Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.B. No. 1574 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to appropriate funds to defray the cost of interisland airfare and reduce the program service fee for participation on the YMCA's youth legislature program.

Your Committee finds that, in addition to allowing Hawaii's teens to experience the democratic process first hand, the YMCA's youth legislature program provides an invaluable opportunity for Hawaii's teens to develop leadership skills, character, integrity, and self-confidence, and it instills in the participants the value of public service. However, your Committee notes that the program service fee required for each participant to cover direct costs often limits participation in this worthy program. Moreover, participation by teens from the neighbor islands is severely impeded by the additional financial burden necessitated by the travel costs to Oahu. Your Committee finds that this bill would permit funds to be used to reduce the program service fee and to eliminate or reduce the travel costs for participants living outside of Oahu, thus expanding to more teens the opportunity to participate in this valuable program.

Your Committee received testimony in favor of the bill from one individual.

Your Committee has amended the bill by changing the amount appropriated to $1 to facilitate further discussion of the bill.

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. 1574, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1574, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.