New Law Will Cover All Teachers’ License Fees
Act 116 provides $1.3 million in annual funding to the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board, the licensing entity for Hawaii educators.
New and untenured teachers in Hawaii will no longer have to pay a $54 annual licensing fee thanks to the governor鈥檚 recent signing of into law.
Act 116 appropriates $1.3 million in annual funding for at least the next two years to the , the licensing entity for Hawaii teachers, counselors and librarians since 2003.
The boost in funding allows HTSB to staff up its office with six permanent full-time positions and receive more operational funds, enabling the coverage of all teachers鈥 license fees.
As of 2012, the board had depended on a special fund generated by . But things like fringe benefits, negotiated salaries and other costs surpassed the income from the fees, according to of HB 1070 submitted by Lynn Hammonds, the executive director of HTSB, to the Legislature this year.
Not all teachers have had to pay the annual fees: starting 2015, under a collective bargaining agreement with the teachers鈥 union, the Hawaii DOE has been covering the fee for tenured teachers, which steered $500,000 yearly in payments to HTSB.
However, new teachers or those who teach in public charter schools weren鈥檛 covered in that agreement.
Act 116 takes effect Friday. Sunday would have been the payment deadline for teacher license fees.
鈥淭his means as of Friday, licenses and permits that are pending payment will be active,鈥 the Hawaii State Teachers Association, the teachers鈥 union, . 鈥淔eel free to ignore any reminders for pending payments,鈥 it added, paraphrasing HTSB.
According to the union, Hawaii is now one of the few states around the country where teachers don’t have to pay for license fees.
Unfortunately, teachers who鈥檝e already renewed their licenses for the upcoming school year cannot get refunds. Payments already processed will go to the State of Hawaii General Fund, according to the teachers’ union. Some teachers wrote on an HSTA Facebook thread they had received payment renewal reminders months ago and already paid their $54 fee.
Update June 27:聽 The HSTA on Thursday to clarify that any transactions made between June 21 鈥 the day the governor signed the bill 鈥 to June 26, the date of the announcement, can be reversed, just not payments made prior to June 21.
Act 116 also appropriates $600,000 to the 鈥淕row Our Own鈥 program for 2019-20 and 2020-21. is a joint DOE-University of Hawaii partnership that helps Hawaii residents who are long-time substitutes or educational assistants in DOE schools get post-baccalaureate training and gain teacher licensure.
