STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2262

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2880

       S.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2880 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to provide necessary funding for increased information accessibility for the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board.

     Testimony in support of the measure was submitted by the Department of Education, the University of Hawai‘i System, the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board, and the Hawaii Educational Policy Center.

     Your Committee finds that the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board is responsible for licensing and regulating teachers and approving teacher preparation programs in the State.  Your Committee further finds that the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board has been working toward improving the quality and quantity of data accessible to parties in order to increase teacher quality.  An electronic licensing system that is capable of interfacing with public and private educational institutions in Hawaii, as well as with the Department of Education, is being developed; however, funding is required to support the free interchange of information among participating organizations.  This measure provides funding to support data and information management efforts of the Board.  Your Committee determines that this funding will improve the operations of the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board and, ultimately, the teacher workforce in the State.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Clarifying the purpose of the measure is to authorize the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board to coordinate the creation of a data interface network, as provided in the measure; and

     (2)  Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for purposes of clarity and style.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2880, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2880, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Education,

____________________________

NORMAN SAKAMOTO, Chair