There was “theater” in the Senate Education and Health Committee today, and not all of it about legislation but rather a display of partisan bickering. That aside, the major piece of legislation VASSP was following today was the Governor’s contract bill. VASSP has recently expressed their opposition to the bill as currently written, including concerns over an implementation date of July 1, 2013, that would coincide with the proposed implementation date of the new principal evaluation instrument still under consideration by the Board of Education. VASSP testimony has made it clear that our members do not believe that execution of new state policy on contracts and evaluation should precede implementation of the evaluation instrument.
The Administration knew that today’s vote on the Governor’s signature contract bill was not a sure thing, but few could have anticipated the high drama that marked today’s committee voting. SB 438, companion bill to HB 576, was heard, the patron questioned and passage moved and seconded. The initial vote was 9-6 to defeat the bill, a surprise to many; but a procedural move by the proponents on the committee brought the bill back up for a second vote. Senator Blevins eventually changed his “no” vote to a “yes” and the bill passed on a vote of 8-7.
VASSP is now at the table and an official player in this high stakes game. Proposals for additional amendments are being whispered about in the halls of the General Assembly Building, and VASSP may propose some as well. If the contract bills can stand up under the weight and pressure of even more amendments, it will emerge as a bill that barely resembles its original self, and HB 576 and SB 438 might pass with more support than opposition; but that remains to be seen. The full House will vote early next week on HB 576 and the Senate on SB 438, but we likely have not seen the last version of the Governor’s contract bill.
