HB1547 HD1

SECTION 1. The spirit of internationalism has been the foundation for a myriad of activities in business, government, education, and culture, as well as personal ties between our citizens and those from many other nations, especially the Pacific-Asian region.

Establishing an office of international affairs will strengthen these ties and the cooperative relationships between the State and countries throughout the world. An office of international affairs will coordinate the international activities of the various state agencies to maximize the use of resources and avoid duplication of efforts. The office will coordinate and focus the State's international efforts, heighten public awareness of the importance of Hawaii's role in the world market, and propose new programs to achieve our international goals.

The new global economy demands that we establish Hawaii as a community of lifelong learners, where children build a strong foundation in internationalism during the K-12 years, and where flexible, responsive, and continuing education and training are available to meet the challenges of the global economy and are available to all of Hawaii's adults.

However, little effort has been made to bring resources, plans, and programs together and in line with any form of a larger vision for Hawaii, within the context of a rapidly globalizing world. Globalization refers to the increasing integration of economies and societies around the world, enabled by human innovation and technological progress. It has set in motion the means by which goods, services, ideas, and capital can flow relatively freely across national borders. It has not only enabled new types of activity, but it has also empowered individuals and small businesses to undertake economic activity that previously was reserved for large multinational firms. While it has increased a whole range of opportunities for those with minimum means, ability, and willingness to participate in this new global economy, it has also created major challenges. For young people graduating from high school or college, this means that they now have to compete for jobs globally.

The legislature recognizes that to advance global competitiveness through education, there needs to be coordination among the State, counties, educational institutions, and private agencies on international affairs, as well as a central point of accountability and a leveraging of resources.

Section 201-17, Hawaii Revised Statutes, established the office of international affairs to carry out various international responsibilities and duties, but left out education and training as a means to prepare Hawaii for a globalized world. It also did not specify that the office of international affairs would be the coordinator on international matters for the State. And finally, it did not provide funding for the office to carry out its broad mandate. This Act remedies those problems.

Besides citizen ambassadors of goodwill, the governor and legislators are often called upon to represent the State in receiving diplomats and foreign dignitaries. Diplomacy and the ability of lawmakers to properly receive foreign dignitaries help to develop international relations with other countries. A protocol fund is necessary to help legislators properly receive diplomats and foreign dignitaries in developing better relations with other countries.

There are a number of factors, including our location, multicultural and ethnic population, and an environment conducive to discussion and negotiation, that support Hawaii as a center for international conferences. In addition, Hawaii is currently facing a transportation crisis and is in dire need of exploring transportation options and learning from other countries the best practices in this field. An international symposium on freeways and tollways will bring together freeway and tollway operators, transportation practitioners and researchers specializing in freeway, HOV, and tollway operations. The objectives of the symposium are to:

(1) Research the practice of freeway and tollway operations;

(2) Discuss the status of public-private partnerships in freeway development;

(3) Identify innovative strategies and techniques to improve the proactive management and control of traffic on highways and freeways; and

(4) Explore the potential benefits of using managed lanes, tolling or road pricing technologies, and other strategies to improve traffic operations on congested freeways.

Therefore, Hawaii will benefit by helping to bring the Second International Symposium on Freeways and Highways to Hawaii in 2009 to allow legislators and transportation managers to develop innovative transportation solutions.

The purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Expand the duties of the office of international affairs to play a critical and needed role in fostering, coordinating, and creating international programs and policies to improve and enhance the State's role in international affairs;

(2) Expand the role of the office of international affairs to include the facilitation, coordination, and promotion of educational relationships and exchanges with other countries through collaboration with and funding of existing international programs and organizations;

(3) Clarify the office's position as the central point of accountability in international affairs;

(4) Establish a legislative protocol fund; and

(5) Bring the Second International Symposium on Freeways and Tollways to Hawaii in 2009.

SECTION 2. Chapter 21, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§21- Legislative protocol fund; international affairs. (a) There is established a legislative protocol fund to be administered by the legislature.

(b) Appropriations made by the legislature shall be deposited into the fund.

(c) The fund shall be used to entertain and provide gifts to visiting international dignitaries and government officials."

SECTION 3. Section 201-17, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§201-17[]] Office of international affairs; established. (a) There is established, within the department of business, economic development, and tourism, an office of international affairs.

(b) The office shall:

(1) Develop policies that promote and strengthen relations with other countries in the areas of international business, economy, culture, education, and the arts;

(2) Develop policies that promote transportation between, and tourism with, other countries;

(3) Develop and promote international telecommunications and high technology exchanges;

(4) Encourage the development of international sister-city programs, pairing Hawaii cities with cities around the globe for artistic, cultural, economic, educational, and faith-based exchanges;

(5) Develop and promote Hawaii as the economic, trade, commerce, transportation, banking, [~~and~~] tourism, regional headquarters, and international conferences hub of the [~~Pacific;~~] Asia-Pacific region;

(6) Develop an international affairs and peace education curriculum that includes studies of international affairs and peace initiatives and takes a proactive, strategic approach to the development of policies that promote the prevention of national and international conflict, nonviolent intervention, mediation, peaceful resolution of conflict, and structured mediation of conflict; [~~and~~]

(7) Provide for exchanges of individuals between Hawaii and other nations to develop international and peace-based initiatives[.];

(8) Be the State's central point of contact and accountability in international affairs and serve as the State's advocate for a global orientation;

(9) Inventory existing international programs and develop a web-based information portal to make this information available to the public;

(10) Encourage the attraction of international conferences to be held in Hawaii;

(11) Encourage the development of international programming and content on local radio shows and a dedicated public access channel for international programs and issues;

(12) Facilitate an international educational links program by increasing collaboration and coordination of international, educational, business, and community organizations and providing funding for activities that shall include but not be limited to:

(A) School excursions from Asia to Hawaii schools, targeting middle and high-school students from Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Philippines, and China with special focus on Hawaii's sister-states, using the department of business, economic development, and tourism and its overseas offices to market school excursions to Hawaii and match these overseas school visits with Hawaii schools;

(B) Study abroad programs, targeting middle and high-school students from Hawaii's schools, using the department's overseas offices and focusing on Hawaii's sister-states that match Hawaii schools with overseas schools for school-to-school visits and hosting. The office shall fund, and encourage funding sources both public and private to help finance the studies abroad; and

(C) Teacher exchange programs through which teachers from Hawaii and abroad exchange a period of time in teaching. The office shall fund and encourage funding sources both public and private to help finance teaching abroad;

and

(13) Facilitate an international leaders program by facilitating the collaboration and coordination of international, educational, business, and community organizations and funding activities that shall include but not be limited to:

(A) International conferences for high-school students involving international organizations such as the East West Center and the Pacific Asian Affairs Council;

(B) Adopt-a-school programs partnering international companies and organizations schools for cultural and educational enrichment; and

[(c) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, if any of the responsibilities or duties of the office of international affairs under this section overlap with the responsibilities or duties of another agency or authority under this chapter, the office of international affairs shall have exclusive jurisdiction and authority over those responsibilities and duties.]"

SECTION 4. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $531,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008 and the sum of $518,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary fiscal year 2008-2009 for the hiring of an executive director and administrative assistant for the office of international affairs and for operating and program expenses.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of business, economic development, and tourism for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 5. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $50,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008 to bring the Second International Symposium on Freeway and Tollway Operations to Hawaii in 2009 and to begin preliminary planning for the 2009 conference.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the University of Hawaii at Manoa, college of engineering, for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 6. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 7. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2007.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	1547
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII