United New Yorkers for Choice in Education

May 27, 2008 NEWS UPDATE (see below)

But First, a Bit About UNYCE...

          United New Yorkers for Choice in Education (UNYCE) was founded in 1994, as a nonsectarian, nonpartisan corporation.  UNYCE is dedicated to bringing significant and substantial changes in how elementary and secondary education is funded in New York State.  UNYCE is committed to the belief that parents, not the government, have the primary responsibility for the education of their own children; thus, they should have a range of affordable options for that education.  These options should include traditional public schools, charter public schools, secular or religious nonpublic schools, and homeschooling.

          UNYCE's prime function is to educate parents, voters and taxpayers concerning the possibility of change, that they have the power to effect change.  UNYCE does not endorse candidates for public office, but supports legislation designed to facilitate change. 

          During the 2007 session of the New York State legislature UNYCE supports the Educational Tax Incentives Act, S.3627-A/A.6432-A.  This bill was introduced by Senator Serphin Maltese (R-Queens) and Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) and has bipartisan support.  Cosponsors include legislators from every region of New York State.  A link to a copy of this bill is provided on the right side of this page.  (Because bills in the New York State legislature are printed on pages of a different size than the MS Word pages used for this site, there are large blank spaces in several places in the linked copy.)

          The Educational Tax Incentives Act is designed to help all education in New York State, public and nonpublic alike.  It can help public schools by encouraging school boards and boards of education to establish non-tax-generated income streams.  Under this bill public education entities would be allowed to solicit and accept voluntary cash donations.  Donors would be eligible for partial tax credits for such contributions.  By receiving this extra funding, educators and administrators would have the ablility to enhance academic and extracurricular programs without having to raise tax rates.  There is also a provision to help low-wealth/low-donation districts, so that every public school district in New York State may benefit from this legislation.

          Nonpublic schools would benefit indriectly, though scholarship foundations.  These foundations would receive donations, for which donors would receive a partial tax credit.  A tax credit would also be available for all school personnel, including homeschooling parents, who use their own money for the purchase of classroom supplies and materials.

ON THE ROAD

          The organizing principle on which UNYCE was founded is that the parents, voters and taxpayers of New York State should know that they do not have to settle for the status quo in elementary and secondary education, but that, if they join together, they can work for reform, including reforming how education is financed.  An important part of the UNYCE mission includes visitng individuals and groups around the state, spreading this message.  In late June several members of UNYCE attended a rally in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn.  The rally was organized by members of the Sephardic community there, and attracted scores of parents who are anxious to learn about the possibilty of reform.  These enthusiastic New Yorkers welcomed the message delivied to them by UNYCE President Tim Mulhearn.

            Invitations to speak to groups in any part of the Empire State are welcome in the UNYCE office.  Please contact UNYCE to make arrangements.            

DONATIONS TO UNYCE

          UNYCE has qualified for federal tax exemption under Sec. 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code.  Gifts to UNYCE are not tax deductible as charitable donations.  This is like contributions to political campaigns, but without the dollar limits.  None of the money sent to UNYCE has to be shared with the government in income taxes.

          To make a one-time donations to UNYCE please go to the "Donate" button on the right.  For a recurring monthly donation of twenty-five dollars (approximately eighty-three cents per day) please go to the "Subscribe" button, also found in the column on the right side of this page.  For a recurring monthly donation of fifteen dollars please go to the "PayPal Subscribe" button at the bottom of this column,  and for a recurring monthly donation of ten dollars please go to the "PayPal Payment Plan" button, also at the bottom of this column.  Whatever amount you donate will be greatly appreciated, and will go toward bringing much-needed reform to New York State.

NEWS UPDATE/ACTION NEEDED

(Posted May 27, 2008)

        On May 20, the NYS Senate Committee on Investigations and Government Operations voted to approve the Educational Tax Incentives Act, S.3627-A, with only one "nay" vote.  The bill was then referred to the Senate Finance Committee.  While the bill still awaits Assembly action, the movment in the Senate came as an encouraging step.

(Posted December 27, 2007)

        The proposed Memorandum for the Educational Tax Incentives Act (S.3627-A/A.6432-A) for 2008 has been added to this site.  To view it, use the button in the right colum.

(Posted October 29, 2007)

          The New York State legislature returned to Albany last week, in order to take care of some items previously left unaddressed.  It had been hoped that they would take up and pass the Educational Tax Incentives Act, S.3627-A/A.6432-A.  UNYCE and our friends around the state had made a major effort to promote this.  Some of our Senate allies had written to Sen. Joseph Bruno, the Senate Majority Leader, requesting a vote on the bill, while voters and taxpayers from around the state had let legislators know they expected this action.  While momentum seemed to be developing in support of this legislation, at the last minute the Senate leadership decided against brining up this bill for a vote.

          There is little doubt that a Senate vote would have been in favor of the Educational Tax Incentives Act.  So far, the Senate leadership has not provided a satisfactory answer about what happened that made them go against the supporters of this bill.  One thing they have to know, though, is that this issue will not go away.  Its advocates will be back, well before the opening of the 2008 legislative session.

          ACTION IS NEEDED NOW to request that Governor Spitzer include in his Executive Budget proposal $125 million, the amount projected by the Department of Taxation and Finance for the first year of the Maltese-Hikind bill.  The Governor has already added an amount somewhere in the neighborhood of $1.5 billion in additional funding for education for 2008-09.  He needs to hear that the relatively modest $125 million should be included in his proposal.  Having this sum already in the budget will make it easier for the legislature to approve the legislation.

          Gov. Spitzer's Albany office phone number is (518) 474-8390 and his New York City office number is (212) 681-4580.  The phone number fot Director of the Budget, Paul Francis, is (518) 474-2300.

NEW YORK STATE PUBLIC SCHOOL REPORT CARDS

          One of our members was thoughtful enough to suggest that a link be added to allow visitors to this site to see the "report card" for each of the public schools in New York State.  A link has been added for this in the right column on this page.  Finding the information about a particular school might take a bit of time and effort, but the data can be helpful in understanding and evaluating the performance of that school.  After clicking on the year for the data sought, there is an Accountability and Overview Report link near the bottom of the page.  The next step is to select the county and then the school district.  The final step is to click on the link for the particular school.  If difficulties are encountered, please send an e-mail to the UNYCE office and request help.

 CLERGY FOR EDUCATIONAL OPTIONS

          A link to Clergy for Educational Options (CEO) has been added to our UNYCE website.  This is an organization founded by a group of clergy in South Carolina, and can serve as a model for similar groups arond the country, including in New York State.  In fact, plans are under way to form such an organization in New York as an affiliate of UNYCE.  New York State is much more religiously diverse than South Carolina, so a CEO-like group in the Empire State will include a wider variety of members.

SCHOOL CHOICE IN UTAH

        A link has been added from this page to a column by Ken Blackwell on the problems and prospects for school choice in Utah.  The situation in Utah is significantly different than ours in New York.  There the legislature actually passed a school choice bill, and the Governor had signed it.  The problem now is with its implementation.

         The Utah model is not appropirate for New York, although all advocates for equality of educational opportunity should applaud what the legislature and governor have done there.  The reason UNYCE has created a link to this column is so that visitors to the UNYCE site may have a better understanding of what is going on in other parts of the country.  Also, it is important to know who is opposing reform and the lengths to which the will go to block it.

REGISTER TO VOTE

          A link to the New York State Board of Elections has been added  in the column on the right side of this page, at "Register to Vote."   The Board of Elections page lists the qualifications for voting and the directions for how and where to register to vote.  Voting is not only a right of all U.S citizens over the age of eighteen, but it is also the most effective way of either keeping or changing our government leadership.  By voting for candidates who support your right to select the school you believe most appropriate for you own child, you can bring about significant changes in state policies.