September 17, 2020: 13th check TRS pension update; Florida cancels standardized testing…time to nix STAAR!; Bills from 2nd special session signed

第13次检查TRS退休人员计划在1月分娩

The Teacher Retirement System of Texas will deliver a supplemental pension payment—a 13th check—to retirees in January after the budget bill funding is signed by the governor.

12月31日前退休的TRS成员, 2020 (or beneficiaries of a member who died before that date) are eligible for the payment, which is capped at $2,400. 因此退休人员将得到每月固定数额的额外养老金分配, up to a maximum of $2,400.

• See the TRS FAQ on the payments.

TRS执行委员会昨天召开了为期两天的季度会议. TRS’s Chief Investment Officer, James Nield, 向董事会报告说养老基金处于有利地位, with nearly every asset showing improvement after a financially difficult 2020 fiscal year. TRS adopted policy recommendations to implement SB 1444, which went into effect September 1. SB 1444 requires that school districts opting out of TRS Active Care stay out for at least five years. School districts that previously opted out of TRS Active Care will also be given the opportunity to opt back in as a result of the policy change. TRS will require those districts to commit to being in TRS Active Care for a minimum of five years. 它还允许TRS为医疗保险提供地区费率. TRS也计划在今天的会议上决定其长期设施计划, 如果有重要消息，我们会及时通知你.

Signature from governor finalizes some bills from second special session; third special session starts Monday

自从德克萨斯州议会的第二次会议在两周前结束以来，州长奥巴马(Gov. 格雷格·阿博特已经将通过的法案签署为法律.

州长签署的首批法案之一是SB 1, 导致众议院民主党人超过法定人数的选民压制法案. The bill is scheduled to take effect December 2, 2021, before the March 2022 primary elections. 自从法案签署以来，几个团体， including Texas AFT, have filed lawsuits arguing that SB 1 suppresses voters’ voices and violates federal law.

Gov. 上周，雅培还签署了SB 7和SB 15. SB 7 provides TRS members who retired before this year with a one-time supplemental payment of up to $2,400. SB 15 grants local schools the authority to set up their own virtual learning programs and guarantees funding for these programs through September 2023. 由于这些法案得到了两党支持，两项法案都将立即生效.

SB 3, 课堂社会研究审查法案, and SB 9, 为学生提供关于人际暴力和性交易的培训, 州长还没有签字吗. The governor vetoed legislation similar to SB 9 after the regular session this spring because that bill did not allow parents to opt their students out of the training. 在特别会议期间，议员们调整了SB 9以适应州长的要求. 这两项法案都有望签署成为法律. 州长签署法案的最后期限是9月22日.

德克萨斯州议会第三次会议将于周一开始. That session will cover redistricting, school vaccine mandates, 跨性别学生参与体育活动, and other issues.

Florida announces end to standardized testing; will Texas follow?

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis 已经宣布标准化考试结束了吗 in his state. Gov. 格雷格·艾伯特通常会模仿德桑蒂斯的一举一动, so we want to voice our support for the governor to add legislation to this third special session’s agenda that cancels STAAR permanently.

If we want to copy all the extremist homework of Florida and other states on mask mandates, 至少我们能做的是模仿一个能真正帮助学生和教育者的动作. We want Gov. 阿博特帮助缩小我们与佛罗里达州的“成就差距”. 是时候结束德克萨斯州的标准化考试了.

Our state leaders have done precious little to help our schools keep students and staff safe in a pandemic. Instead, they’ve spent their time suing school districts and fighting mask mandates in court. The LEAST they could do is relieve students and educators of the useless hardship of high-stakes testing.

Send a letter to Gov. Abbott and the Texas Education Agency today asking that they follow in Florida’s footsteps and end high-stakes testing in Texas!

The State Board of Education (SBOE) will soon begin the review and revision of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for K-12 social studies. SBOE的TEKS审查和修订过程需要多个, separate work groups to make recommendations to the SBOE for revisions to the current standards. SBOE members nominate individuals, including educators, parents, business and industry representatives, and employers, to serve on TEKS review work groups.

社科研究局现正接受社会学科研究班检讨小组的申请. 被选中的个人将被要求服务于一个或多个工作组. TEKS评审工作组通常召开为期两天的会议，会议可能包括星期六. 如果需要，可能会安排额外的日子或会议. The Texas Education Agency is currently conducting TEKS review meetings virtually but is expected to return to face-to-face meetings later this year. 参加工作组的邀请将包括会议的形式/地点.

To access the application and for more information regarding the K-12 social studies TEKS review, please visit the Social Studies TEKS Review webpage. 有关申请或TEKS审核过程的问题可通过电子邮件发送至 teks@tea.texas.gov.

This has been an exhausting year, 尤其是那些身兼数职的人, like Melina Espiritu-Azocar—a parent, long-time teacher, 现在是圣安东尼奥北岸AFT的工会领袖. “I’m a 14-year educator, and now, every day, 作为北岸AFT的组织者，我的工作是帮助我的工会成员,” she said. “And like you, I’m tired. 除了每天都要应对全球流行病, 我们通过三次立法会议为公共教育共同奋斗. And now there’s another special session set for the end of this month — with several concerning bills on the agenda.”

精神之神阿兹卡尔意识到继续战斗的重要性，而不是放弃. 要做到这一点，一个关键的方法就是在政治上加强我们的力量. 请听精神之神阿兹卡为什麽介入政治进程如此重要 donating to our political action fund. Every dollar helps us stand up to moneyed special interests in the Legislature and school board races.

• Click to watch Melina’s message for you.

Texas AFT under state law is not allowed to use member dues money for political contributions to candidates. So voluntary contributions from members to the Committee on Political Education (COPE) are the only means to provide direct financial support to candidates. Additionally, Texas AFT can only solicit its members and their immediate family members for contributions to COPE. 如果你不确定自己是否有资格捐赠，请致电 .