STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2581

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2839

       S.D. 2

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 2839, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO FINANCIAL EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to establish the public financial education and asset building task force to develop policy recommendations related to achieving financial goals for Hawaii families and to make an appropriation for task force operations.

     More specifically, the task force is directed to examine how asset based policies might be coupled with income based policies as a way for lower-income families to achieve greater financial independence and well-being.  The task force is required to submit its recommendations prior to the 2010 legislative session.

     Testimony in support of the measure was received from the Department of Education, the Hawaii Alliance for Community-Based Economic Development, Aloha United Way, and the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii.  The Department of Human Services and the Department of Budget and Finance submitted comments.

     Your Committee has amended the measure to remove the provision to hire and pay a public financial education coordinator to implement the task force standards, given that the task force recommendations are not due to the Legislature until 2010.

     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. 2839, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2839, S.D. 2.

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

____________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair