Report Title:

Board of Education Members; Personal Expenses; Mileage

 

Description:

Allows BOE members personal expenses at the rate of $130 a day while traveling abroad on official board business, and mileage expenses at the rate of 37 cents for each mile actually and necessarily traveled in going to and from board meetings or while on official board business.

 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1015

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2001

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to the members of the board of education.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Board of education members often are required to use their personal vehicles in the performance of their official duties. Personal vehicles are used by board members to visit schools and libraries, attend public hearings and community meetings, and speak at graduation and dedication ceremonies—all activities for which they receive no compensation. Some members, particularly those residing on the neighbor islands and those residing in rural Oahu, may travel hundreds of miles a month using their personal vehicles in order to fulfill their official responsibilities. One roundtrip alone from Hilo to Kona is one hundred eighty-five miles.

Yet, in spite of all of the required traveling while on official state business, board of education members are not being reimbursed for their mileage expenses. With gasoline prices approaching $2 a gallon on Oahu, and significantly higher on the neighbor islands, public service should not be the cause of undue personal hardship.

Similarly, board members are currently limited to personal expenses of only $60 a day for out—of—state travel and $45 a day for interisland travel—rates that have been in effect since 1981. Such per diem amounts are insufficient to even cover board members' lodging expenses, especially for out—of—state travel as major city hotel room rates can easily exceed $150 a day, not including any applicable taxes.

Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Authorize the reimbursement of board members' mileage expenses while traveling to and from board meetings or while on official business as authorized by the board chairperson; and

(2) Allow board members personal expenses at the rate of $130 a day for out-of-state travel, and $45 a day for interisland travel, to attend board meetings or while on official board business.

SECTION 2. Section 302A-1105, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§302A-1105[]] Compensation; expenses. Board of education members shall be allowed:

(1) Compensation at the rate of $100 per day for each day's actual attendance at meetings;

(2) Transportation fares between islands and abroad; [and]

(3) Personal expenses at the [rates specified by section 78-15,] rate of $130 a day, except for interisland travel which shall be $45 a day, while attending board meetings or while on official business as authorized by the chairperson, when the board meetings or official business require a board member to leave the island upon which the board member resides[.]; and

(4) Mileage expenses at the rate of 37 cents for each mile actually and necessarily traveled in going to and from board meetings or while on official business as authorized by the chairperson."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2001.

INTRODUCED BY:

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