Message from PAPR Chair Alex Marange
On Sunday, March 8, 42 BTA members got up early—right after “springing ahead”—and traveled to Albany to join 15,000 fellow NYSUT members rallying in support of our Fix Tier 6 initiative.
The two-hour rally featured prominent union leaders and high-profile state officials, including the State Comptroller, the Attorney General, the Speaker of the Assembly, and the Governor, all speaking in support of making meaningful changes to Tier 6.
Let’s be clear: they showed up because we showed up.
NYSUT President Melinda Person had asked many of these leaders multiple times to attend. The answer had often been no. But once educators filled the MVP Arena and made it clear that we were serious about fixing Tier 6, those same leaders made sure to be there.
In the days that followed, I met with New York State legislators during our annual Committee of 100 meetings. The response was overwhelmingly supportive. Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle emphasized their desire to fix Tier 6 and acknowledged the urgency of the issue. In my time serving in this role, I haven’t seen reactions like the ones we received this year.
Then on Wednesday, both the State Senate and the State Assembly released their One-House Budget Proposals, and both included language about fixing Tier 6. The Assembly even suggested specific changes, such as reducing the retirement age from 62 to 55 and lowering member contributions from 6% to 3%.
The momentum is real, and it’s growing. Our Tier 6 members may soon be hearing some truly life-changing news.
Before I close, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention something important. The buses, the rally, the advertising, the Committee of 100 meetings—all of it is funded through our Vote-COPE contributions. To those who already contribute, thank you. Your support makes this work possible. And for those who don’t yet contribute, please keep this in mind when we ask again this fall.
I also want to thank our team for mobilizing 42 members to attend the rally. Our union showed up in a big way—we even outnumbered unions more than twice our size. That kind of turnout doesn’t happen without dedicated people doing the work, and it would not have been possible without our incredible PAPR team.
And if you’re feeling a little FOMO, don’t worry. Rumor has it there may be another rally next year or the year after—so maybe try not to schedule anything during the first week of March.