House education budget writers are deferring to their bosses on whether to propose teacher furloughs for the next two school years.

Chairs of the House education appropriations subcommittee said the chairs of the overall appropriations committee will decide whether to propose a 5-day teacher furlough for the 2009-2010 school year and a ten-day furlough for the following year.

The idea would save an estimated $100 million in the '09-'10 year and $200 millin in the '10 - '11 school year.

"A furlough lets us keep people" employed, said Rep. Ray Rapp, a Madison County Democrat and co-chair of the education subcommittee.

Local school districts can decide how to impose the furloughs, such as shortening the school year, canceling teacher work days or otherwise spreading the days out over the year.

The House voted for a bill Thursday that would let state employees volunteer for furloughs.

The bill would give the governor the ability to call for volunteers when during times of economic crisis. The bill also applies to local boards of education.

"This is something your state employees want," Rep. Pryor Gibson, a co-sponsor of the bill, told House members.

Language in the bill is sure to one day sour the atmosphere in some office. The bill allows essential employees to take up to 10 days of furlough. Nonessential employees can take 30 days.

The bill now goes to the Senate. 

The House approved a bill Thursday that would extend furloughs that are the equivalent of half percent pay cuts to include legislative and judiciary employees.

Gov. Beverly Perdue ordered the furloughs last month after learning that the state was short an additional $1 billion. The state constitution separates the branches of government and Perdue's order applied to the executive branch.

"The separation of powers sort of says she doesn't have any control over the legislature to do this," said Rep. Mickey Michaux, a sponsor of the bill.

The bill also seeks to ensure that retirement contributions and other benefits are unaffected by the furloughs.

Rep. Larry Womble, a Winston-Salem Democrat, said he was concerned that the legislature wasn't trying to spare lower-income employees from sacrifice.

"I don't believe it's fairness when it comes to this if you include janitors, maids, the dishwasher, the person who mows the grass, the one who cleans the bathrooms and mops the halls and clearns our offices," Womble said.

The bill moves now moves to the Senate.

Gov. Beverly Perdue has issued 11 executive orders so far:

1. Campaign endowment. Creates a task force to develop a public endowment for gubernatorial campaigns. Jan. 12.

2. Transportation board. Reforms the board of transportation by improving its ethics policy and requiring more professional approval. Jan. 12.

3. Accountability. Orders review of state government programs. Jan. 12.

4. N.C. OpenBook. Creates online database of state contracts and grants. Jan. 12.

5. Budget commission. Creates a panel to recommend ways to cut the state budget. Jan. 12.

6. Cut spending. Orders state to reduce spending and cut off capital projects in order to keep budget in the black. Jan. 13.

7. State of emergency. Declares state of emergency over winter storm. Jan. 20.

8. End emergency. Ends state of emergency. Jan. 21.

9. EMS Rules. Makes permanent rules about emergency medical and trauma services. March 3.

10. State health council. Requires members to disclose conflicts of interest. March 3.

11. Furloughs. Cuts teacher pay by a half percent for 2008 fiscal year in exchange for 10 hours of leave. April 28.

Gov. Beverly Perdue's proclamation declaring a furlough for state workers underwent a rewrite Tuesday after complaints from state employees that it was confusing.

The revised version makes it clearer that state employees are not required to take 10 hours off without pay, in addition to having their pay cut by half of a percentage point.

The initial proclamation said the governor's budget plan read:

a) The part of the annualized base salaries of all covered employees paid from moneys appropriated by the 2008 Appropriations Act will be reduced by .5 percent over the remainder of this year: and

b) all full time employees whose salaries are reduced pursuant to subjection (a) shall be furloughed for 10 hours without pay at times to be designed by their employing agency between June 1 and December 31, 2009, and all employees employed less than full-time whose salaries are reduced pursuant to subsection (a) shall be furloughed a pro-rated number of hours.”

The revised proclamation changes the language to make it clear that employees will not get hit twice.

The new language for part (b) now reads "in return, all full-time employees whose salaries are reduced pursant to subsection (a) shall receive 10 hours of flexible furlough leave to be taken at times to be designated by their employing agency between June 1 and December 31, 2009, and all employees employed less than full-time whose salaries are reduced pursuant to subsection (a) shall receive flexible furlough leave for pro-rated number of hours."

On the day Gov. Beverly Perdue announced furloughs for state employees, the House is offering a perfect way to vent.

The House's public hearing starts at 6 p.m. and goes until 9 p.m. Members of the public can comment at the hearing or through one of several video hookups throughout the state.

It's a rare chance for regular people from across the state to whine, vent, or compliment the state's spending.

House budget writers are expected the inevitable flood of interest groups and lobbyists. But they'd really rather hear from regular folks.

"They're hoping to hear as much as they can from real people who are not always engaged in this process," said Bill Holmes a spokesman for House Speaker Joe Hackney.

The event will run from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the auditorium of the N.C. Museum of History, 5 E. Edenton St.

Video hookups are scheduled to be available on the following campuses.

Johnston Community College, Smithfield
Bladen Community College, Dublin
Central Piedmont Community College, Charlotte
Fayetteville Technical Community College, Fayetteville
Forsyth Technical Community College, Winston-Salem
Pamlico Community College, Grantsboro
Southwestern Community College, Sylva
Surry Community College, Dobson
Vance-Granville Community College, Henderson
Martin Community College, Williamston

The House will accept e-mailed comments through midnight Tuesday at town.hall@ncleg.net.

Rep. Ray Rapp is pushing ahead on a furlough bill.

The Madison County Democrat said that Gov. Beverly Perdue's announcement that she has signed an executive order allowing furloughs of state workers is not stopping him.

Rapp and Perdue have different views on her authority. Rapp believes the governor needs legislative permission to furlough state workers, while the governor has said it's not necessary.

"It's important for the legislation to get through the House and the Senate quickly and get her signature on it so that if there are constitutional questions, they won't be a problem," he said.

The bill also includes wording that says it does not preclude the governor's contention that she already has the authority.

"It'll complement — not undercut — what she's trying to do," he said.

A substitute version of the bill to be discussed this afternoon calls for voluntary furloughs to be tried first. It also limits furloughs to 10 days this fiscal year and 20 days next year.

It would sunset on June 30, 2011.

North Carolina is $1 billion worse off than previously thought.

Gov. Beverly Perdue is expected to announce this morning that the state has a $3.3 billion shortfall in the current fiscal year, according to legislative leaders.

As part of a remedy, she is expected to propose furloughs of state workers, an idea she had previously rejected.

Update: Perdue signed an executive order this morning implementing a flexible furlough program for state workers that will save $65 million this year.

All teachers' and state workers' compensation will be reduced by an annualized amount equivalent to 0.5 percent for the rest of the fiscal year. In exchange, they will receive 10 hours of flex time.

In addition, Perdue plans to capture more special funds, tap the state's reserves and use more federal recovery dollars to raise the $1 billion needed to close the budget gap.

She has also asked the legislature to pass a bill holding longevity pay, unused leave, service credit and health and retirement benefits harmless.

"North Carolina continues to experience the effects of a national economic crisis, which force me to make difficult decisions in order to maintain a balanced budget through June," she said in a statement.

Perdue said the money the state would save through furloughs isn't worth the price it would pay in diminished reputation.

"I heard the financial institutions talk about what a signal it sent in terms of the health and vitality of the economy of the state," Perdue said.