CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 100-16

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2016

RE:    H.B. No. 2205

       H.D. 1

       S.D. 2

       C.D. 1

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the House of Representatives to the amendments proposed by the Senate in H.B. No. 2205, H.D. 1, S.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CHARTER SCHOOLS,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to refine the governance of charter schools.

Specifically, this measure:

     (1)  Prohibits charter school authorizers from providing technical support to prospective charter school applicants or their governing boards when that technical support will impact a decision to approve or deny a charter application;

     (2)  Establishes meeting minutes requirements for charter schools and their governing boards;

     (3)  Provides nonprofit organizations acting in the role of a conversion charter school governing board with the same protections afforded to all other governing boards;

     (4)  Authorizes charter schools to assess and collect special fees and charges from students for co-curricular activities; and

     (5)  Allows a conversion charter school to establish its own enrollment procedures and apply certain enrollment preferences.

     Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive amendments.

     Your Committee on Conference finds that the Legislature did not intend the charter school law to include provisions for a contested case hearing between a charter school and its authorizer when Act 130 was enacted in 2012.  The State Public Charter School Commission, as an authorizer of charter schools, is expected to oversee and regulate charter schools to ensure that they are providing a high-quality education and that they are being responsibly managed.  For that reason, the Commission should have the authority to revoke or choose not to renew contracts with charter schools that fail to meet the State's expectations on how public funds are spent.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2205, H.D. 1, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2205, H.D. 1, S.D. 2, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

____________________________ MICHELLE N. KIDANI, Chair	____________________________ ROY M. TAKUMI, Co-Chair
____________________________ DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Co-Chair	____________________________ KARL RHOADS, Co-Chair
	____________________________ AARON LING JOHANSON, Co-Chair