CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 23-16

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2016

RE:    S.B. No. 2476

       S.D. 2

       H.D. 2

       C.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 2476, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH,"

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 of this measure is to:

     (1)  Enhance early language services for children from birth to age five years who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind within the Department of Health to support age-appropriate language development; and

     (2)  Establish a working group for the purposes of investigating issues related to resources and tools for parents of children who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind and improvements to the statewide system of services that support age-appropriate language development for children from birth to age five who are deaf, hard of hearing or deaf-blind.

     Your Committee on Conference finds that early language acquisition is a key component in a child's social and educational development.  Most children who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind do not develop language in the same way that hearing children do, because most have had hearing parents who do not know how to communicate with a child who does not hear.  Children who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind often begin kindergarten without the necessary language skills to acquire the knowledge and academic competencies that will allow them to be successful in school and life, therefore it is imperative that a child who is deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind develop language, in some form, as soon as possible.

     Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by changing the effective date to July 1, 2016.

     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 S.B. No. 2476, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2476, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

____________________________ DELLA AU BELATTI, Co-Chair	____________________________ ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair
____________________________ ROY M. TAKUMI, Co-Chair	____________________________ MICHELLE N. KIDANI, Co-Chair
____________________________ AARON LING JOHANSON, Co-Chair	____________________________ DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Co-Chair