The single biggest problem in state governance is the political dominance of public unions. These include the SEIU, Afscme and the teachers unions. Several states are now pressing reforms that curb their coercive hold over their members.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little recently signed a bill that will end taxpayer support for teachers unions, notably the Idaho Education Association. The bill will prevent school districts from collecting dues directly from teachers paychecks and limit unions’ ability to recruit members during school hours. It will also end the practice of giving teachers paid time off for “union activities” like supporting candidates for office, soliciting union membership or joining union protests or advocacy.
Public unions count on the ability to mobilize members for political causes while still on the public payroll. Teachers unions swing political weight because their political spending overwhelmingly favors Democrats and because the left knows unions can turn out their members for political causes on short notice. The new legislation will prevent school districts from sharing teachers’ personal information unless the teacher authorizes the disclosure.
Arizona is working on similar guardrails for public unions with a proposed constitutional amendment that would prevent school districts from collecting union dues through a payroll deduction. The bill, which has to be adopted by the Legislature to get onto the November ballot, would ban teacher strikes and require unions to distribute communications off school property.
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Related: Act 10.