Collectively, we represent the teachers, bus drivers, paraeducators, clerical workers, nurses, principals, counselors, coaches, and other staff in Evergreen Public Schools. We worked hard to pass our levies; while it wasn’t easy, it was necessary. For many households, every dollar counts, and it can be hard to balance our families’ needs with those of our broader community.
We are writing now to state the obvious: We cannot keep expecting working-class families to bear the brunt of funding schools. Washington’s wealthiest corporations and individuals must pay their fair share.
In November, Washingtonians united across party lines to retain the capital gains tax. Voters support taxing Washington’s super-rich. We want action in Olympia for commonsense solutions to our state’s unfair revenue system. Our current school funding system hits hardest on those who have the least. We want functional, adequately funded schools.
This is not just a moral argument; it’s an economic argument: investment in schools now saves us expense later. Children who receive a solid public education are better able to survive and thrive in tomorrow’s economy than those who attend underfunded schools.
Time to shift the burden of school funding from working people to Washington’s super-wealthy individuals and corporations.
