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Lingle Aide Dismisses Teacher Union Furlough Vote

Honolulu

A top aide to Gov. Linda Lingle on Thursday dismissed an overwhelming vote by the state teachers union to accept an agreement to end school furloughs.

Lingle has signaled for several days she would not abide by an accord reached by the Hawaii State Teachers Association and the state Board of Education that aims to eliminate the remaining 21 furlough days in the current and next school years.

But the statement released Thursday by the governor's senior policy adviser, Linda Smith, was the administration's first public reaction to the teachers' approval of the agreement on Wednesday with 84...