Western Nebraska Taxpayers Association

8-29-09

Mike Groene
Chairman Western Nebraska Taxpayers Association

I commented on the politics of Governor Heineman’s recent teacher pay raise stance to the Star on August 3rd.  Correctly I pointed out that the federal stimulus money should have been used to save existing jobs not pad the pay of political supporters in the NSEA.  In Governor Heineman's June 9th letter to the Nebraska State Education Association (NSEA) he advocated to the teacher’s union that they work with school boards to use the $234 million in educational stimulus to “increase teacher salaries to ensure they are competitive with surrounding states”.  

On July 2th Jess Wolf president of the NSEA agreed in the North Platte telegraph with the Governor on the use of stimulus money for pay increases when he stated “That is exactly what providing competitive salaries for teachers will accomplish”. 

In a complete reversal of his pay raise stance, Mr. Wolf stated in an August 18th letter that “Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan have said repeatedly that the education stimulus dollars are to be used to prevent job losses in education”.  So which is it Mr. Wolf? Did congress stipulate stimulus use for pay raises as the governor and you earlier advocated or correctly should it be used to save existing jobs?

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Sunday September 20, 2009
By Joe Dejka
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
 
 
Teachers across Nebraska are winning pay raises in a tough economy, and union officials credit stimulus money and a controversial letter from the governor.

The pay raises have come despite uncertainty in how school districts will cover expanding payrolls when stimulus money runs out.

Some school board members have complained that Gov. Dave Heineman wrote a letter encouraging teachers union leaders to work with school districts to spend the stimulus for better salaries.

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Letter to the Editor

9-13-2009

Mid-Plains Community College (MPCC) at North Platte and McCook began as educational institutions, where individuals in our 18 county area could learn a trade or prepare themselves for further educational opportunities without the costs associated with traditional four year colleges; a no-frills education for the intellectually mature.

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Published: Wednesday, July 8, 2009 4:14 AM CDT

Mike Groene, the president of the Western Nebraska Taxpayers Association, is a great asset to North Platte and Nebraska.

He is the person who will stand up to the crowd, the person who is unafraid to look at the emperor and say "he's not wearing any clothes." He is the person who will stand up to the momentum of government, the momentum of government boards and the momentum of increasing taxation.

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By NATE JENKINS/The Associated Press
Wednesday, Jul 08, 2009 - 12:07:18 am CDT


Nebraska risks slipping into an economic malaise over the next decade marked
by lower-than-average wages and a crushing tax burden if significant changes
aren’t made, top economists in the state argue in a report released today..

To prevent a decline, they issue 47 recommendations that largely follow a
conservative, small-government philosophy. The recommendations include
cutting state and local taxes, easier access to state-sponsored tax breaks
designed to lure businesses, a top-to-bottom study of state government from a
business perspective, a lid on state spending and even a “constitutional
convention” where government changes such as allowing residents to overturn
state-budget decisions would be considered.

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