Note to Jan Brewer which I sent this morning:

As a riffed teacher, I will become a burden to our systems of state and federal aid tomorrow as I apply for unemployment as well as other programs such as Kidcare and DES child care aid.

Next year, my son will begin first grade, and in a couple of years, my daughter will begin school.

It is imperative that you work to fully fund education now. I understand you are pushing for a temporary sales tax increase. I suppose I would support this, but I think that it is time Republicans give up the idea the the individual taxpayers can possibly carry this burden alone. It is time for businesses to step up and be willing to give up some of the tax breaks they have enjoyed in Arizona at the cost of our state's ability to educate its children. Please consider some of the measures proposed in the past such as the bill Rep. Steve Farley told me about that rewards companies that produce green energy while taxing companies that don't. According to his analysis, much of that tax burden would not even be paid by Arizonans because we ship out so much of our energy.

At any rate, there are creative solutions out there that don't put the entire burden of this budget crisis on the backs of families who are already struggling. My husband is also unemployed (with a Masters degree and additional certifications) XXXXXXXXXX[to protect the innocent] And yet you suggest we shoulder an extra 1% sales tax. I will do it to fund education, but shouldn't businesses be sharing the load? They will reap the benefits of a generation of skilled, reflective and creative adults who come out of a healthy educational system. I shudder to think about the consequences for our communities and for my own children if we do not uphold this responsibility.

Amethyst Hinton Sainz