EDGAR 
MALEPEAI 



OFFICE 
ADDRESS 
DISTRICT30 


STATE 
CAPITOL 
BANNOCK 
COUNTY 


P.O. 
BOX 
83720 
BOISE, 
IDAHO 
83720-0081 
HOME 
ADDRESS 


(208) 
332-1409 
585 
SO. 
19TH 
FAX: 
(208) 
334-2116 
POCATELLO, 
IDAHO 
83201 


emalepeai@senate.idaho.gov 


(208) 
232-2602 
malepeed@gmail.com 
Idaho 
State 
Senate 


SENATOR 
EDGAR 
MALEPEAI 


SENATE 
MINORITY 
LEADER 


SENATE 
DEMOCRATS 
FIGHT 
LUNA 
PLAN 


Senator 
Edgar 
Malepeai, 
Minority 
Leader 


Today, 
Senate 
bills 
1108 
and 
1110 
passed 
the 
Senate 
so 
today 
is 
a 
sad 
day 
for 
educators. 
Educators 
like 
Ronella 
Widdison 
of 
Rigby 
who 
wrote 
to 
me 
about 
Òseeing 
the 
light 
of 
success 
in 
each 
studentÕs 
eyes.Ó 
Educators 
like 
Barbara 
Morgan 
who 
testified 
that 
Òcollaboration 
is 
key 
and 
all 
parties 
need 
to 
work 
together.Ó 
And 
educators 
like 
me 
who 
believe 
in 
the 
importance 
of 
building 
solid 
foundations. 
Without 
proper 
foundational 
support, 
our 
children 
cannot 
learn, 
our 
laws 
have 
no 
footing 
and 
our 
acts 
have 
no 
public 
support. 
It 
saddens 
me 
that 
my 
colleagues 
in 
the 
Senate 
would 
pass 
these 
laws 
knowing 
full 
well 
the 
extent 
to 
which 
our 
citizens 
are 
offended 
by 
Tom 
LunaÕs 
mean-spirited 
plan. 


I 
want 
to 
take 
a 
moment 
to 
address 
the 
parliamentary 
procedures 
Democrats 
employed 
today. 
We 
requested 
the 
bills 
be 
read 
at 
length 
because 
we 
believe 
that 
this 
legislation 
is 
being 
rushed 
through 
the 
Legislature 
and 
we 
had 
deep 
concerns 
that 
many 
of 
our 
fellow 
Senators 
intended 
to 
vote 
yes 
but 
had 
yet 
to 
read 
the 
bills 
in 
their 
entirety. 
This 
is 
too 
important 
to 
Ògrind 
outÓ 
as 
one 
of 
my 
colleagues 
suggested 
this 
morning. 
Another 
called 
the 
process 
a 
Òwaste 
of 
time.Ó 


I 
want 
to 
make 
it 
completely 
clear 
that 
this 
is 
not 
a 
procedure 
we 
take 
lightly. 
The 
last 
time 
Senate 
Democrats 
asked 
for 
a 
bill 
to 
be 
read 
at 
length 
was 
the 
special 
session 
convened 
in 
2006. 
At 
that 
time, 
we 
were 
very 
concerned 
about 
the 
impact 
of 
legislation 
that 
ultimately 
passed 
and 
led 
to 
the 
great 
Risch 
tax 
shift. 
Had 
that 
legislation 
been 
thwarted 
as 
we 
had 
hoped, 
$132 
million 
would 
not 
have 
been 
diverted 
from 
education 
funding 
and 
we 
would 
not 
be 
standing 
here 
today. 
My 
greatest 
fear 
is 
that 
we 
will 
be 
standing 
before 
you 
again 
in 
five 
years 
discussing 
the 
horrible 
consequences 
of 
todayÕs 
actions. 


Senator 
Les 
Bock, 
Assistant 
Minority 
Leader 


Under 
our 
current 
system, 
collective 
bargaining 
rights 
give 
teachers 
a 
voice 
in 
processes 
such 
as 
determining 
class 
sizes, 
working 
conditions, 
and 
school 
schedules 
Ð 
all 
of 
which 
impact 
a 
childÕs 
school 
day 
in 
critical 
ways. 
SB1108 
has, 
in 
effect, 
silenced 
that 
voice. 
Under 
our 
current 
system, 
teachers 
are 
insulated 
from 
dismissal 
based 
on 
capricious 
reasons, 
such 
as 
religion, 
ethnicity, 
or 
impossible 
to 
please, 
yet 
well-connected, 
parents. 


The 
foundation 
of 
a 
school 
districtÕs 
success 
is 
the 
mutual 
respect 
developed 
between 
the 
district 
leaders 
and 
staff 
which 
is 
fostered 
by 
the 
interest-based 
bargaining 
process. 
Enactment 
of 
SB1108 
will 
end 
decades 
of 
win-win 
negotiations 
that 
ensure 
our 
schools 
work 
well 
for 
students, 
teachers, 
administrators, 
and 
parents. 
Due 
process 
is 
not 
a 
special 
right. 
ItÕs 
what 
good 
employers 
provide 
to 
employees. 
Many 
private 
sector 
companies 
have 
adopted 
fair 
employment 
practices 
because 
they 
benefit 
the 
bottom 
line, 
improve 
employee 
productivity 
and 
morale, 
and 
simply 
because 
itÕs 
the 
right 
thing 
to 
do. 



February 
24, 
2011 
Page 
2 


The 
passage 
of 
SB1110, 
while 
SB1113 
which 
funds 
it 
gets 
revised 
in 
committee, 
means 
we 
just 
passed 
an 
unfunded 
mandate 
on 
our 
school 
system. 
Futhermore, 
pay 
for 
performance 
in 
the 
form 
of 
bonuses 
does 
not 
raise 
performance 
according 
to 
a 
study 
released 
in 
September, 
2010 
by 
the 
National 
Center 
on 
Performance 
Incentives 
at 
Vanderbilt 
University. 


Senator 
Michelle 
Stennett, 
Minority 
Caucus 
Chair 


Our 
educators 
are 
among 
our 
most 
valuable 
resources. 
They 
enter 
into 
the 
profession 
not 
for 
the 
money, 
but 
because 
they 
realize 
that 
what 
they 
do 
shapes 
the 
future 
of 
our 
state 
and 
our 
nation. 
Teachers 
work 
long 
hours, 
often 
giving 
up 
their 
weekends 
and 
personal 
time 
Ð 
not 
to 
mention 
dipping 
into 
their 
pocketbooks 
-to 
prepare 
lessons, 
grade 
papers, 
and 
ensure 
students 
donÕt 
fall 
behind. 


One 
of 
the 
few 
things 
that 
our 
current 
system 
offers 
them 
is 
a 
right 
to 
collective 
bargaining 
and 
protection 
from 
unfair 
dismissal. 
Providing 
these 
protections 
is 
the 
least 
we 
can 
do 
for 
them. 
Our 
teachers 
are 
in 
the 
trenches 
every 
day, 
dealing 
with 
everything 
from 
overcrowded 
classrooms, 
varying 
parent 
expectations, 
and 
lack 
of 
resources. 
These 
teachers 
have 
had 
to 
deal 
with 
the 
impact 
of 
the 
budget 
shortfalls 
over 
the 
last 
few 
years 
and 
they 
have 
done 
so 
admirably. 
Many 
often 
spend 
their 
own 
money 
to 
provide 
necessary 
schools 
supplies 
so 
their 
students 
do 
not 
have 
to 
go 
without. 


We 
as 
Democrats 
have 
always 
stood 
with 
teachers, 
and 
all 
working-class 
Idahoans, 
and 
here 
we 
are 
again 
today. 
Passing 
this 
legislation 
will 
undermine 
the 
quality 
of 
education 
in 
our 
state 
and 
set 
a 
horrible 
precedent 
for 
how 
we 
treat 
our 
employees. 
If 
we 
refuse 
to 
offer 
our 
teachers 
due 
respect 
in 
these 
protections, 
we 
risk 
losing 
them 
to 
other 
states 
that 
value 
education. 
LunaÕs 
plan 
proposes 
cutting 
over 
700 
teaching 
jobs 
from 
our 
state. 
We 
do 
not 
view 
legislation 
that 
adds 
this 
many 
people 
to 
our 
unemployment 
line 
while 
simultaneously 
increasing 
class 
sizes 
as 
a 
step 
toward 
any 
productive 
or 
legitimate 
reform. 


In 
closing, 
I 
was 
struck 
by 
the 
headline 
in 
todayÕs 
Idaho 
Statesman. 
It 
said 
ÒStar 
Power 
Here 
to 
Boost 
Luna.Ó 
IÕm 
sorry 
we 
donÕt 
have 
star 
power 
to 
offer. 
We 
only 
have 
people 
power 
and 
we 
stand 
with 
the 
people 
in 
strict 
opposition 
to 
this 
legislation.