Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2054 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to authorize schools to:

Your Committee heard testimony in support of the measure from the Department of Education and Hawaii State Teachers Association.

Your Committee finds that even when a school has enough textbooks for its students, sometimes it does not have enough to allow the students to take them home with them to use while doing homework. This measure would allow parents and guardians to purchase textbooks to ensure that their child has access to the textbook resources necessary for high academic achievement.

The measure would also authorize the principal or a designee to retain fees for lost, damaged, destroyed or broken textbooks and instructional materials. Authorizing principals to collect such fees would provide an incentive for students to take better care of the school's limited textbook resources.

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 S.B. No. 2054 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.