STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1601

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    H.C.R. No. 92

       H.D. 1

       S.D. 1

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2013

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committees on Education and Ways and Means, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 92, H.D. 1, entitled:

"HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO EXPAND THE MANDARIN CHINESE LANGUAGE CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Department of Education to expand the Mandarin Chinese language curriculum in public high schools.

     Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of Education.

     Your Committees find that the Department of Education's Mandarin Chinese language curriculum is not available at every public high school and that the decision as to whether Mandarin Chinese language courses are offered is made at the school level.

     While your Committees understand the concerns of the Department of Education in expanding the Mandarin Chinese language curriculum by the 2015-2016 school year, as requested, your Committees believe that students statewide should have access to Mandarin Chinese language classes.

     Your Committees have amended this measure by:

     (1)  Removing the request that the Department of Education expand the Mandarin Chinese language curriculum by the 2015-2016 academic school year and clarifying that the Department is requested to make the Mandarin Chinese language curriculum available statewide;

     (2)  Requesting that the Department of Education work with state post-secondary institutions, rather than just the University of Hawaii and the Confucius Institute of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, to expand Mandarin Chinese language offerings; and

     (3)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Education and Ways and Means that are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 92, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend its adoption in the form attached hereto as H.C.R. No. 92, H.D. 1, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Education and Ways and Means,

____________________________ DAVID Y. IGE, Chair

____________________________ JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair