STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2442

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2800

       S.D. 1

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2012

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Human Services and Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2800 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EXEMPTIONS FROM CHILD CARE LICENSING,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to add exemptions from child care licensing by the Department of Human Services for any kindergarten, school, or child care program licensed by the Charter School Review Panel, the Hawaii Council of Private Schools, or any federal agency and for child care programs conducted by counties.

     Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Human Services and the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools.  Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Hawaii Association for the Education of Young Children.

     Your Committees find that as kindergartens, schools, and child care programs are already licensed by the Charter School Review Panel, the Hawaii Council of Private Schools, and federal agencies that administer them, there is no justification for the Department of Human Services to also license these kindergartens, schools, and child care programs.

     Your Committees also note the Hawaii Association for the Education of Young Children's opposition to the measure in its current form to the extent that it includes licensing exemptions for child care programs conducted by counties for children from birth through age five who receive child care subsidies.

     Your Committees therefore request the Department of Human Services to confer with the Hawaii Association for the Education of Young Children to address and make recommendations to allay the concerns regarding children who receive child care subsidies.  Your Committees also request the Department to work with the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools to ensure that the program the Association develops meets the Department's licensing standards and that the Association has the capacity to take over the Department's responsibilities of child care licensing.

     Your Committees note that according to the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools' testimony, should the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools and the Hawaii Council of Private Schools become responsible for licensing child care programs, the existing elementary and secondary licensing program would require some modification to reflect the rigorous standards expected for schools with responsibility for young children.

     Your Committees have therefore amended this measure by extending the effective date to July 1, 2013, to ensure sufficient time to develop and implement a comprehensive private school child care licensing program.

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Human Services and Education that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2800, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2800, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Human Services and Education,

____________________________ JILL TOKUDA, Chair

____________________________ SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair