The Alaska Association of Student Governments has called for a walkout on Thursday outside Alaska public schools in protest of the veto of SB 140, a massive spending bill that would have given school districts an unprecedented and permanent increase in funding without any accountability for how the public money is spent.
SB 140 was originally a bill to support internet in rural schools. But once the education industry unions got ahold of it, it became a vehicle to take money from the Alaska Permanent Fund dividends owed to Alaskans, and put it into school districts. Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed the because lawmakers stripped out language that would have given pay incentives for teachers and would have provided charter schools with alternative forms of approval mechanisms.
Alaska spends $2.7 billion on education every year for 131,000 students enrolled in 502 schools in 53 school districts. The schools also get federal funding and most get funding from local property taxes.
Although SB 140 was vetoed and the veto was upheld by the Legislature, other school funding bills are still in the process in the Legislature, notably HB 392.
The students issued the walkout announcement via a press release:
