"Unfunded Mandates--or state/national government-imposed regulations that require actions by state or local governments or public schools, without providing funds to pay for their completion--are all the buzz right now.
Local schools especially are denouncing recent laws, such as New York 's requirement that all teachers be evaluated based on test scores and statute that all schools conform to the Common Core Standards, because the costs associated with these tasks are heafty, while the state has provided minimal or no funds to complete them, they argue.
Many state government officials, however, believe that evaluating instructors based on student achievement will improve the overall performance by students across the state.
Tonight there will be a panel discussion on mandates in the James Harmon Community Center in Hastings. The event is sponsored by BEST4NY, an organization that describes itself as fighting for "better education and smarter taxation" in New York.
The discussion will focus on how mandates affect union contract negotions and the overall cost of running local governments and schools in New York.
Panelists will be:
Paul Feiner – Supervisor, Town of Greenburgh
Eileen Baecher – President, Hastings-on-Hudson Board of Education
Niki Armacost-Trustee, Hastings-On-Hudson
Francis Frobel, Village Manager, Hastings-on-Hudson
Vincent Toomey- Labor Relations Attorney – represents Westchester
Nate Morgan, president of the Teachers Union in the Hastings-on-Hudson Public School District, posted on facebook this morning that he hopes many locals will attend the forum to learn more about, he believes, these mandates and how they affect residents' taxes.
The discussion begins at 7:30 p.m. on June 11.
What do you think of stste and national government-imposed mandates? From your understanding, are they affection your taxes?
Like Rivertowns Patch on facebook and sign up for the Rivertowns Patch newsletter to get more local stories like this in your inbox.
