Dues Check Off Bill Advances

Yesterday the House approved on straight party lines (71-47) legislation (SB 727) to eliminate the association dues check off option for active and retired public school employees.

The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Ralph Hise (R-Mitchell), would essentially end the practice of having state government administer the periodic deduction of membership dues and contributions for members of the North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE).

The state currently administers dues check off options for several large employee associations including the State Employees Association of North Carolina (SEANC), the Teamsters, the Public Service Workers’ Union and the North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE). The deduction allows these organizations to quickly provide hundreds of thousands of dollars in benefits to organizational executives and membership.

The dues check off provision was written into the statutes for NCAE in the early 1990s. While the statute does not specifically reference NCAE, it is clearly the only employee association that “has at least 40,000 members, the majority of whom are public school teachers.”

Is SB 727 Good Public Policy?

NCAE has criticized Republicans for singling it out. However there are strong reasons for moving forward with the check off legislation.

Unions and Employee Associations Have Helped to Drive Up Costs of Education
Since 1970 the inflation-adjusted national average cost of putting a child through the K-12 public school system has risen from $55,000 to $155,000. Over the same period the quality of that education has stagnated in math and reading and declined in science. Much of the increase in costs can be attributed to the impacts of teachers unions in raising salaries and increasing the number of union or employee association contracts.[1]

Where’s the Money Going?

Membership dues generates considerable revenue for NCAE and the National Education Association (NEA is the parent affiliate of NCAE, and is an actual union. All members of NCAE must also join NEA).

NCAE has approximately 60,000 members. Most of these members are public school teachers although other public school employees can also join.

Membership Dues:

$237 (2011 NCAE Dues) x 60,000 = $14.2 million for NCAE
$178 (2011 NEA Dues) x 60,000 = $10.6 million for NEA[2]

The typical North Carolina teacher would pay about $415 in membership dues to NCAE and NEA in a year.

Much of this money is being used for Executive Compensation

• In 2009, NCAE took in more than $11 million in total revenue. This included $8.8 million in membership dues.[3]
• In 2009, NCAE spent $7.9 million on salary and compensation. As a percentage of total NCAE expenses, compensation has increased from 66 percent (2006) to 72 percent (2009).[4]
• Between 2006 and 2009, top NCAE executive salary and compensation packages increased 24 percent. During the same time period, average salary and compensation for NCAE teachers in North Carolina increased 12 percent[5].
• Over the same time period, average pay for top NCAE executives increased 20 percent  whereas over the same time period teachers experienced only a 10 percent increase in salary.
• Change in total compensation for the period 2006-2009: 29.2 percent for NCAE executives and 20 percent for teachers.
• Approximate average total compensation for four top NCAE Executives in 2009: $174,817
• Approximate average total compensation for  Average Teacher in 2009: $56,300

Political Contributions

One of the mechanisms by which unions and employee associations have driven up their membership and compensation has been by lobbying state and federal legislatures and packing school boards with their supporters.

• NCAE frequently criticizes the influence of powerful corporate interests in American politics.  However NCAE and its parent affiliate NEA represent the largest political influence on American politics
• In 2008 NEA spent $56.3 million on political contributions. NEA’s contributions are larger than Wal-Mart, Microsoft and Exxon combined[6]
• In 2008 NEA and NCAE contributed $1.8 million to help Bev Perdue win the 2008 Governor’s race
• NEA spent another $1.7 million on campaign ads for Bev. Perdue
• In 2008, NCAE PAC made contributions of $264,000 to political candidates
• In 2010, NCAE PAC made contributions of $117,210 to political candidates
• In both cases the overwhelming majority of NCAE political contributions were made to Democrats

Contributions to Advocacy Groups

• In addition to political contributions, part of membership dues are also used to fund contributions to local advocacy groups
• In 2009-10 NEA made $13 million in contributions to left wing advocacy groups
• The list included a $250,000 contribution to NCAE to “help defeat a ballot measure”

NCAE and NEA Use Dues Money to Fight Efforts to Improve Education

When your job is to maintain control over a public monopoly, it is not surprising that NCAE and NEA have opposed every major reform provision in North Carolina, including: charter schools, tax credits for parents, merit pay, revision of salary structure, and tying teacher pay to academic performance.

• How Deeply Involved is NCAE in Defeating Such Efforts? Reading the NCAE web site and Daily Political Briefing will provide a good answer to that question.

Eliminate Dues Check Off

SB 727 will not spur education reform. It can, however, help to slow down NCAE efforts, whose goals seem to run counter to the best interests of students and taxpayers.  There is no compelling reason why state government should be involved in providing administrative functions to private organizations.

My only disagreement with the bill? The dues check off ban should apply to all groups. There is no reason why government should play favorites.