| Summary of March 21st Coordinating Committee Meeting |
| Joe O'Neill reported that legislators have told him we are being heard, so congratulate yourself if you have communicated with your legislator. Joe also confirmed that actuarial valuations show that TRA has a surplus of nearly $876 million with total assets of nearly $17.379 billion. This confirms that the cost for our bills would come from funds contributed to by all teachers, NOT from general revenue funds. Teachers reported on which legislators have been contacted. We are very encouraged by the large number of legislators who are supporting us. Some legislators have not been contacted. If you have not talked/written your legislator, please do so now. To help you communicate, please use the new sample letter to your legislators and a new copy of the bill with the signers included. These will soon be posted on this web site. If you have made contacts, please be sure to notify a member of the coordinating committee. We discussed names of key legislators. We may be asking some of you to visit/write them. We are waiting for Rep. Steve Sviggum to appoint the five House members to the Pension Commission. The Senate members named to the commission are: Don Betzold, DFL of Fridley; Keith Langseth, DFL of Glyndon (Moorhead & Breckenridge area); Cal Larson, R of Fergus Falls; Geoff Michel, R of Edina; and Larry Pogemiller, DFL of Minneapolis. Please do NOT contact these Pension Commission members unless they are your own elected legislators. We had a report from Joe & John Gindele, who have successfully contacted nearly 1000 educators who are likely affected by the TRA inequity. Many thanks to them for their terrific post card campaign! The coordinating committee wants you to know that you are doing a terrific job in telling your legislators how this TRA inequity has affected you. Keep the positive relationship with your legislators going. Talk/write to them again. Include additional information about our issue, the bill numbers, and always ask if they need more information. It may take several meetings with some legislators for them to fully understand it and to see the unfairness. Stress the injustice of one group getting two choices. Contact any member of the Coordinating Committee if you need help and keep watching this web site as many changes and updates will soon be in effect. The Coordinating Committee will meet again on April 4. |
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