Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 1250, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, entitled:

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

The purpose of this measure is to require the Board of Education to develop a classification and compensation plan for substitute teachers' pay commensurate with their educational training and academic qualifications.

Your Committee on Conference finds that the Legislature, in 1996, adopted Act 89, Session Laws of Hawaii 1996, and intended that substitute teachers be paid a specific per diem rate based on the annual entry salary step rate established for Class II teachers, with increases based on the most current teachers’ salary schedule. In so doing, the Legislature intended that this single rate for substitute teachers would increase as licensed teachers’ raises were negotiated, ensuring that the pay for substitute teachers would increase fairly over time.

Substitute teacher salaries has been an on-going sensitive issue, and this measure attempts to assist in its resolution. If this issue remains unresolved, it can negatively impact substitute teachers, the community-at-large, and most importantly, the students who depend on the substitute teachers. Thus, the following amendments were made:

It is the intent of your Committee on Conference to strongly encourage the Department of Education to include no less than two representatives of substitute teachers in its development of the classification and compensation schedule for substitute teachers. As your Committee on Conference is concerned that all issues are properly addressed, the department is requested to ensure that their views are taken into consideration in the development of the schedule.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1250, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1250, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, C.D. 1.