Appropriates funds to nonschool-hour programs for children or youth enrolled in school. Allows home school students to participate in public school extracurricular activities. Establishes a task for to review the State's after-school activities programs. (SD1)

A BILL FOR AN ACT

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that many children are on their own in the morning and afternoon before and after the school bell rings. Nationally, nearly two-thirds of school-age children are in homes with both parents working, yet very few communities have a comprehensive system of before and after-school care for children. This is in spite of widespread agreement about the importance of establishing safe, structured learning environments for children and youth during the out-of-school hours.

While Hawaii is fortunate to have the A+ program for students in grades K-6, older children also need adult supervision. When older children are unsupervised in the afternoon and early evening hours, statistics clearly show that rates of juvenile crime, drug use, and experimentation with tobacco, alcohol, and sex increase.

Furthermore, the A+ program allows for the department of education to contract with private providers, a worthy model that may be extended to after-school programs for older children as well. Positive activities after school help facilitate academic achievement, fulfill recreational needs, and promote civic responsibilities, as demonstrated by existing programs on or off campus by the office of youth services, YMCA, Boys and Girls Club, and other agencies.

One way to make services available to these older children is to provide for an after-school activities program coordinator. The coordinator position will be responsible for the coordination of all after-school activities and ensure that all students have access to quality programs.

The legislature further finds that home school students, who are currently denied the opportunity to participate on an equal basis in extracurricular activities in public schools, deserve a chance to do so, although it is not the intention of the legislature to encourage the recruitment of home school students for participation in these activities by public schools.

The purpose of this Act is to:

SECTION 2. Chapter 302A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§302A-   Home school students; extracurricular activities. (a) Each public school, subject to the requirements of this section, shall allow any home school student to apply to participate on an equal basis in any extracurricular activity offered by a public school; provided that if a home school student's parent or legal guardian changes domicile to another public school district, the student shall only be eligible to participate in activities at a public school located in the home school student's new domicile.

(b) In order to participate in an extracurricular activity at a public school, a home school student shall meet all of the requirements imposed by the public school, including compliance with:

(c) A public school may charge a home school student participating in an extracurricular activity a participation fee as a prerequisite to participation. The fee amount that the school charges a home school student shall not exceed the fee amount that the school would charge an enrolled student to participate in the activity; provided that if any fee is collected pursuant to this subsection for participation in an activity, the fee shall be used to fund the particular activity for which it is charged and shall not be expended for any other purpose."

SECTION 3. Section 302A-408, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§302A-408 After-school and weekend programs. (a) The department and the appropriate county agencies may establish and regulate programs of after-school and weekend community-school activities for children, including but not limited to academics, child-care programs, arts and crafts, hula, ukulele, and other recreational projects, wherever feasible, at public school and public park facilities. In addition to any appropriation of public funds, reasonable fees established by the agencies operating the programs may be collected from children enrolled, in the furtherance of particular programs. The appropriate agencies may obtain from time to time the services of department of education personnel, students, and persons in a voluntary or unpaid capacity, exempt from chapter 76, as may be necessary for carrying out the purposes of this section, and may regulate their duties, powers, and responsibilities when not otherwise provided by law. Any person whose services have been so accepted, while engaged in the performance of duty under this section, shall be deemed a state employee or an employee of a political subdivision, as the case may be, in determining the liability of the State or the political subdivision for the negligent acts of these persons.

(b) There is established within the department of education an after-school activities program coordinator position to coordinate the State's after-school and weekend programs; provided that the coordinator shall serve at the pleasure of the superintendent and may be established as a permanent position not subject to chapter 76.

(c) The department shall establish policies to assist in the improvement or development of new after school activities, including but not limited to the following:

SECTION 4. After-school activities task force. (a) There is established an after-school activities task force within the department of education. The after-school activities task force shall consist of the following members appointed by the superintendent of education:

(b) In carrying out its duties under this section, the task force may request staff assistance from the department of education, the department of human services, and other appropriate agencies.

(c) The members of the task force shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for expenses necessary for the performance of their duties.

(d) The task force shall:

(e) The task force shall submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including recommended legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2006, and shall cease to exist on June 30, 2006.

SECTION 5. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $          , or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2005-2006, for an after-school activities program coordinator and the operation of the after-school activities program.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 6. There is appropriated sum of $4,000,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2005-2006, one-half of which shall be appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii and one-half of which shall be appropriated out of the temporary assistance to needy families fund, for nonschool-hour programs for public school students and home school students eleven through fourteen years of age.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 7. There is appropriated sum of $4,000,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2005-2006, one-half of which shall be appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii and one-half of which shall be appropriated out of the temporary assistance to needy families fund, for the office of youth services for nonschool-hour programs for nonschool-hour programs for public school students eleven through fourteen years of age.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of human services for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 8. There is appropriated sum of $4,000,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2005-2006, one-half of which shall be appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii and one-half of which shall be appropriated out of the temporary assistance to needy families fund, for nonschool-hour programs for public school students and home school students eighteen years of age or younger.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of parks and recreation of each county, subject to the following allocation percentages, which are based on the number of children eighteen years of age or younger residing in each county:

for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 9. Moneys allocated for purposes of this Act shall not reduce existing funding for nonschool-hour programs, and shall be awarded by the expending agencies only to nonschool-hour programs that demonstrate a commitment to partnering with the public and private sectors and involve youth as active participants in all phases of program planning, implementation, and evaluation. All programs that receive such moneys shall meet each quarter with their community partners for the purposes of program evaluation and improvement.

SECTION 10. The office of youth services, the department of education, and the counties' parks and recreation departments shall convene annually to share information on the best practices and outcomes. The office of youth services shall submit to the legislature an annual report on the programs funded under this Act no later than twenty days prior to the convening of each regular session, beginning with the regular session of 2006.

SECTION 11. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2005.