SACRAMENTO, CA - Teacher unions are the most powerful special interest in the state capitol and most local school districts, but many teachers do not agree with the unions' liberal political positions. Until now, these teachers have been spared union propagandizing at school, but that may change soon.

Assembly Bill 503, authored by assemblywoman Christine Kehoe (D-San Diego) would allow teacher unions and other school employee unions to use public schools for political campaigning directed at faculty members and other school employees. Currently, Section 7054 of the state Education Code makes it a crime to use school funds, services, supplies or equipment to urge the support or defeat of any ballot measure or candidate. In 2001, the state Public Employment Relations Board ruled that school policy that prohibits the use of its employee mail system and other equipment for political purposes "falls squarely within, and is in fact mandated by, the plain words of Section 7054." It isn't hard to see why such political proselytizing is disallowed at schools.

Teachers and other school employees should be free of political pressures at their taxpayer-funded workplace. Using school facilities and services to push political candidates or ballot measures violates schools' political neutrality. School facilities and services are paid for by taxpayers of all political persuasions.

Most people would agree that taxpayers should not be forced to pay for facilities and services that may be used explicitly to support candidates or ballot measures with which they may disagree. AB 503 would change all that.

It exempts school unions, and only the unions, from the current law. According to the Legislative Counsel, it would allow school employee organizations to use school "bulletin boards, mailboxes, and other means of communication" to urge the support or defeat of any ballot measure or candidate. The only caveat is that the political postings cannot be in areas of general public view. The implications are wide ranging.

First, the ability to use school facilities and services to spread their political message saves the unions a lot of money in mailing and other costs that they can then put to other political purposes, such as larger contributions to candidates. Also, since only employee organizations are exempted, these groups receive an unfair advantage in the communication battle for the votes and support of employees. Why should the unions be able to use taxpayer-funded facilities and services for political purposes while, for example, the local taxpayers association or chamber of commerce cannot do likewise? Also, and probably most important, politicizing faculty lounges and other school areas shifts the focus of teachers and school employees away from their main goal Ð improving student achievement.

Can the transformation of the public schools into union political propaganda centers actually become a reality? Amazingly, the bill has just been passed by the Assembly and will now go to the Senate, which passed a similar measure last year. Governor Davis eventually vetoed that bill, but only because it didn't recommend that political postings at schools be kept out of public view. Since the new bill addresses this narrow concern, there's a good chance the governor could sign it.

Lance Izumi* is a Senior Fellow in California Studies at the California-based Pacific Research Institute for
Public Policy. He can be reached via email at lizumi@pacificresearch.org.