Page 4 - CCEA 2017 Legislative Report

Once our bills were introduced, we moved to secure a legislative hearing. Securing the support of the

legislative members of the Senate and Assembly Education Committees & Senate Finance and Assembly Ways
and Means Committees was critical. We had to double-down to confirm bipartisan support so the bills could
move to and pass each chamber floor vote. Without it, our bills would have died. During the hearings for our
bills, CCEA was alongside the bill sponsor and served as the primary presenter.
Keep in mind that unlike the 2015 Legislative Session, education wasn’t the primary issue. There were
hundreds of bills competing for legislators’ time and attention each jockeying to move through the legislative
process and to reach the coveted goal of being sent to the Governor’s desk for his signature. The regular
meetings CCEA leadership had with Senate and Assembly leadership throughout the session were critical.
We knew that in order to be successful, there was no waiting to catch a break. Nor would we idly stand by to
rattle our sabers at issues we opposed. To keep our forward momentum, it would take more than the behind the
scenes discussions. Educators would have to contact legislators by droves and ask for their request by name.

LATs & Member Engagement

In January, CCEA began reengaging member leaders to join our
Legislative Action Team and to head up our field efforts. We had
almost 100 Legislative Action Team Interns (LATs) and activists that
represented 100 school buildings. In order to effectively execute the
work of mobilizing educators to get involved, LATs attended trainings,
stayed in close contact with their staff liaison, and attended monthly
meetings for thorough briefings and debriefs. Our primary action was
communicating directly with legislators via email, text message, phone
call, lobbying and social media. Throughout the legislative session,
LATs engaged over 6,000 educators who sent over 85,000 emails to
legislators. An educator from every school across CCSD participated in
our legislative efforts. LATs and member leaders weighed in with their
expertise by testifying on several key bills including AB320: Evaluation Bill, SB300: Peer Assistance and
Review, SB143: the Library in Every School Bill, SB369: School Climate, AB409: the Read by 3rd Grade Bill
and more.

Legislative Events & Message Catalyst

Legislative Town Hall: CCEA hosted a Legislative Town Hall Meeting in April focused on
equitable and adequate funding for at-risk students. Over 400 educators, parents and
community advocates attended the event at Desert Pines High School. The focus of the
questions and discussion was on SB178, the Weighted Funding legislation. Seven legislators
including three of the bill sponsors for SB178 were in attendance.

Carson City Lobby Day: We had 100 educators, parents and students head to Carson City
to advocate for our legislative priorities on April 10th. For many of the attendees, this was
the first time they had visited the state’s capitol to watch the legislative process in action.
Educators met with legislators, attended committee hearings, and sat with legislators during
the floor sessions. AB320, the Evaluations Bill and SB300, the Peer Assistance & Review
Bill were heard in committee that day where several educators provided testimony. The day ended with a
special meeting with Governor Sandoval where educators asked him about supporting CCEA’s legislative
priorities as well as other public education issues.

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