Lawmakers rewrite Indiana law targeting teachers union dues payments - nwitimes.com
State lawmakers are cleaning up a controversial statute enacted last year that made it more complicated for Hoosier teachers to have union dues voluntarily deducted from their paychecks.
Senate Enrolled Act 251 was partially blocked by U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker after she determined the law contained unconstitutional, state-compelled speech by requiring teachers, as a condition of automatic payment of union dues, to sign a form affirming the teacher is aware they're not required to join or pay dues to a teachers union, and they can quit the union at any time.
She said in her June 30, 2021, ruling that Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita, a Munster native, presented no practical justification for the affirmation being composed in a way that requires each teacher to recite in written form the outcome of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling relating to union membership by government employees in Illinois.
People are also reading…
- Man missing, presumed dead after falling into Lake Michigan from shelf ice at Dunes park
- Man charged with shooting Gary officer posts $14K bond
- 'The people have spoken': Hammond trucking company's plans to relocate to Gary tabled
- Man dead after shooting self during domestic dispute, standoff, police say
On Wednesday, the Republican-controlled House took action to address that issue by rewriting the affirmation to delete first-person language, such as "I am aware that I have a First Amendment right," with "The state of Indiana wishes to make you aware that you have a First Amendment right, as recognized by the United States Supreme Court, to refrain from joining and paying dues to a union."
Senate Enrolled Act 297 was approved 58-31 and now goes to Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb to be signed into law. It previously passed the Republican-controlled Senate, 37-12.
The law still requires teachers who choose to join a union to annually submit a request to school administrators to have union dues withheld from their paychecks, and confirm that request in a separate email message.
Previously, dues authorization agreements permitted the deduction of dues on an ongoing basis until permission was revoked by the teacher.
Schools also are obligated under the statute to separately advise teachers, at least once a year, they are not required to join a union and the total yearly cost of union membership, as well as information on how to withdraw from a teachers union.
State Rep. Ryan Hatfield, D-Evansville, said rather than interfering in a pending court case by adjusting the affirmation language and continuing to throw obstacles in front of teachers choosing to join unions, the Legislature should instead trust teachers to make employment decisions without state interference.
"Our teachers in this state are some of the brightest among us, and we should treat them like it," Hatfield said.
Gallery: Red for Ed Action Day
Indiana State Teachers Association president Keith Gambill, right, fires up the educators in attendance at the Red for Ed rally while ASL interpreter Andy Rork assists Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
National Education Association vice president Becky Pringle, right, fires up the educators in attendance at the Red for Ed rally while ASL interpreter Carly Anderson assists Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Educators and supporters rally together during Red for Ed Action Day Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
State superintendent of education Jennifer McCormick, right, delivers a press conference outside her office in the Indiana Statehouse Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Educators and supporters cheer together Tuesday during the Red for Ed Action Day rally outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State Senator Eddie Melton, D-Gary, right, shakes hands with educators and supporters Tuesday inside the Indiana Statehouse during the Red for Ed Action Day rally.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State Teachers Association Keith Gambill speaks to Red for Ed supporters Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Educators and supporters rally on the steps of the Indiana Statehouse Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
National Education Association Vice President Becky Pringle captures a photo of the crowd outside the Indiana Statehouse Tuesday during the Red for Ed rally in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Herman Carson, of Gary, snaps a selfie during the Red for Ed Action Day rally Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis. Carson came to support his cousin, Brenda Johnson, an educator at Banneker Elementary School in Gary.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State Teachers Association president Keith Gambill addresses Red for Ed supporters Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
National Education Association vice president Becky Pringle speaks to Red for Ed supporters Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State Teachers Association president Keith Gambill, left, delivers a press conference Tuesday on the steps of the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis during the Red for Ed Action Day rally.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Taylor Malayer, of Crawfordsville, sports a Clifford costume Tuesday during the Red for Ed Action Day rally in Indianapolis. Malayer is an educator at Crawfordsville High School.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State Representative Vernon Smith, D-Gary, center right, speaks to Red for Ed supporters Tuesday inside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Larissa Pier, right, of Kokomo, feeds her daughter, Lorelei, snacks Tuesday morning during the Red for Ed Action Day rally outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Anna Noel, right, a senior at Martinsville High School, helps 6-year-old Max Wingo snap a photo with her camera Tuesday during speeches outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis. Noel and others from the high school came to cover the rally.
Kale Wilk, The Times
State superintendent of education Jennifer McCormick, left, and Indiana State Senator Eddie Melton, D-Gary, make an appearance before the crowd Tuesday morning during the Red for Ed Action Day rally at the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Red for Ed supporters snap photos on their phones Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State Senator Eddie Melton, D-Gary, left, greets educators and supporters Tuesday during the Red for Ed rally outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State AFT president GlenEva Dunham, of Gary, speaks to Red for Ed supporters Tuesday inside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Red for Ed supporters cheer on the steps of the Indiana Statehouse Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Randall Wilson, of Morristown, Indiana, waves an American flag with an apple stuck on its pole Tuesday during the Red for Ed Action Day rally outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis. Wilson has a daughter who is a math teacher.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Educators and supporters hoist their custom signs Tuesday during the Red for Ed Action Day rally Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
The scene outside the Indiana Statehouse reflects off a supporter's sunglasses on Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Mary Higgins, right, of New Castle, Indiana, adjusts a pennant on the back of her husband, Ryan Higgins, Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis. Mary is an educator with Richmond Community Schools and Ryan is an educator with New Castle Community Schools.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Indiana State Teachers Association president Keith Gambill delivers a second speech Tuesday outside the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
State superintendent of education Jennifer McCormick, center, poses for a photo with Hebron educators, from left, Dawn Hernandez, Mike DeFries, Joanne DeFries and Rebecca Moser Tuesday at the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Demonstrators during a Statehouse rally that saw some 15,000 teachers call on lawmakers to fund pay raises on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2019.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Educators gather at the Red for Ed Statehouse rally on Tuesday, Nov. 19 in Indianapolis.
Kale Wilk, The Times
Teachers rally at the Indiana Statehouse for Red for Ed Day of Action on Nov. 19, 2019.
Kale Wilk, file, The Times
source: https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/education/lawmakers-rewrite-indiana-law-targeting-teachers-union-dues-payments/article_5e2858fb-3ec3-51ec-82e2-8d5abd65a15e.html
Your content is great. However, if any of the content contained herein violates any rights of yours, including those of copyright, please contact us immediately by e-mail at media[@]kissrpr.com.