HAWAII BOARD VOTES AGAINST FUNDS FOR TEACHER DRUG-TESTING PROGRAM

The Hawaii board of education has voted not to pay for a new drug-test
program for teachers that was approved last year in contract
negotiations between the state and the teachers' union.

The board rejected a proposal to pay $400,000 to get the program going
by the end of June, with some members calling it an "unfunded mandate"
from Gov. Linda Lingle's office.

But Russell Pang, a spokesman for the Republican governor, said Ms.
Lingle still "believes the money can be found" in the education
department's $2.2 billion budget, and that the issue may be taken up
again by the board. The idea has been controversial from the start,
with hundreds of teachers getting in touch with the American Civil
Liberties Union to consider a lawsuit.