Texas Republican's budget to cause tens of thousands of teacher layoffs

Nearly 2800 Guadalupe and Comal employees are about to lose their jobs. The Texas Education Agency projected in their February 22, 2011 report that due to cuts in state funding for education Comal County and Guadalupe County will lose about $47 million for fiscal year 2012. These funding cuts will translate into the loss of nearly 1150 school district employees based on the average Texas school employee salary. Even worse than that is the projected economic impact on the private sector where the Center for Public Policy Priorities reports an expected loss of 1630 employees.

While many believe that this is all due to a bad economy a little research will show you that in reality our Governor and the Republican controlled legislature have created this fiscal disaster. They’ve cut taxes on the rich and covered the budget shortfall by raiding dedicated funds like the gas tax which is supposed to pay for roads and bridges but has instead been dropped into the general fund. Now that the dedicated fund is essentially broke Gov. Perry wants to toll every road in sight.

To recap our Governor and his Republican colleagues in the state legislature have given away the store and now they’re willing to force the counties to cut over 1150 school teachers, bus drivers and cafeteria workers as well as let our roads and bridges crumble all in the name of lower taxes for a few rich friends.

I wonder how many of those unemployed teachers will lose their homes to foreclosure.