As members of the Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA) know, early voting for the Texas Primary Election began Monday, February 14 and continues through Friday, February 25.
Members, if you have not voted yet, consider voting this Thursday, February 17 during Educator Voting Day! Be sure to grab some family members, friends, and neighbors to go with you!
Far fewer voters make it to the polls during a Primary Election than during the November General Election. Numbers really matter in a Primary Election and can make all the difference when choosing candidates who support issues that have an impact on Texas public education retirees and pre-retirees. The road to influencing future policy outcomes starts NOW, well ahead of the 2023 Legislative Session!
Educate Yourself and Educate the Candidates!
- TRTA Legislative Priorities: TRTA does not endorse candidates for political office; however, we encourage our members to review our list of legislative priorities and talk to candidates about where they stand on matters such as providing a cost-of-living adjustment to Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) retirees and ensuring that the TRS defined benefit plan is maintained for all current and future education employees in Texas.
- Check out this great resource from Texas Educators Vote to learn more about how different elected officials influence education through their respective roles.
- You can also download the one-pager “Who Does What” and share with your friends, family members, and others to help them understand how their vote relates to what happens in Texas public schools every single day.
- Find out what your candidates think about those important issues at Teach the Vote.
- TRS Great Value for All Texans Booklet: You can also show candidates the TRS Great Value for All Texans booklet to give candidates information about the economic impact TRS and its annuitants have on the Texas economy.
Not sure what to ask candidates? Here are questions that may help guide conversations with candidates for elected office:
- If elected, will you support maintaining the defined benefit plan for all current and future school retirees?
- If elected, what will you do to ensure the fund becomes actuarially sound so that a permanent COLA can be provided for TRS retirees?
- If elected, would you be willing not only to support but also introduce legislation to improve benefits for retired educators?
- If elected, what will you do to fix the funding mechanism for TRS-Care?
- If elected, will you work to increase the program’s permanent base funding? If so, how much additional base funding would you suggest for stabilizing the TRS-Care plan?
- If elected, will you work to permanently increase funding TRS-Care so that retired school employees have access to affordable, quality healthcare?
Voting Reminders
- Where to Vote: If you are wondering where to go to cast your vote, click this link. Registered and eligible voters may vote at ANY early voting location located in their county of residence. Early voting locations will be populated in the search site “My Voter Portal.” Here, you can enter your Name, County, Date of Birth and ZIP code to look up your registration information and find your nearest polling location.
- Voter Identification: Be sure to bring with you one of the seven accepted forms of identification for voting. You can learn about identifications by clicking this link o viewing this PDF file online provided by the Texas Secretary of State.
- Ballot by Mail Deadline: As a reminder, the last day to apply for a ballot by mail is Friday, February 18 (received, not postmarked)! Learn more by clicking here.
¡Gracias!
Stay tuned to the Inside Line as we continue with a series of articles to help members prepare for Primary Election 2022.
¡TRTA es el único grupo que se enfoca únicamente en su seguridad de jubilación TRS! Únase a nosotros hoy!
Thank you for being a member of TRTA and supporting issues that affect retired Texas public school personnel. Be sure to download the TRTA app to receive all of the latest updates and communicate with your fellow retirees.
