STAND. COM. REP. NO. 719

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 76

       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. 76, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOL FACILITIES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to require the Department of Education to develop a plan to provide temperature control systems that incorporate energy conservation initiatives, and other energy saving measures, in all public school facilities.

     Comments in support of this measure was submitted by the Department of Education.  Sopogy, Inc. submitted comments on this measure.

     Your Committee finds that although Hawaii's tropical climate is ideal for outdoor recreational activities, it is not necessarily conducive to learning for public school students.  Many of Hawaii's public schools are not equipped with air conditioning or other temperature reduction measures, which can make the classroom environments uncomfortable and even unbearable for students and teachers alike.  Your Committee is committed to providing public school students with comfortable learning environments.  Your Committee believes that creative and innovative methods for establishing suitable classroom environments for students may be utilized, including the use of alternative energy resources, incentives for energy consumption or cost reduction, alternative materials for buildings, and other energy efficient measures. 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1) Changing the appropriation in section 3 to an unspecified amount to facilitate further discussion; and

     (2) Making technical non-substantive amendments 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. 76, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 76, S.D. 2.

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

____________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair