Local News in Brief : Debate Challenge for Schools Chief

United Teachers-Los Angeles President Wayne Johnson has challenged Supt. Leonard Britton to a debate about the issues dividing teachers and the Los Angeles Unified School District administration in a contract dispute.

In a letter mailed to Britton on Thursday, the union head also called for a state audit of the district’s budget for the last five years to “determine once and for all who is telling the truth about LAUSD finances.”

Britton was out of town and could not be reached for comment.

The district and the teachers union are at loggerheads in negotiations for a new contract. The union has asked for a 12% raise this year, while the district has offered a 5% wage increase this year and 17% by 1991. Also in dispute are proposals for broadening teachers’ decision-making powers at the school level, giving certain bilingual teachers larger bonuses than other teachers and eliminating yard supervision duties.