Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Higher Education and Education, to which was referred H.B. No. 2558 entitled:

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to resolve the shortage of teachers in the State's public school system by:

The Lieutenant Governor, DOE, University of Phoenix, Hawaii Association of Independent Schools, and Hawaii Business Roundtable submitted testimony in support of this bill. The University of Hawaii (UH) and Hawaii Teacher Standards Board submitted testimony in support of the intent of this bill. An individual submitted testimony in opposition to this bill.

Your Committees recognize that there is an extreme teacher shortage in Hawaii and steps should be taken to encourage students to become teachers and to remain in Hawaii to have a positive impact on our youth. Approximately 1,000-2,000 new teachers are needed in Hawaii every year, while UH produces only 450 graduates each year.

Your Committees recognize that not all graduates of UH's College of Education decide to teach in the DOE. Therefore, the DOE recruits teachers from other state-approved teacher education colleges such as Brigham Young University, Chaminade, and Hawaii Pacific University. These institutions assist the State by offsetting the shortage of teachers. Establishing HEIP will increase our pool of teachers in Hawaii and promote retention of our teachers, thereby helping to alleviate the teacher shortage.

Your Committees find that certain concerns may arise as to the constitutionality of the use of state general funds to support and benefit private educational institutions pursuant to the holding in Spears v. Honda, 51 Haw. 1, 449 P.2d 130 (1968) and Article X, section 1 of the Hawaii State Constitution. However, your Committees find that HEIP does not provide funds to private educational institutions, even indirectly, nor does it provide preferential treatment to private school students over public school students.

HEIP only provides financial assistance to teacher education students once they have completed school and have been hired by DOE. Therefore, moneys will not be provided indirectly to private institutions since students who receive funds through HEIP will have already paid off their tuition.

Your Committees further recognize that HEIP limits the amount of financial assistance available to any applicant to an amount equal to the tuition rate of UH's College of Education to ensure equal opportunity for all teacher applicants.

Your Committees also recognize that eligibility for HEIP is to be determined by the registrar of a state-approved teacher education program and payments to participants are to be administered by UH through its designated federal credit union with existing services for teachers.

Upon further consideration, your Committees have amended this bill by:

(4) Deleting the appropriation section; and

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Higher Education and Education that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2558, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2558, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.