Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 236 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to address problems such as teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases through medically accurate sex education courses and information instructed and distributed by informational agencies that receive state funding.

The Department of Education, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, District VIII, Hawaii Section, Planned Parenthood of Hawaii, Sestak Rehabilitation Services, and several concerned individuals supported this bill.

Your Committee finds that ignorance of the repercussions of sexual conduct can have detrimental effects upon our society in a multitude of ways. Teen pregnancy is a very real concern in our schools as teen mothers drop out of high school or do not pursue higher education because of the early onset of adult responsibilities. Sexually transmitted diseases burden our already strained healthcare system with maladies that range from minor irritant infections that are easily treated if detected early enough to the deadly threat of AIDS. Your Committee believes education as the key to battling these issues and protecting the people of Hawaii with a shield of knowledge against these hazards and avoiding an out-of-control downward spiral.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 236 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Finance.