Thread by @TracyNovick

H. 4137 House deliberation thread starts here:

The bill is here: malegislature.gov/Bills/191/H4137
Video: malegislature.gov/Events/Session…

#FBRC #MAEdu #mapoli

warning you in advice that I cannot identify most members of the House. Sorry.
I do, however, spot @RepJimODay on the floor in his usual sartorial splendor.

My phone is plugged in behind me, so if you need me, please use something that will come to my laptop.

(you are not missing #FBRC deliberation. Much other business)

And @RepAlicePeisch is up to introduct the bill

bill is result of countless hours of meetings and hearings

since 1993, "have risen to the top of the country and arguably the world"
#FBRC

overwhelming majority of districts responded to increase in health insurance by appropriating more

districts that could not, cut other sectors
#FBRC

finds are consistent with findings of original act

thus "bulk of the funding of the bill is directed at our poorest communities"
#FBRC

leveling the funding was seen as making the difference in 1993

to some extent that was true, as our low income students outperform other states
#FBRC

not just in classroom, but differences from the day they were born

"more than just equivalent experiences in the classroom" needed
#FBRC

"I hope and expect that we will move to a system" where the schools are not left to make the difference

but in the meantime "this is a good start"
#FBRC

she's now running through the non-#FBRC sections

bill "does not have an answer for every" issue facing Massachusetts

thus rural schools study

task force on municipal wealth
#FBRC

Thanks Speaker DeLeo, Senator Lewis, the education committee, Ways and Means

thanks the members of the FBRC, singling out Senator Chang-Diaz and the AFT rep

and all those who testified and those who have supported it over time

and applause

In making his appointement to the Commission, the Speaker said "it has to be about the kids"
#FBRC

rep Moran of Boston

"will especially be helpful in districts like mine in Boston"

circuit breaker, charter school reimbursement, 3 year plan to DESE

Rep @KimFergusonMA (was the minority rep to the Commission)

"not a week goes by" that this doesn't come up in conversation

"a strong bipartisan commitment to education"
#FBRC

@KimFergusonMA "ask that you join me in voting in favor...for all students of the Commonwealth"
#FBRC
(central Mass represent!)

RECESS

amendment 55: Rep Jim Hawkins

career changer from business

"people who haven't done that don't know what it's like in the classroom"

local districts have to have the ability to meet the needs of their students
#FBRC

"we need to have local accountability; it needs to be the driver of what we do"

what we do in my district doesn't need to be what the district next door does
#FBRC

Wagner of Chicopee: opposition to the amendment

"think the gentleman is well-intentioned in the amendment"
(Chicopee is of course a Gateway)

"at the level of the Joint Committee, there was consensus"

"proposes changes that take some of the teeth out of the accountability"
#FBRC

"I think [the Commission] would likely come down where the House has come down"
#FBRC

(for the record: he is incorrect; they had this conversation and discarded this argument)
#FBRC #MAedu

(some of us were at those meetings)

"I think that's part of...what we should expect for an investment of $1.5B"

"I think the taxpayers of Chicopee" would want me to support that
#FBRC

(the taxpayers of Chicopee largely are not who fund the Chicopee public schools, as in my own district)

"as a parent I provide more of the resources of the vehicle than [my children] do"

"I think that when I provide the car and the access to it, as a parent, I should reasonably expect accountability"

(uh, yes, the analogy here is the state is the parent and the district is the untrustworthy teenager who only conditionally gets the car keys)
#FBRC #MAEdu

I am not making this up.

And now @RepAndyVargas of Haverhill
#FBRC

@RepAndyVargas during his time on City Council witnessed entrenched power can divert funding

classroom size of 40 in the poorest precinct; next door it was under 30

@RepAndyVargas "we should assume each district has leadership that is just" but "as good stewards, we should verify"

"I am honest that there is not one person of color who is in elected office in Haverhill"

"how can we assume that local control can get it right ever time?"

DESE cannot take away from district

"accountability means different things to different people"

95% of school district invest more money in their schools than Haverhill

"and this body should not wait"
#FBRC

And Hawkins asks unanimous consent to WITHDRAW his amendment.

AMENDMENT 55 is withdrawn.

RECESS
#FBRC

And the House is being called back in #FBRC

Hay of Fitchburg is up

ask for your support for the bill

"for fifteen campaigns...I have stated that I am an advocate for education"
#FBRC

"we've all heard many quotes or sayings related to education...due to the current funding of education, these statements do not ring true"

"Today we have an opportunity to truly level the playing field"
#FBRC

(was that his first speech ever? I am guessing from the response?) #mapoli

okay, back to House business ('though nice moment of recognizing a teacher there) #FBRC

Wynne of Andover (first speech) speaking in support of the bill #FBRC

reference to the state constitution! #FBRC

also, she's referencing the images of Adams and Mann in the House chamber

education "was and still is necessary for our continued prosperity"

references her own family history

"my parents said we had to come to Massachusetts because they had the best education"
#MAEdu

(nice applause for her parents there)

"while some may look at spending as numbers on a spreadsheet, we as legislators have to look as" people having opportunities
#FBRC #MAEdu

"education allowed me to dream big and what brought me here today, the very first Vietnamese-American to hold office" in the chamber
#FBRC #MAEdu

"every child in Massachusetts deserves a fair shot"

"will not only make funding more equitable, it will benefit all communities"

health care, special education costs
#FBRC

"I urge you to join me in voting in favor of this bill"

"a education system that is free for all and works for all"

"it is an investment in our collective future"

#FBRC
#MAEdu

(many hugs)

Haggerty of Woburn in support of the bill
"I am proud to join you in this historic day"

"to ensure that Massachusetts remains a national leader"
#FBRC #MAEdu

this "tells parents, tells teachers, and most importantly, it tells the next generation that funding reform will not wait another year"
#FBRC

"see, today there's a second grade kid in my district learning about odd and even numbers or learning about capital letters"

they have no idea that we're debating this important piece of legislation
#FBRC

"the world has changed and the responsibility we have for our youth must change with it"

"preparing our kids for jobs that don't even exist yet" #FBRC

"we are playing the short and the long game" when it comes to education

#FBRC

closes with a quote from Horace Mann:

"Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, but give us the determination to make the right things happen."

#MAEdu #FBRC

amendment 6 not adopted
#FBRC

A number of amendments have also now been withdrawn: 11,12, 13, 14, 16, 19, 20, 22, 23, 42, 48, 53, 55 (after debate), 56, 63, 65, 66

and I missed that 61 was voted down, which would have set a minimum per pupil on an increasing basis #FBRC

And you can track that over here: malegislature.gov/Bills/191/H413…

#FBRC

amendment 62 taken up

Sullivan of Abington:"most of us know more is needed...amendment 62 does more"

bumps the per pupil to $50/pupil

total impact will be $19M statewide

Rep Peisch in opposition:
Chapter 70 does not establish a minimum, the bill does

"the minimum aid is only for those communities is only for those when you run the formula, they don't qualify for any increase"
#FBRC

Garry from Dracut

"I'm looking at my numbers for my communities, and it's very very difficult to look at these numbers"
#FBRC

there's a lot of numbers being said here and I'm not going to try to type them...

refer to traditional public schools as "what's left over schools" because everything else comes out first
#FBRC #MAEdu

Garlick of Needham: rise in opposition to this amendment

"the very purpose of Chapter 70 is to provide...progressive" support to school districts

"it may constrain our ability" to fund the very reason for this legislation
#FBRC

amendment 62 is NOT ADOPTED #FBRC

amendment 36 Kearney (this is creating a full K reimbursement for transition)

(they have to go find a quorum)

would reestablish the Commonwealth's grant program for establish and maintain free all day kindergarten
#FBRC

in 2016, the state budget eliminated the program

17% of districts left without full day K

loss of funding caused class sizes to increase, loss of paraprofessionals, and other cuts

currently 38 districts that don't offer these early education opportunities to their residents
#FBRC

goal is to reestablish the grant program to allow all children to access free all day kindergarten #FBRC

Peisch: rises in opposition
program started in 2001

program ended when over 80% were offering full day K

was intended to be transitional; many districts came to rely upon it #FBRC

those districts that were not offering full day programs were doing so for reason related to their districts

they tended to be districts that have the capacity to do so and choose not to
#FBRC

Kearney immediately back up and references the average household income in Peisch's district of Wellesley
#FBRC

(which might work better if it weren't that some of the poorest districts in the state ALSO are and have been offering full day K)

districts that did not access the program and would like the opportunity

"there were districts that without the program tried to make it happen"
#FBRC

"now is the time to bring all day kindergarten to all children in Massachusetts"
#FBRC

roll call

amendment 36 overwhelmingly fails

RECESS

Amendment check, now withdrawn (in addition to those listed earlier): 1, 29, 30, 44
#FBRC #MAEdu

now up Rep Ferrante Rep. Ferrante

"I'm not embarrassed to say that I come from a fishing community"

(she reps Gloucester)

"there are times that there is income, and there are times when there is no income"
#FBRC

"we thought it was a generous Italian gesture to have people over for dinner"

but later realized it was because there wasn't enough money at that time to feed the family
#FBRC

can go to graduations where as many as 25% of students don't know what they're going to do the day after graduation

#FBRC

when we're putting money into mental health and into guidance counselors, we're giving students a chance to figure out what they're doing the day after graduation
#FBRC

Newly withdrawn: 21, 24, 34, 35, 52
#FBRC

now Rep @NikaElugardo particularly thanks Rep @MaryKeefeMA and Rep @AaronMVega
#FBRC

@NikaElugardo @MaryKeefeMA @AaronMVega speaks of unlikelihood of me being here

went to eight different schools before high school
#FBRC

@NikaElugardo always show kids the Constitution and always show them where the section on education

asks kids if they have an education the same as kids the same other places

"incredible work that was done to ensure that every kid across the Commonwealth, especially kids in the lowest income, have access to" an education

(to applause...another first speech, it seems) #FBRC

Hendricks of New Bedford (note that he had submitted and now has withdrawn two amendments regarding charter schools)

"provides a monumental boost" to districts like his #FBRC

two large charter schools without appropriate levels of reimbursement

expansion of charter put city "at each others' throats"

"we are here to solve all these problems today #FBRC

notes commitment to full charter reimbursement

"commitment to saving our cities and towns from financial ruin"

"a kid educated in New Bedford...serves all of those across the Commonwealth"
#FBRC

and applause, another first speech #FBRC #mapoli

Carey of Easthampton

when he announced his candidacy eighteen months ago, he set a goal of updating the outdated education funding formula
#FBRC

"frankly, Mr. Speaker, I'm surprised at how quickly I got it done" (to laughter)
#FBRC

He's a former Easthampton School Committee member #FBRC #MAEdu

thanks Speaker for appointing him to education committee and for putting him in his grandfather's seat in the chamber

because "it is the right thing to do...it is the smart thing to do...and it is the time to do it." #FBRC

"history has taught us not to be complacent" #FBRC #MAEdu

"Today, Mr. Speaker, we fund miracles."

(this is a good speech!) #FBRC

by cherishing their education (as the Constitution demands), "we cherish the children of this Commonwealth" #FBRC #MAEdu

that was also a first speech

(is Rep Carey really not on Twitter?) #MAEdu

AMENDMENT UPDATE! Withdrawn: 7, 8, 15 (dang), 17, 18, 47
#FBRC #MAEdu

Rep @TamiGouveiaMA on amendment 25 which would amend to review every 5 years rather than every 10 #FBRC #MAEdu

@TamiGouveiaMA (graduate of @Wellesley :) )

@TamiGouveiaMA @Wellesley parallel with the U.S. Census which asked for more timely information to improve more timely information

set us up to make midcourse corrections #FBRC

@TamiGouveiaMA @Wellesley AND WITHDRAWS the amendment (that's 25) #FBRC

@TamiGouveiaMA @Wellesley AMENDMENT UPDATE: withdrawn 28, 54, 67 #FBRC #MAEdu

And @reptricia is up
#actuallywesternMass #FBRC

@reptricia to Peisch puts together legislation we can all stand behind

to Keefe and Vega "your courage to stand up and step out for Gateway Cities" is admirable

(she reps Pittsfield) #FBRC

@reptricia "yes, it costs more to educate a child who comes from economic disadvantage and it is expotentially more difficult" when there is concentration of poverty #FBRC

@reptricia Pittsfield "has stepped up over and over again"

"they spend $14M over net school spending" #FBRC

@reptricia (true, BTW: I went out there to explain to their City Council, up against their tax cap, how it wasn't anything local that was causing the difficulty)

@reptricia "we have more work to do especially when it comes to charter schools"

as funding increases, there is more opportunity for charters to take advantage

today should be proud #FBRC

And Rep @MaryKeefeMA is up! #FBRC

@MaryKeefeMA rise "to sing the praises" of the bill

"we know this bill in particular took some real digging" and so she thanks Peisch #FBRC

@MaryKeefeMA MCI Concord: turning point in lives when they started down the wrong path; coincided when they were struggling in school

one "never truly learned how to read and write until he was incarcerated"

"finding hope in education while a prisoner" #FBRC

@MaryKeefeMA "I look forward to the next chapter of the #Worcester Public Schools" #FBRC

@MaryKeefeMA thanks colleagues for work to understand Chapter 70 funding, for having compassion for other districts

"we have kept our eyes on the prize" #FBRC #worcpoli #MAEdu

and Rep @SabadosaMA on amendment 5

calls the bill "a beautiful piece of social justice" #FBRC

@SabadosaMA her district includes two regional schools

"was struck by the stories of what rural transportation looks like"

buses travel hundreds of miles, students on the bus for upwards of an hour #FBRC

@SabadosaMA "for small towns with aging population, there will come a time where there is nothing left to cut"

hopes that it will be addressed in future conversation, "in hopes that it will result in more robust debate in the near future" #FBRC

amendment 5 withdrawn

Rep @AaronMVega of Holyoke #FBRC

@AaronMVega silver lining to the failed bills is the bill today, as it makes investment in communities like his

one of the reasons Holyoke is in receivership is years of underfunding #FBRC

@AaronMVega thanks those who signed on with the Promise Act despite the pressure not to do so #FBRC

@AaronMVega his son is in a dual language program in the Holyoke public schools

believe the bill will help all of the children in the Commonwealth
#FBRC #MAEdu

@AaronMVega AMENDMENTS: withdrawn 4, 9, 10, 26, 31, 39, 45, 51, 57, 69

AND Rep @DavidLeBoeuf is up! on amendment 58 (on foster children) #FBRC

@DavidLeBoeuf filed because of a particular student in his district

eight year old was acting out; in two weeks, "she had been in a different home every night" #FBRC

@DavidLeBoeuf "how can anyone achieve your educational goals where you don't know where you're sleeping that night?"

work to improve our foster care system is ongoing
#FBRC #mapoli

@DavidLeBoeuf withdraws amendment 58 #FBRC

Amendment 3 is ADOPTED #FBRC #MAEdu

. @repbradhill speaking on amendment 33 about students who move midyear; it would require that the district in which a student starts funds their special ed for the year.
Withdraws 33 #FBRC

Rep Frost of Auburn on amendment 46 "which rests on an issue of hold harmless" #FBRC

wishes to allow percentage the state gives in 2020 to hold if that is higher

(essentially this freezes targets...) #FBRC

amendment 46 fails
#FBRC

amendment 41ADOPTED (mandate commission)

amendment 37 MSBA ADOPTED (congrats @RepJohnMahoney!) #FBRC

and I missed one...

AMENDMENT UPDATE: 2, 27, 50, 60, 64
#FBRC

Cabral of New Bedford is up
voted in favor of the 1993 reform "and I would be delighted and happy to vote...in support of this piece of legislation" #FBRC

believe issues on charter financing will be done in the future

"it doesn't have to be my amendment, it doesn't have to be amendment of others"
"today the fight is about chapter 70 as well" #FBRC

ROLL CALL TO SUSPEND THE RULES

to meet after 9 pm #FBRC #mapoli

and yes, Cabral's speech meant his amendment 49 was then withdrawn #FBRC

Also WITHDRAWN: 43 #FBRC

by my count, that leaves us with 32, 40, and 59

Please do correct me if I am wrong. #MAEdu #FBRC

Tyler of Boston: trying to close the achievement gap

"we must hold ourselves accountable for our students' needs"

"makes a huge investment in our low income and ELL students"

WITHDRAWN: 40, 32

AMENDMENT 59 ADOPTED as changed:

" The department shall ensure that annual reports and accountability plans submitted by charter public schools pursuant to 603 CMR 1.00 contain data consistent with the requirements set forth in this section." #FBRC #MAEdu

NO AMENDMENTS REMAINING #FBRC

ROLL CALL

holy cow, look at all those green lights! #MAEdu #FBRC

it just keeps lighting up more and more green...#FBRC

PASSES WITHOUT A SINGLE NO
(there are blanks, but no no votes)
#FBRC #MAEdu

155-0 is the tally, per @SpeakerDeLeo #FBRC #MAedu #mapoli

And that is a wrap!

This WILL go to conference committee before coming back before both chambers, but I would say we have a clear indication that they want to get this done with a united front. #mapoli #MAEdu #FBRC

@threadreaderapp unroll