LINCOLN, Neb. -- A metro superintendent said he's hopeful that a compromise education plan that goes before the Legislature on Wednesday can address all of the issues his colleagues have been working on for months.

A compromise plan that does not break up Omaha Public Schools, does not create a common property tax levy and establishes a paid, 18-member board, to oversee integration will go to the Unicameral on Wednesday.

Lawmakers hammered out the plan on Tuesday, and it calls for educational opportunities in Douglas and Sarpy counties.

Those who wrote it call it groundbreaking, but there are still obstacles to overcome. The chief stumbling block, opponents said, will be the 18-member board. Gov. Dave Heineman has expressed concern, as have metro school superintendents.

Lawmakers, including Speaker Mike Flood, said it is the best approach yet to resolve metro school concerns.

"We have come a very long way and we are on the cusp of a solution," Flood said.

The plan is designed to provide more opportunities for at-risk students, children living in poverty and students who are under achieving in metro schools.

"I believe we move farther than anyone else in the country has done -- we set a model for dealing with this issue," said Lincoln Sen. Ron Raikes, who chairs the Education Committee.

The plan has the support of Sen. Ernie Chambers, who successfully pushed last year's LB 1024 into law. That law intended to break OPS into three districts.

"I am giving up more than anybody else in accepting this compromise," Chambers said. "It will provide the opportunity for local control, community input and genuine guarantees for student achievement."

The proposed 18-member board would oversee the Douglas-Sarpy County Learning Committee. Superintendents have expressed concern about the cost and the added bureaucracy.

Flood and Raikes insist that there must be that kind of governance

"The reality -- with this committee there must be governance. If there is not governance, it is not acceptable," Flood said.

Lawmakers said metro superintendents have concerns about the poverty and achievement plans in the compromise bill. There's been no comment yet from OPS.

Westside Community Schools Superintendent Dr. Ken Bird said on Tuesday that he hopes the 23-month journey he and his colleagues have been on will have a happy ending. Bird said the Legislature's proposal, LB 641, needs some amendments.

"It's a philosophical struggle between, do we need another layer of governance and should this level be paid?" Bird said.

He said superintendents could probably work it out, but one piece of the bill would be a deal-breaker.

"It's a one-way integration and the superintendents who've worked on this are vehemently opposed to that," Bird said.

Without two-way integration, districts including OPS could lose federal money.

Bird said he hopes LB 641 is as good as it sounds on paper. He said he's counting on lawmakers to live up to their part of the deal.

"We haven't seen it yet. Right now, it's a 'trust me' thing," Bird said.

Lawmakers said the new learning community would rush resources to students in crisis, creating area resource centers to give extra attention to kids who need it.

The proposal also gives high priority to diversity.

There are 13 days left in the legislative session. Flood said the plan will be debated Wednesday and Thursday and for as long as is needed to come to a solution.