SR63

WHEREAS, the key to Hawaii's future success is a strong public schools system that equips our keiki with the knowledge, skills, and experiences necessary to succeed; and

WHEREAS, the public education system in Hawaii is in dire need of increased funding to improve, expand, and establish new programs and facilities; and

WHEREAS, the public education system must address the pending backlog of repair and maintenance projects in elementary, middle, and high schools throughout the State, as well as within the University of Hawaii system; and

WHEREAS, the estimated cost for repair and maintenance of the facilities and infrastructure on the Department of Education backlog was $341,000,000 in 2007, down from $640,000,000 in 2001; and

WHEREAS, the Governor failed to release $110,000,000 in fiscal year 2008 due to concerns about lower tax revenue, which caused the repair and maintenance backlog to increase to approximately $420,000,000; and

WHEREAS, meeting federal mandates for cesspools in schools will cost $49,000,000; and

WHEREAS, rehabilitating the fifty-five existing teacher cottages that are often the only housing in isolated communities with reasonable rent will cost approximately $1,800,000, and helping new teachers with the high cost of housing will cost multiple millions more; and

WHEREAS, providing air conditioning in all public schools will cost $750,000,000, excluding the costs required for increasing the electrical capacity and the costs of increased electrical usage; and

WHEREAS, updating and providing textbooks for every student, providing access to high-end computers, learning tools, and resources, and adequately supporting every child with a caring, concerned, and competent adult mentor should be the minimum expected in every public school; and

WHEREAS, instruments for school bands and orchestras, basic computerized machinery for today's technical jobs in construction, auto mechanics, and electronics for vocational-technical programs such as Project EAST, robotics, and solar cars, and equipment for video production are all presently beyond the budget of most schools and can only be purchased through grants, fundraising, or gifts; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii's public schools are increasingly taking on the responsibility of educating students with language and cultural challenges, economic and knowledge deficiencies, physical and learning disabilities, and students needing special attention and differentiated learning environments; and

WHEREAS, providing expanded educational opportunities such as International Baccalaureate, robotics, schools-within-schools, construction, tourism, and health academies, and other experiential learning initiatives cost more than the traditional classroom learning programs; and

WHEREAS, noncompetitive salaries for educational assistants, school psychologists, business managers, therapists, and pre-school teachers make hiring and retaining highly qualified individuals a constant challenge; and

WHEREAS, old and new demands for more exposure to physical education, fine arts, foreign languages, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics programs, and vocational-technical classes require more time in the school day and more qualified teachers and, increases costs by millions; and

WHEREAS, while Hawaii has both one of the shortest school days and one of the shortest school years, lengthening both to accommodate increased learning and teaching opportunities is not a consideration because of the added costs involved; and

WHEREAS, in 1960, the allocation for education of $43,900,000 made up thirty-nine per cent of the state budget and as late as 1990, the allocation of $905,500,000 was thirty-five per cent of the state budget, although by 2000, the education allocation of $1,525,000,000 shrunk to twenty-four per cent of the budget; and

WHEREAS, in 2005, the Department of Education commissioned a study to determine funding required to support the vision and goals of the State of Hawaii Department of Education and Board of Education; and

WHEREAS, the Adequacy Funding Study indicated that increased funding of seventeen per cent, or $278,000,000, was necessary for schools to achieve adequate standards; and

WHEREAS, the study also recommended the establishment of a commission with subcommittees to examine the different aspects of the adequacy funding implementation proposed, update the adequacy models, oversee the development of alternative model schools, define performance goals for different funding levels, and communicate with various stakeholders; and

WHEREAS, no further action on the recommendations of the Adequacy Funding Study has been undertaken by either the Department of Education or Board of Education; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2008, that the Department of Education is requested to establish a task force on education funding adequacy to re-engineer the functions, organization, and processes of education and to determine and develop funding adequacy; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests that the task force consist of seventeen members, including:

(1) Two members appointed by the Superintendent of Education;

(2) Two members appointed by the President of the Senate;

(3) Two members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;

(4) One member appointed by the Governor;

(5) Three members appointed by the Hawaii Business Roundtable; provided that this body requests that the three members possess and represent experience in the fields of technology, finance, and personnel management or human resources management;

(6) One member appointed by the Hawaii Association of Public Accountants;

(7) One member representing the Hawaii P-20 Council;

(8) One member representing the Hawaii Government Employees Association;

(9) One member representing the Hawaii State Teachers Association; and

(10) Three members representing public school community councils; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests the task force to convene subcommittees to review past audits and program evaluations, review current utilization and adequacy of resources, and review or develop proposals to increase efficiency or productivity of specific funding categories, including but not limited to:

(1) Weighted student formula;

(2) Federal funds;

(3) Programs outside the weighted student formula;

(4) Special education teachers, educational assistants, classroom supplies;

(5) Other centralized special education and student support related programs;

(6) Food services;

(7) Student transportation;

(8) Utilities;

(9) Facilities;

(10) Other centralized expenses (complex areas, the Office of Curriculum, Instruction and Student Support, the Office of Human Resources, and the Office of Information Technology Services); and

(11) Other support to student achievement (complex area, district, state level functions); and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests the task force to direct subcommittees to examine new initiatives supported by the public and the educational constituency, including not limited to:

(1) Second language learners;

(2) Technology;

(3) Learning materials;

(4) Highly-qualified teachers;

(5) Early education;

(6) High-achieving students;

(7) Air conditioning;

(8) Specialized equipment and resources, such as band instruments;

(9) Experiential learning;

(10) Business and community partnerships;

(11) Longer school day;

(12) Longer school year; and

(13) The average, regular education student; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests the task force to prioritize the work of the subcommittees and to establish goals for all subcommittees as they examine the needs, processes, management, efficiencies, and accountability of the funding category; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests the task force to direct the subcommittees to include and obtain input from stakeholders and qualified individuals with knowledge, expertise, and experience in the relevant fields,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests the task force to direct the subcommittees to identify programs that will maximize the potential of each student; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests the task force to consider the findings of the subcommittees and to establish a plan for the annual reduction of the funding inadequacy, including:

(1) Cost estimates for a multi-year implementation period not to exceed six years; and

(2) A cost estimate for perpetual funding to maintain an adequate funding level; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body requests the Department of Education and its task force to submit progress reports to this body not less than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular sessions of 2009 and 2010; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education and its task force are requested to submit a final report of any findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to this body no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2011; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Superintendent of Education, the Chairperson of the Board of Education.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Department of Education Task Force on Education Funding Adequacy

THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	63
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008
STATE OF HAWAII