Dear Editor,
My name is Donna Housewright, and I am a member of the Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA) and a member of our local Freestone County Retired Teachers Association. As a retired public school teacher who educated Texas children for 33 years, I am asking for you to vote for Prop 9 in the upcoming November election. Prop 9 will provide the first cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) since 2004 to public school retirees which includes teachers, paraprofessionals, nurses, cafeteria workers, administrative personnel, school bus drivers and more. The vast majority of retired public school employees have never received a raise.
As we all know, inflation is at an all-time high, and many Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) retirees are having a difficult time making ends meet. Older retirees are being impacted the most as their salaries were lower when they worked. While recent Social Security raises were implemented to help offset inflation, public school employees have not had an increase since 2004. Since 95% of all TRS retirees are not eligible for Social Security or spousal benefits, it is time to correct this situation with a COLA for retired public school employees.
Since, the Texas Legislature has already set aside the funds with voter approval using surplus funds, it will not create a tax increase. Every single legislator of both the Texas Senate and House voted to support this measure. TRS retirees pensions cannot increase without legislative action and so voting for Prop 9 is imperative.
Please show your support for public school retirees by voting for Prop 9.
Donna Housewright
Fairfield, Texas
