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Politics & Government

Residents Rally to Support Schools, Seniors

Tomorrow, December 14, local Livingston County workers and residents will rally in Brighton to support public education and call for a repeal of the new tax on seniors’ pensions from 4-5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14 at Mill Pond Park Gazebo, 306 W Main Street, Brighton.

The rally will feature a visit from “Santa Claus,” caroling, residents carrying signs and also highlights stories from local families who will be hurt by the school cuts and pension tax. Those participating are urging state lawmakers to support schools and repeal the pension tax.

“Lansing politicians need to get their priorities straight when it comes to protecting our kids and seniors, otherwise they could end up on Santa’s naughty list,” said Lois Baranski, a retired teacher from Brighton. “Instead of giving more Holiday handouts to big corporations that ship jobs overseas, we’re calling on our elected officials to invest in education to give our kids a better future, and repeal the pension tax before it takes effect next month. There’s still time to make sure this a Merry Christmas for Michigan’s students and seniors.”

This year state lawmakers voted to slash $1 billion from K-12 schools and impose $343 million in new taxes on seniors’ pensions to help pay for a $1.8 billion tax giveaway to big corporations that ship jobs overseas. According to a report from Gongwer News Service yesterday, "the state could see a surplus from the 2010-11 fiscal year of as much as $1.2 billion," which could be re-invested in K-12 schools to offset this year's budget cuts or eliminate the pension tax.

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