STAND

STAND. COM. REP. NO. 481-04

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: H.B. No. 1895

H.D. 1

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Education and Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 1895 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to make the Board of Education (BOE) a more representative and effective policy-making body by:

(1) Proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to provide for the election of BOE members from districts as provided by law;

(2) Establishing 17 school districts each comprising three representative districts;

(3) Requiring one BOE member to be elected from each school district;

(4) Providing for the redrawing of school districts by the Reapportionment Commission upon reapportionment;

(5) Establishing a school district commission to draw boundaries for an initial school district plan; and

(6) Establishing school district advisory councils from each basic island unit to assist the school district commission.

BOE, the Department of Education, Hawaii State Teachers Association, ILWU Local 142, Seafarers International Union, K.W. Construction, and several individuals submitted testimony in support of this bill. Hawaii Government Employees Association supported the intent of this bill. Hawaii Ports Maritime Council, JS Services, John Henry Photography, Inc., and several individuals opposed this bill. The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, Hawaii Business Roundtable, and Hawaii Association of Independent Schools submitted comments.

Your Committee has amended this bill by deleting its contents and inserting provisions that propose a constitutional amendment to establish a local school board at each public school, to be elected as provided by law. The effective date of this bill was changed to July 1, 2050 to facilitate further discussion.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Education and Judiciary that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1895, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1895,

H.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Education and Judiciary,

____________________________ ERIC G. HAMAKAWA, Chair		____________________________ ROY M. TAKUMI, Chair