STAND. COM. REP. NO. 963

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1131

       S.D. 2

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 1131, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to enhance the Department of Education's ability to utilize technology to streamline its processes, provide data necessary to support students, and increase accountability and transparency within the Department of Education.

     Specifically, this measure appropriates funds to support the Office of Information Technology Services for the continued implementation of student information systems, student support systems, additional program requirements, and infrastructure enhancement for fiscal years 2007-2008 and 2008-2009.  This measure also creates a fee for service pilot program to provide assistance to schools based on a schedule of deliverables on hourly rates that shall be funded and staffed with an unspecified percentage of the $4,221,956 appropriated for fiscal year 2007-2008 under section 1 of the measure.

     Your Committee received comments in support of this measure from the Department of Education.

     Your Committee believes that the amounts appropriated in this measure will enable the Department of Education to support an integrated comprehensive student support system, to implement and enhance the centralized student information system, a financial management system, and the associated network support services.

     Your Committee has amended this measure to reflect the correct name of the Office of Information Technology Services by inserting the word "information" on page 1, line 17 of the measure.  Further, the amounts appropriated were changed to unspecified amounts to facilitate further discussion.  Your Committee has also made a technical nonsubstantive amendment for the purposes of clarity and style.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1131, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1131, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

____________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair