STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3431

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.C.R. No. 154

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 154, S.D. 1, entitled:

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING A STUDY ON THE PER-PUPIL FUNDING SYSTEM FOR PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE SYSTEM FULFILLS ITS STATUTORY PURPOSE OF EQUALIZING OPERATIONAL FUNDING AMONG PUBLIC SCHOOLS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Legislative Reference Bureau to conduct a study on the per-pupil funding system to determine whether the system fulfills its statutory purpose of equalizing operational funding among public schools.

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Hawaii State Public Charter School Commission and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.

     Your Committee received written comments on this measure from the Legislative Reference Bureau.

     Your Committee finds that section 302D-28, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires that the non-facility general fund per-pupil funding for public charter school students be the same as the general fund per-pupil amount provided to the Department of Education in the most recently approved executive budget.  Your Committee further finds that disagreements have arisen as to whether this funding system equalizes public charter school funding as intended.  Accordingly your Committee believes that further study to examine whether funding parity exists between public charter school students and Department of Education students will be beneficial.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 154, S.D. 1, and recommends its adoption.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

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JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair