Just a reminder: Tomorrow morning (Tuesday, March 1) at 8 a.m., the Idaho House Education Committee will begin the first of at least two days of hearings on Senate Bill 1108 (Superintendent Tom Luna’s union-busting bill) and Senate Bill 1110 (the pay-for-performance bill). Both bills passed the Senate on narrow 20-15 votes February 24.
Tomorrow’s hearing will begin with Luna presenting his bills to the committee. After that, as time permits, public testimony will be taken and will continue on Wednesday and possibly Thursday. The committee is scheduled to meet in the auditorium on the west wing of the Garden Level from 8 to 11 a.m. House leadership has given the committee chairman latitude to go beyond the 11 a.m. deadline on Wednesday, if necessary, to complete public testimony.
As in the Senate Education Committee, the committee will likely take testimony from alternating speakers for and against the bill. So while a limited number of people will get to testify, it’s important to sign in to state whether you are for or against the legislation. In hearings held before the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee and the Senate Education Committee, reporters used the sign-up sheets to get a tally of people for and against the bills.
It’s also important to remember that, for now, the House Education Committee will only be hearing S 1108 and S 1110. People who testify against the legislation (currently S 1113) that would increase class sizes, eliminate 1,000 education jobs, and mandate technology may be ruled out of order. Click here for more information on S 1108 and S 1110. Testimony will be limited to three minutes per person.
If you’d like to testify Tuesday or Wednesday, it would be wise to arrive by 7 a.m. to sign in and get a seat. But it’s also important simply to fill the room with people who oppose the Luna plan. Everyone is welcome, so come later if you need to.
We will report on this week’s hearings via our Twitter feed and post updates on the hearing schedule there and here on the Hotline.
