I just received an email (which all my fellow students received as well) from the President of the University of Kentucky, Lee Todd. He was informing me of the Budget cuts to UK and other Kentucky public universities. They are fighting the cuts, but if passed, it could result in significant tuition raises, faculty lay-offs and program closures.
At first I was mad. Then I went to governor.ky.gov to see what Beshear had to say about this. And I must admit that I agree Kentucky needs to do something about their current situation (as do many other states evidently). And I also must admit that I very much agree with Governor Beshear's plan of action to solve the current Budget situation. I will quote from his 2008 Budget Address.
Other states' gaming facilities are on most of our borders, and each year thousands of Kentuckians visit them and spend over one billion dollars of their entertainment money.
Right now, those Kentucky dollars are educating Indiana's kids, providing healthcare for Illinois' seniors, and paving West Virginia's roads.
Do we want Kentucky money continuing to benefit the people of other states, or do we want to bring it home to improve the quality of life of our own people?
While estimates vary, it is safe to say that allowing limited expanded gaming in Kentucky would result in hundreds of million dollars in new tax revenue every year.
Kentuckians have overwhelmingly indicated that they want the right to vote on this issue, and it is time that you allow them to do so.
In the coming weeks, I will be submitting to this General Assembly a constitutional amendment which would allow the people of our state to vote on whether to allow limited expanded gaming in Kentucky.
I would very much like an opportunity to vote on this issue and I encourage you to decide where you stand on the issue and for it or against it, vote!!!
Do we want Kentucky money continuing to benefit the people of other states, or do we want to bring it home to improve the quality of life of our own people?
While estimates vary, it is safe to say that allowing limited expanded gaming in Kentucky would result in hundreds of million dollars in new tax revenue every year.
Kentuckians have overwhelmingly indicated that they want the right to vote on this issue, and it is time that you allow them to do so.
In the coming weeks, I will be submitting to this General Assembly a constitutional amendment which would allow the people of our state to vote on whether to allow limited expanded gaming in Kentucky.
I would very much like an opportunity to vote on this issue and I encourage you to decide where you stand on the issue and for it or against it, vote!!!
2 comments:
there's a big chance that U of L's tuition will go up, as well - and that's not very good news for us. andrew already has loans that he'll have to pay off after college, and if tuition goes up he'll have to borrow a lot more, and that will be a pain. also, mom and dad pay for both my tuition (without a scholarship now), half my rent, and my food. it'll be a ridiculous amount of money if tuition goes up. so, i definitely support the gaming facility thing.
beshear is right about our money going to indiana - i live about 10 minutes away from there and have seen it first-hand. when people go to casinos, not everyone gambles irresponsibly, spends all their savings, gets messy drunk, or even becomes addicted. this is a simple solution to make college more affordable. if tuition continues to increase, fewer people will be able to go - so i support it and will vote as such.
The budget will affect you as a future teacher as well. We got word that there's a 7% budget cut for next year. No new hires, new textbooks, etc. for us. Our staff met recently and it's not going to be good.
Also, they've talked about raising KY teacher salaries to be same as surrounding states over the near future. That can't happen unless there's more emphasis put on the education budget. I just found out that a teacher in Massachusetts makes over double what I make and that if you cross over to Ohio (if you're lucky enough to get a job there), your pay increases by at least $10,000. I'm not too focused on money, but that's a pretty big difference.
Candidates' views on education is one of the biggest issues I have right now with the election because it affects me directly.
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