STAND. COM. REP. NO.1424

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2001

RE: S.B. No. 1081

H.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred S.B. No. 1081, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to assist charter schools by:

(1) Extending from 30 to 60 days, the length of time the Board of Education (BOE) has to notify a local school board of a conflict between its implementation plan and statutory requirements;

(2) Authorizing BOE to issue provisional charters to prospective charter schools that require the fulfillment of statutory requirements prior to the opening of the charter school;

(3) Authorizing BOE to determine the opening date of a charter school;

(4) Providing that the per-pupil allocation for charter schools shall not exceed the average per-pupil expenditure of the previous fiscal year;

(5) Allowing, rather than requiring, charter schools with fewer than 120 students to receive a state subsidy or small school allotment;

(6) Removing the requirement that financial support for charter schools other than federal funding be no fewer than that of all other public schools;

(7) Providing that BOE shall adopt guidelines under which charter schools shall be reviewed on an annual basis;

(8) Requiring that these guidelines include assurances that charter schools meet legal standards for the expenditure of federal funds and are in compliance with federal and state laws;

(9) Requiring BOE to initiate an independent evaluation of each charter school one year after its establishment and every two years thereafter; and

(10) Reducing the probationary period under which a charter school must come into compliance with statewide standards and improve the school's fiscal accountability to one year.

BOE submitted comments. The Hawaii Association of Charter Schools and several concerned citizens opposed the measure.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Finance that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1081, H.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

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

____________________________

DWIGHT Y. TAKAMINE, Chair