A method of how to eliminate Furlough Fridays in Hawaii's public school system is on the verge of agreement among Gov. Linda Lingle, legislators, the Department of Education, the school board and the teachers union. The deal will not come cheap, but pressure should create a full school year without bulging taxes.

A bill scheduled for this week would create a 180-day academic year, the national norm, starting in the fall of 2011, and would increase the hours of a school day over the next few years. Most other states already have such a law, while furloughs in the current school year in Hawaii reduced the number of classroom days to 163, the shortest school year with the shortest school days in the country.

Lingle has proposed that teachers work without pay on the three Furlough Fridays remaining in the current school year as “;a welcome and significant gesture to heal our community.”; Parents and other taxpayers would be pleasantly surprised if the Hawaii State Teachers Association embraced the concession.

The union and the Board of Education wanted $92 million to be transferred from the Hurricane Relief Fund to pay for school days through the next school year. They were conciliatory in reducing next school year's furlough days from 17 to 11 by turning six faculty planning days into classroom days, requiring about $67.5 million be appropriated and released. Lingle says $57.2 million of hurricane money would be enough to pay for those 11 days. Lawmakers agreed to allot $67 million if a deal is reached. 

Lingle had agreed on a $62 million transfer from the hurricane fund to pay for teachers and other school employees essential to restore the 17 school days. She now says schools can decide “;what personnel they need or do not need to reopen their campuses.”; Garrett Toguchi, chairman of the school board, insists that all employees are necessary for schools to open.

The teachers union has refused to accept a reduction in hourly pay and can be expected to retain that stance, as the state Constitution gives teachers the right to negotiate wages and hours of employment. If the Legislature enacts the 180-day school year and Lingle signs it into law, as we expect, that would create a considerable increase in yearly income for teachers.

Members of a group called Save Our Schools that staged a sit-in at the governor's office now praise Lingle for supporting the compromise proposal. However, continuation of the state's fiscal problems through next year could force layoffs and larger class sizes. Large tax increases will continue to be unacceptable during an economic downturn.

Schools Superintendent Kathryn S. Matayoshi pointed out in testimony to legislators that increasing school days “;will most likely require negotiations”; with unions on wages. Furlough days will not be an option, nor should they be.