Pro-public education legislator Nancy Lusk has been targeted by deceptive postcards saying she “failed our teachers” and “chose politics over our children”. This is not true. Here is her response, which is also applicable to many Kansas Representatives of both parities who are friends of education.

Dear friends and neighbors,

In response to fraudulent attack ads that have been frequenting your mailboxes, I wish to set the record straight. I VOTED FOR INCREASED K-12 PUBLIC EDUCATION FUNDING.

The weekend of April 4-6, there were two votes on school finance
bills. I voted for “House Sub for SB 218,” which passed the House with great bi-partisan support, 91 to 31. It included every positive item that the deceptive mailers are claiming I did not vote for:
$83 million in new funding for Kansas schools
$74 million in property tax relief for homeowners
Increased local control for the Shawnee Mission School District, raising the LOB cap from 31% to 33%
Would have made the 2% increase in LOB funding permanent, and not subject to a local vote.

After going to the Senate, and then the House and Senate Conference Committee, the bi-partisan bill was killed and was turned into a vehicle for anti-public education policy measures, most of which had been vetted and defeated this past session in the House Education Committee.

Here is why the education community, myself included, could not support S Sub for HB 2506. It stripped K-12 teachers of the right to
a due process hearing in the case of non-renewal; effectively ended all teacher licensure standards for CTE, math, and science teachers; and set up $10 million in corporate tax credits designed to function like vouchers for private schools, even uncredited ones, and eliminated the LOB increase in school year 2017-18. There is now a pending lawsuit on the last measure because vouchers are against our state constitution.

The opposition has been attempting to twist that vote to make the case that I am not pro-public education and against funding public education. This is from the conservative branch of the Republican Party which is represented in Topeka by those who believe that the public schools currently have plenty of money, and vehemently oppose any increased K-12 funding from the state. They are trying to hijack a pro-public education stance, and use it against me.

I hope you, the voters of the 22nd House District, will see through their false representation of my position. The attack ads are especially outrageous because I have been a dedicated activist for increased public school funding for the past 14 years – ever since Cherokee Elementary was sited for closure in 2001.

Strong public schools are a critical incentive for businesses to move to our state. A well educated workforce leads to increased business investments, new jobs, and ultimately a stronger economy.

Because I believe Kansas values demand a serious commitment to our children and their education, I am proud to have received the endorsements of all of the pro-education parent and teacher organizations…

Sincerely,

Nancy Lusk