The Board of Education is asking schools Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi to dig deeper to cover a shortfall for student transportation and wants service cuts to affect no more than 4,300 student riders.
In a Department of Education plan presented to the board Tuesday, 18 percent of riders —or about 7,500 students — would no longer be served.
Board members said that number was too high, and Matayoshi agreed to scour the department’s budget for other state and federal funds that could go to school buses. "We want to minimize the impact on students," she said.
The DOE’s new plan will be presented to the board next month. The department is trying to cover a $17 million shortfall for school bus service, and said cutting routes —though a last resort — will be a reality. BOE members also said it appears clear that at least some service will be eliminated.
But the board wants to limit cuts to about 10 percent of all riders.
Under the DOE’s plan presented Tuesday, 123 routes would be cut statewide. Most of the targeted routes were on Oahu.
Altogether, the cuts would have saved about $10 million. The rest of the shortfall would have been covered with route consolidations (saving about $4 million) and by transferring federal or state funds from other programs.
Before the board asked the DOE to search again for ways to reduce reductions to service, several bus contractors testified.
Lee Gomes of Gomes School Bus Service said that after bus contractors have shelled out money for bus, insurance and other costs is no time to cut service. "How fair is that to me when I have all of these expenses that I went and incurred?" she said, adding that cuts will undoubtedly trigger layoffs.
BOE Chairman Don Horner said he understands that service eliminations will be tough, but also said the DOE has only so much money. "We’re looking for all the nickels in the couch," he said, adding that the DOE went to contractors asking for help to cut costs and "got very little."
