Albuquerque Journal - State legislators who also work for Albuquerque Public Schools will no longer receive their APS salaries for time spent serving in Santa Fe. The APS board’s policy committee voted 4-2 Tuesday evening to adopt a new board policy, which specifies that employee legislators must take unpaid leave to attend legislative sessions and interim committee meetings. The new policy must still be approved by the full board when it meets tonight, but all APS board members serve on the committee, and all attended Tuesday’s meeting. Board member David Peercy abstained because he leads the policy committee and votes only in the event of a tie. The board considered three options: One would not have allowed employees to serve in the Legislature at all, and one would have allowed them to continue serving with pay, although it would have required them to give their state per diem to APS. The option they ultimately chose — allowing employees to serve with unpaid leave — was a compromise between the two. Board member Lorenzo Garcia, who backed the compromise from the outset, said it would be bad policy for APS to pay employees for their time in Santa Fe when budgets are tight. “I strongly support the idea of a citizen Legislature,” Garcia said. “I think in these budget times, however, we cannot afford to pay somebody to be in the Legislature. And we should allow people, if they want to be in the Legislature, to do so, but not with pay.” Read More News New Mexico (Subscription)
No Salary For APS Teacher-Legislators
Albuquerque Journal - State legislators who also work for Albuquerque Public Schools will no longer receive their APS salaries for time spent serving in Santa Fe. The APS board’s policy committee voted 4-2 Tuesday evening to adopt a new board policy, which specifies that employee legislators must take unpaid leave to attend legislative sessions and interim committee meetings. The new policy must still be approved by the full board when it meets tonight, but all APS board members serve on the committee, and all attended Tuesday’s meeting. Board member David Peercy abstained because he leads the policy committee and votes only in the event of a tie. The board considered three options: One would not have allowed employees to serve in the Legislature at all, and one would have allowed them to continue serving with pay, although it would have required them to give their state per diem to APS. The option they ultimately chose — allowing employees to serve with unpaid leave — was a compromise between the two. Board member Lorenzo Garcia, who backed the compromise from the outset, said it would be bad policy for APS to pay employees for their time in Santa Fe when budgets are tight. “I strongly support the idea of a citizen Legislature,” Garcia said. “I think in these budget times, however, we cannot afford to pay somebody to be in the Legislature. And we should allow people, if they want to be in the Legislature, to do so, but not with pay.” Read More News New Mexico (Subscription)
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment