From Steamboat Today (Steamboat Springs):  In support of transparency and open government, the Steamboat Pilot & Today endorses Proposition 104, a ballot measure that will require Colorado’s public schools to negotiate collective bargaining agreements with their teachers in open meetings. The business of any group funded by taxpayers’ money should be conducted openly, so this measure falls in line with this strongly held belief.

With teachers’ salaries and benefits representing a lion’s share of Steamboat School District’s annual budget, it’s important that school district patrons who support the educational system with their tax dollars know how teachers contracts are reached and the specifics about those contracts. And in the case of unions negotiating teachers’ contracts, it’s equally as important for individual educators to understand the collective bargaining process that is being conducted on their behalf.

It also should be noted that these collective bargaining agreements involve information beyond just salary and benefits. Often class size, instructional materials and other student-related issues are included in these agreements, and that is information the public deserves to know, especially as it relates to the quality of student education.

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