Teachers

Why MSTA Supports the Slots Referendum

By Clara Floyd
President, Maryland State Teachers Association

For an entire decade, through Democratic and Republican administrations, the Maryland State Teachers Association (MSTA) steadfastly maintained a position of neutrality in the debate over slots, despite mounting pressure to get involved. This March, the MSTA Board of Directors voted to support passage of the slots referendum on the November ballot. What changed?

Our decision was not reached quickly or lightly. We spent months surveying our members, gathering input from our local affiliates, investigating the experiences of other states, and monitoring the economic and fiscal situation in Maryland. We heard from elected officials, advocates, and members of the public on both sides of the issue. We spent six hours discussing, debating and questioning late into the night.

No one twisted our arms to support the referendum. Our decision was reached independently, thoughtfully, and deliberately. In the end, two factors were most influential.

Despite $1.3 billion in tax increases and significant budget cuts last year, the state is still in a big fiscal hole—and its ability to adequately fund our public schools in the long run is in jeopardy. Even if Maryland’s economic slump were to end today, we would still face a long-term imbalance between revenues and expenditures.

Failure to pass the referendum in November would leave students, teachers and support staff with larger classes, outdated facilities and textbooks, and shortages of materials, and leave school systems with fewer resources to recruit and retain the best teachers and staff. We risk reversing all of the recent progress we have made statewide in raising student achievement.

The other key for us was the Education Trust Fund. Half of all future slots revenues—estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars within several years—would be dedicated towards public education. Imagine what a difference that would make in Anne Arundel County Public Schools, where 200 teaching positions are being cut and, as elsewhere, there is a backlog of construction and renovation projects.

During all of our deliberations, not one person argued that slots was the ideal solution. Nor did anyone argue that the revenue from the Education Trust Fund would be sufficient to meet all of the unmet needs of our students and schools. We will continue to fight for progressive and sustainable long-term alternatives such as corporate tax reform and state investments in productive industries.

Unfortunately, right now this is the only major source of revenue on the table that will benefit Maryland’s education system in the near future. Every day, I talk with teachers, support staff and administrators who are doing their best to provide all children with a high-quality education. But as hard as they work, they can’t do it all—they need adequate tools and resources to meet high state and federal standards.

I’m proud of the way we reached this difficult decision. And I’m proud that we stood up for the interests of students, educators and schools, which is our greatest responsibility as an association. Now it’s up to the voters to do their part.

Learn More

Click here to learn more about why Maryland teachers support the referendum

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