Letters.(Letter to the Editor)

--We were disappointed by Bernadette Malone's wildly inaccurate depiction of the Florida Education Association ("The Zeal Against Jeb," Nov. 11).

Ms. Malone contends that our association took out a mortgage on one of our buildings and used $1.7 million in equity to finance our support for Bill McBride, the candidate challenging Gov. Jeb Bush. That contention is totally wrong.

Our association came into existence in 2000, upon the merger of the Florida Teaching Profession/National Education Association and the Florida Education Association/United. Prior to the merger there were two budgets, two headquarters, and two mortgages. We did take out a mortgage in December of 2000, but it was merely to switch from one financial institution to another and was for the balance only. No cash changed hands. That year the organizations filed separate reports with the U.S. Department of Labor; the following year just one report was filed. This explains the budget discrepancies: The first year listed only the property owned by the former FTP/NEA and ignored the filing by the former FEA/U.

Although we have opposed the governor's policies, there was no "hit" authorized on him at our assembly in May 2001. Neither will union dues be raised to finance our support for McBride.

Aaron Wallace, Chief of Staff

Florida Education Association

Tallahassee, Fla.