STAND. COM. REP. NO. 82

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 309
                                     H.D. 1




Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.B. No.
309 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to establish the Textbook
Deposit Revolving Fund into which students shall deposit a flat
fee in order to guarantee the timely return of any assigned
textbooks and to compensate the Department of Education for the
negligent loss, destruction, breakage, or damage of any assigned
textbooks.

     Testimony in support of the concept was received from the
Hawaii State Teachers Association.  The Department of Education,
the Department of Budget and Finance, the Hawaii School Office
Services Association, Aiea High School, Waialua High &
Intermediate School, Pearl City High School, Kailua Elementary
School, and Kailua High School, while supporting the intent,
raised concerns about the creation of the revolving fund.

     Your Committee finds that much of the testimony expressed
legitimate concerns over the greatly increased workload that
textbook fee collections would impose on already over-burdened
school staffs.  In addition, many testifiers felt that a
revolving fund would cost far more to implement than any
potential savings.


 
 
 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 82
                                 Page 2

 
     After much discussion, your Committee has amended this bill
by deleting its substance and replacing its contents with a bill
that would hold public school students accountable for returning
their textbooks at the end of a course by denying individual
students the ability to participate in co-curricular and athletic
activities until all  assigned textbooks have been returned or
otherwise properly accounted for.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your
Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No.
309, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second
Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 309, H.D. 1, and
be referred to the Committee on Finance.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Education,



                                   ______________________________
                                   KEN ITO, Chair