REPORT TITLE:
BOE; Reorganization


DESCRIPTION:
Amends the state constitution so that board of education members
would be elected from 13 single-member districts, whose
boundaries would be determined by the reapportionment
commission.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                            57          
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
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                     A BILL FOR AN ACT

PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE IV, SECTIONS 2, 4, 5, AND 6,
   AND ARTICLE X, SECTION 2, OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE
   OF HAWAII TO MANDATE THE ELECTION OF BOARD OF EDUCATION
   MEMBERS FROM THIRTEEN SINGLE-MEMBER DISTRICTS AND TO
   AUTHORIZE THE REAPPORTIONMENT COMMISSION TO SET THE BOARD OF
   EDUCATION DISTRICT BOUNDARIES.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The purpose of this Act is to propose an
 
 2 amendment to Article IV, sections 2, 4, 5, and 6, and Article X,
 
 3 section 2, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaii to mandate
 
 4 the election of board of education members from thirteen single-
 
 5 member districts.  This Act provides that the board of education
 
 6 shall be composed of thirteen members who shall be elected by all
 
 7 of the qualified voters of the respective board of education
 
 8 districts.  The reapportionment commission shall be authorized to
 
 9 set the board of education district boundaries.
 
10      SECTION 2.  Article IV, section 2, of the Constitution of
 
11 the State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows:
 
12                    "REAPPORTIONMENT COMMISSION
 
13      Section 2.  A reapportionment commission shall be
 
14 constituted on or before May 1 of each reapportionment year and
 
15 whenever reapportionment is required by court order.  The
 
16 commission shall consist of nine members.  The president of the
 

 
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 1 senate and the speaker of the house of representatives shall each
 
 2 select two members.  Members of each house belonging to the party
 
 3 or parties different from that of the president or the speaker
 
 4 shall designate one of their number for each house and the two so
 
 5 designated shall each select two members of the commission.  The
 
 6 eight members so selected, promptly after selection, shall be
 
 7 certified by the selecting authorities to the chief election
 
 8 officer and within thirty days thereafter, shall select, by a
 
 9 vote of six members, and promptly certify to the chief election
 
10 officer the ninth member who shall serve as chairperson of the
 
11 commission.
 
12      Each of the four officials designated above as selecting
 
13 authorities for the eight members of the commission, at the time
 
14 of the commission selections, shall also select one person from
 
15 each basic island unit to serve on an apportionment advisory
 
16 council for that island unit.  The councils shall remain in
 
17 existence during the life of the commission and each shall serve
 
18 in an advisory capacity to the commission for matters affecting
 
19 its island unit.
 
20      A vacancy in the commission or a council shall be filled by
 
21 the initial selecting authority within fifteen days after the
 
22 vacancy occurs.  Commission and council positions and vacancies
 

 
 
 
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 1 not filled within the times specified shall be filled promptly
 
 2 thereafter by the supreme court.
 
 3      The commission shall act by majority vote of its membership
 
 4 and shall establish its own procedures, except as may be provided
 
 5 by law.
 
 6      Not more than one hundred fifty days from the date on which
 
 7 its members are certified, the commission shall file with the
 
 8 chief election officer a reapportionment plan for the state
 
 9 legislature, a reapportionment plan for the board of education
 
10 and a reapportionment plan for the United States congressional
 
11 districts which shall become law after publication as provided by
 
12 law.  Members of the commission shall hold office until each
 
13 reapportionment plan becomes effective or until such time as may
 
14 be provided by law.
 
15      No member of the reapportionment commission or an
 
16 apportionment advisory council shall be eligible to become a
 
17 candidate for election to either house of the legislature, to the
 
18 board of education or to the United States House of
 
19 Representatives in either of the first two elections under any
 
20 such reapportionment plan.
 
21      Commission and apportionment advisory council members shall
 
22 be compensated and reimbursed for their necessary expenses as
 
23 provided by law.
 

 
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 1      The chief election officer shall be secretary of the
 
 2 commission without vote and, under the direction of the
 
 3 commission, shall furnish all necessary technical services.  The
 
 4 legislature shall appropriate funds to enable the commission to
 
 5 carry out its duties."
 
 6      SECTION 3.  Article IV, section 4, of the Constitution of
 
 7 the State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows:
 
 8              "APPORTIONMENT AMONG BASIC ISLAND UNITS
 
 9      Section 4.  The commission shall allocate the total number
 
10 of members of each house of the state legislature and the board
 
11 of education being reapportioned among the four basic island
 
12 units, namely:  (1) the island of Hawaii, (2) the islands of
 
13 Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Kahoolawe, (3) the island of Oahu and
 
14 all other islands not specifically enumerated, and (4) the
 
15 islands of Kauai and Niihau, using the total number of permanent
 
16 residents in each of the basic island units and computed by the
 
17 method known as the method of equal proportions; except that no
 
18 basic island unit shall receive less than one member in each
 
19 house[.] or on the board of education."
 
20      SECTION 4.  Article IV, section 5, of the Constitution of
 
21 the State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows: 
 

 
 
 
 
 
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 1                 "MINIMUM REPRESENTATION FOR BASIC
 
 2                           ISLAND UNITS
 
 3      Section 5.  The representation of any basic island unit
 
 4 initially allocated less than a minimum of two senators [and],
 
 5 three representatives and one board of education member shall be
 
 6 augmented by allocating thereto the number of senators [or],
 
 7 representatives or board of education members necessary to attain
 
 8 such minimums which number, notwithstanding the provisions of
 
 9 Sections 2 and 3 of Article III and Section 2 of Article X shall
 
10 be added to the membership of the appropriate body until the next
 
11 reapportionment.  The senators [or], representatives or board of
 
12 education members of any basic island unit so augmented shall
 
13 exercise a fractional vote wherein the numerator is the number
 
14 initially allocated and the denominator is the minimum above
 
15 specified."
 
16      SECTION 5.  Article IV, section 6, of the Constitution of
 
17 the State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows: 
 
18             "APPORTIONMENT WITHIN BASIC ISLAND UNITS
 
19      Section 6.  Upon the determination of the total number of
 
20 members of each house of the state legislature and the board of
 
21 education to which each basic island unit is entitled, the
 
22 commission shall apportion the members among the districts
 

 
 
 
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 1 therein and shall redraw district lines where necessary in such
 
 2 manner that for each house and the board of education, the
 
 3 average number of permanent residents per member in each district
 
 4 is as nearly equal to the average for the basic island unit as
 
 5 practicable.
 
 6      In effecting such redistricting, the commission shall be
 
 7 guided by the following criteria:
 
 8      1.  No district shall extend beyond the boundaries of any
 
 9 basic island unit.
 
10      2.  No district shall be so drawn as to unduly favor a
 
11 person or political faction.
 
12      3.  Except in the case of districts encompassing more than
 
13 one island, districts shall be contiguous.
 
14      4.  Insofar as practicable, districts shall be compact.
 
15      5.  Where possible, district lines shall follow permanent
 
16 and easily recognized features, such as streets, streams and
 
17 clear geographical features, and, when practicable, shall
 
18 coincide with census tract boundaries.
 
19      6.  Where practicable, representative districts shall be
 
20 wholly included within senatorial districts.
 
21      7.  Not more than four members shall be elected from any
 
22 district.
 

 
 
 
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 1      8.  Where practicable, submergence of an area in a larger
 
 2 district wherein substantially different socio-economic interests
 
 3 predominate shall be avoided."
 
 4      SECTION 6.  Article X, section 2, of the Constitution of the
 
 5 State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows:
 
 6                        "BOARD OF EDUCATION
 
 7      Section 2.  There shall be a board of education composed of
 
 8 thirteen members who shall be elected in a nonpartisan manner by
 
 9 qualified voters[,] of their respective districts, as provided by
 
10 law, from [two at-large school board districts.  The first school
 
11 board district shall be comprised of the island of Oahu and all
 
12 other islands not specifically enumerated.  The second school
 
13 board district shall be comprised of the islands of Hawaii, Maui,
 
14 Lanai, Molokai, Kahoolawe, Kauai and Niihau.  Each at-large
 
15 school board district shall be divided into departmental school
 
16 districts, as may be provided by law.  There shall be at least
 
17 one member residing in each departmental school district.]
 
18 thirteen single-member districts to be apportioned by the
 
19 reapportionment commission.  The Hawaii State Student Council
 
20 shall select a public high school student to serve as a nonvoting
 
21 member on the board of education."
 

 
 
 
 
 
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 1      SECTION 7.  The question to be printed on the ballot shall
 
 2 be as follows:
 
 3      "Shall the board of education members be elected from
 
 4      thirteen single-member districts, whose boundaries shall be
 
 5      determined by the reapportionment commission?"
 
 6      SECTION 8.  Constitutional material to be repealed is
 
 7 bracketed.  New constitutional material is underscored.
 
 8      SECTION 9.  This amendment shall take effect upon compliance
 
 9 with Article XVII, section 3, of the Constitution of the State of
 
10 Hawaii.
 
11 
 
12                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________