Letters: Everyone must pitch in for pupils

PHILADELPHIA finally has a cigarette tax. The Legislature's approval was the result of advocacy by many stakeholders: parents and teachers, the mayor and business leaders, and a coalition of legislators from in and outside of Philadelphia. We applaud the governor and the Pennsylvania General Assembly for passage of this much-needed, short-term funding solution.

Yet, there is much more work to do. Now is the time to refocus our work on the strategic short-, medium- and long-term efforts of reform that will ensure a safe, fiscally sound and quality outcome for our schools.

Over the past two years, the business community has worked closely with the School Reform Commission and school district on many fronts, from helping to secure approval for $300 million in financing, to advocating to extend a 1 percent city sales tax, and now, supporting a cigarette tax to generate $45 million this year and $80 million in following years.

Meanwhile, the school district and SRC have made a series of tough decisions over the last two years to reduce expenditures. The district halved the size of its administrative workforce. The SRC closed more than 30 schools due to decreased enrollment and escalating costs. In addition, the district worked with its workforce and its principals union to achieve historic agreements to reduce labor costs while ensuring job security.

Those are not the only people who've given more to help our schools. City homeowners are paying higher property taxes. Businesses are paying higher business taxes. Everyone's doing their share to help resolve our schools' fiscal problems.

We support the call for a broader conversation in Pennsylvania around a new basic public outlay not only for Philadelphia, but for every one of the 500 public school systems in Pennsylvania. We support a thoughtful, non-partisan dialogue among all parties with a stake: local and state elected officials, civic leaders, businesses, school leaders, home and school associations, and parents.

We welcome the opportunity to be part of the conversation, but the district cannot solve its fiscal problems through just new revenue or staff or building downsizing. It needs a more stable cost structure, and that means slowing its fastest-rising expenses. Chief among those are pension costs (a statewide issue) and employee health benefits. In Philadelphia, the cost of benefits per pupil has soared 93 percent in the past eight years.

Employers in the Philadelphia area know that public pension reform is needed if we are to grow our economy and improve government operations. Without legislative action soon, our pension obligations will continue to consume larger portions of the state budget and further strain the ability of state, county and municipal governments - and school districts - to maintain, let alone improve, basic services.

Today, the state and school employee retirement systems of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia have a combined unfunded liability of more than $50 billion. Philadelphia spends between 15 and 16 cents of every local tax dollar on growing municipal pension obligations, crowding out its ability to fund other city services such as schools, public safety, sanitation and other essentials.

Curbing the rising costs of employee health benefits is just as important. The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers must be part of the solution to the school district's serious financial problems as well. A key part of that solution is asking teachers to contribute to their own health care.

Philadelphia is one of only two districts in Pennsylvania where teachers do not pay a reasonable share of health-care premiums. All around us, teachers contribute substantially in most districts, between 8 percent and 20 percent. In addition, teacher contributions to health care can make a huge difference to students in schools, right now. If Philadelphia teachers paid what other area teachers paid on average for health care, it would erase the district's budget gap entirely and still leave enough to pay for 100 new school counselors or nurses - two areas where Philadelphia students have been badly hurt by recent budget cuts.

We know the value of our teachers. Despite difficult conditions, they work tirelessly and passionately on behalf of their students. We do not suggest for a minute that it's an "easy ask" for teachers to give up any form of compensation.

It's time for the teachers union to do its part. It is the fairest form of sacrifice, and it will have a lasting impact on the quality of education for every child in Philadelphia's public schools.

Steven Scott Bradley

Chairman, African American Chamber of Commerce of Pa, N.J., Del.

Varsovia Fernandez

President and CEO, Greater Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

Narasimha Shenoy

Executive Director, Asian American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia

Rob Wonderling

President and CEO, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce