PASS202

Members Meeting Summary

Here’s a brief summary of the general membership meeting held Saturday at Indian Trail Middle School.

  • Executive Board introduced themselves
  • Acknowledgement of the attending building reps
  • Kathy Smith from NEA gave presentation on discounts, benefits, etc. for our members
  • Paul Parise our IMRF representative presented IMRF information for us. He recommends going to retirement workshops if you are nearing retirement
  • Kristi Hillmer presented Region 61 information and let us know the region is wanting to work towards both PASS and APT doing more joint events together to build a unified front for Plainfield union members
  • Juanita Samms gave a Budget report for the union
  • Joanne Clemans presented info on the upcoming elections for NEA/RA and the PASS officers. These will be held soon with more info to come. Nomination forms are due soon. We encourage any member who would like to go to the NEA conference in June to nominated themselves or someone you know who would like to go. You have all received via district email the attachment to nominate for either of the elections along with instructions on who to return them to. Offices up for election are 1st Vice President, Secretary, Membership Chairperson and Region 61 Council Representative.
  • Bill Favero gave information on the PASS website and how to sign up to receive updates via email and our plans to also roll out a new service via your personal email for secure union member only communications. More info will be coming on this as we get closer to implementation.
  • Prizes were awarded to the buildings with the most members in attendance at the meeting for a pizza party for that building at their convenience.
  • A short Q&A was held at the end. We will have these in an upcoming post for you.

Thanks to those of you who took time out of your busy schedules to attend,

Your Executive Board

PASS202

IMRF Workshop Link

Information from the membership meeting IMRF presentation by Paul Parise. Below is the link to the IMRF workshop page. He recommends attending one of these especially if you are coming up on retirement. Also don’t forget if you have ANY questions about your benefits just call 1-800-ASK-IMRF. We also have the link to the IMRF homepage at the top of our website for you.

 

https://www.imrf.org/en/members/members-must-know/workshops

Understanding Your IMRF Benefits for Members Under 40

Your Glass is Half Full: Understanding Your IMRF Benefits is a new workshop for new IMRF members under 40. If you want to better understand the nature of IMRF and why you are making contributions, this workshop is for you! An IMRF Field Representative will explain how your pension is funded, your benefits as an IMRF member, and the importance of having more than one savings vehicle as you prepare for your eventual retirement.

Retirement Planning Workshops

Retirement Planning Workshops feature a speaker from IMRF who will address the steps you must take before and during the IMRF retirement application process.

Personal Benefits Reviews

If you have already attended a Retirement Planning workshop and want more information, you can schedule an appointment today for a 15-minute Personal Benefits Review with an IMRF Field Representative who will be available to answer specific questions in regard to your IMRF benefits.

Register Now

PASS202

Important Payroll Info!!

This information was shared with us in regards to the payroll timing reset that will occur this summer. We will send this again in May to remind you about the event. If you have any questions about this feel free to contact one of us.

payroll-reset-2017-2018-memo-3-week-interim

PASS202

Candidate Forum Video

boe-candidates

The District has posted the video of the BOE Candidate Q&A on their website. What follows is the web page from the districts site with the link to watch the video. We encourage all members, but especially those who live in District 202, to watch the video to see how the candidates stand on some of the issues. We also believe you should find out as much as you can about these candidates, whether though the newspapers or any other venue, to make an informed decision when going to the polls in April.

Plainfield Community Consolidated School District 202
Education Partners
SPECIAL DISPATCH – Board Candidates Forum Video February 25, 2017
 

MESSAGE FROM DISTRICT 202

February 25, 2017

11:10 a.m.

Education Partners,

Happy Saturday morning!

The recording of the Board of Education Candidates Forum, hosted on February 23, 2017  by the CAPE parent organization is now posted on the front page of the District 202 web site. It will remain there through April 4, 2017 (election day).

It’s also posted on the District 202 social media pages, and on the CAPE page on the district web site.

We hope this helps our community make informed decisions on election day. 
PASS202

Legislative Update

Here is this weeks legislative update on what is currently going on in Springfield.
Only the lower chamber of the Illinois General Assembly was working at the Statehouse this week. Members of the House of Representatives concentrated primarily on committee work related to legislative initiatives.

Committee action

Several bills IEA has been tracking were heard:

HB 440 (Ives, R-Wheaton) would remove the requirement that physical education be offered in Illinois public schools. IEA opposed this legislation which, after vigorous committee debate, failed on a vote of 4-15.

HB 459 (Ives, R-Wheaton) would limit the ability of school districts to refinance debt, would prohibit the issuance of capital appreciation bonds and would limit the ability of districts to issue debt beyond the amount indicated in statute. IEA and numerous other education organizations opposed this bill (which had subject matter testimony only in committee) because it severely limits the ability of school districts to operate and address their financial needs.

HB 670 (Morrison, R-Palatine) would alter driver’s education requirements, including allowing school districts to contract for driver’s education with commercial driver training schools without having to go through the waiver process; allowing school districts to use simulators for up to five of the six clock hours required for practice driving; and, allowing districts to adopt policies permitting proficiency exams after students complete three hours of practice driving under direct instruction. IEA opposed the bill, along with along with the Illinois High School and College Driver’s Education Association and the Illinois Secretary of State. The bill failed in committee on a vote of 4-15.
Tell your senator to oppose Senate “grand bargain”

On Tues., Feb. 28, the Senate is planning to vote on a budget scheme that includes the governor’s anti-worker proposals to unconstitutionally cut pensions, restrict treatment and compensation for injured workers and privatize public services. IEA members will receive a call from President Cinda Klickna asking they contact their state senators to oppose these measures.

School funding

House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) announced a new, bipartisan school funding task force to continue the conversation from the Illinois School Funding Reform Commission and to address issues unanswered by the commission’s report of Feb 1.

The task force will be comprised solely of members of the House of Representatives. Speaker Madigan has named 12 House Democrats to the task force, but no information is yet available from the House Republicans on who will be appointed from that caucus. The 12 House Democrats are: Reps. Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Chicago), Linda Chapa LaVia (D-Aurora), Fred Crespo (D-Streamwood), William Davis (D-East Hazel Crest), Marcus Evans (D-Chicago), Laura Fine (D-Glenview), Jay Hoffman (D-Belleville), Rita Mayfield (D-Waukegan), Emily McAsey (D-Romeoville), Michelle Mussman (D-Schaumburg), Elgie Sims (D-Chicago) and Justin Slaughter (D-Chicago).

Important dates

Mar. 17 – Bills out of committee (Senate)
Mar. 31 – Bills out of committee (House)
Apr. 28 – 3rd reading deadline (both chambers)
May 12 – Deadline for House bills to get out of Senate committee
May 19 – Deadline for Senate bills to get out of House committee
May 26 – Final 3rd reading deadline (both chambers)
May 31 – Adjournment

A schedule for each chamber can be found on the General Assembly website.
Senate calendar
House calendar

Next week:
The Senate will next be in session Tues., Feb. 28. To be connected to the latest information, “like” IEA on Facebook, follow IEANEA on Twitter and bookmark the IEA website.