Dear Educators, Parents, and Friends:

You are probably as disappointed as I am by the news of the Joint Finance Committee's raid on my education budget because I know how much you care about the future of our children and public education in Wisconsin.

In the dead of night when they thought no one would notice, Republicans voted once again to continue their war on our public schools and hard-working educators by slashing $400 million from my education budget.

Their budget cuts funding for every school district in Wisconsin. Its impact can be found on my website on my website.

The debate over education funding in the 2005-2007 state budget is our most important fight this year. The Republican plan is an assault on education, and should be rejected by Wisconsin's students, parents, teachers, administrators, and every other citizen of Wisconsin who cares about the future of public education in our state.

Please tell your State Senators that you support my education budget and oppose the Republican cuts that would devastate the quality of our schools. Please http://165.189.139.210/WAML/]use this link[/URL] today to find out how to contact your senators. I know many of you have already contacted your senators and representatives. If so, please urge your colleagues and friends to do the same.

If Republicans have their way, school districts all across the state could be forced to lay off thousands of teachers, raise class sizes, and cut programs from music to athletics. A recent Wisconsin Association of School Boards study shows that the Republican budget proposal would mean layoffs for more than 4,700 teachers across the state. The only alternative will be for local communities to raise property taxes on average homeowners, which would not have been necessary under my budget because the state was doing its fair share to fund our schools.

Quite simply, the Republican budget sets the wrong priorities. Instead of investing in education, Republicans voted to spend millions of dollars on special interests, and earmarked more than $45 million in pork barrel projects for their own districts. In fact, on the same day they voted to cut funding for smaller class sizes by $30 million, they voted to spend $38 million on a study for a road project that can't even be built for another eight years.

Our schools would certainly be a lot better off if the Legislature was less focused on playing politics and more focused on doing the right thing for our kids.

One of the many things that makes me proud to be from Wisconsin is that we have always invested in our kids. Even when economic times were tough, our parents and grandparents were willing to take what little bit they had, and invest it into building a brighter future through our public education system. As a result, Wisconsin schools have long been the envy of other states.

So today we are faced with a choice: either we honor our values and continue the legacy that makes Wisconsin great, or we abandon it by letting the Republicans have their way. I proposed a budget that puts our kids and our schools first by meeting the state's two-thirds commitment to funding education -- and alleviating the tension between our kids and property tax payers by providing for a responsible property tax freeze.

Whatever else you do today, please take the time to show your support for my education budget. The future of Wisconsin depends on it. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Jim Doyle
Governor