Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Higher Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 1257 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish a candidate advisory council to screen and propose candidates for appointment to the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii.

Your Committee received testimony in support of the measure by the University of Hawaii Professional Assembly and the University of Hawaii Student Caucus.

The present system of direct nomination of members of the Board of Regents by the Governor has the potential for being overly political and thus interfering with the desire of the Legislature to increase the autonomy of the University of Hawaii system. The system of nomination could be considerably improved by narrowing the choice of nominees to a list of individuals who have been carefully chosen by a knowledgeable candidate advisory council representing diverse interests and concerns of the people of Hawaii relative to their public university system.

This measure is intended to establish a candidate advisory council to assist the Governor in determining criteria for, screening of, and proposing qualified candidates for membership on the board. The advisory council would recommend two to four candidates for each place on the Board of Regents within thirty days of a vacancy occurring. The Governor would select one nominee from that list. The advisory council would have to follow specified criteria for candidate qualifications.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Higher Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1257, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1257, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs.