's approach and the Governor needs to start doing his job rather than fly around the state making secret visits to newsrooms.

The Governor is known for finding alternative entries rather than face protesters. The group decided to remain in one location as a show of force rather than cover the three entrances to the Tribune. The tactic placed the most visibility on South Higuera and the Governor’s security detail met with Buchman and decided to use the Tribune’s front entrance within sight and earshot of the demonstrators.

True to past practice he kept his itinerary secret. The only location the SLO ed coalition was able to discover was his visit to the Tribune Editorial Board at 11 a.m. He chose to travel across the state during Spring Break when many people were not home.

From the time his Tribune visit became known, 4:45 p.m. on March 25, SLO Ed Coalition member Mark Buchman started the phones and emails buzzing.

Many people scrambled trying to bring out a group to protest the Governor's budget that calls for the simplistic approach of cutting 10 percent across the board. Public Schools stand to lose $4 billion. Other agencies providing essential services will also lose billions. (To see slides of the event click here.)

“None of us would do that if we faced a personal budget crisis,” said Buchman “We would sit with our families and prioritize our needs. The Governor needs to do the same thing. That is what he was elected to do, make the tough decisions, not come up with quick fixes. Cutting 10 percent from schools, is not the same as cutting 10 percent from roads and sewers.”

Besides there may be a much easier way to balance the budget — dig into the $40 billion of tax loopholes and begin closing them or raise revenue to meet the growing needs of the state, according to Buchman.

Many in Sacramento say this annual budget crisis is the result of the Proposition 13 that limits property tax increases then excludes commercial property from that formula.