THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	137
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE RESOLUTION

requesting the department of business, economic development, and tourism to study the feasibility of a state lottery to fund hawaii's public education.

WHEREAS, compared to other states, Hawaii is unique because the State, rather than a county or local level jurisdiction, is responsible for public education; and

WHEREAS, as a result, funding for public education in Hawaii is primarily sourced from the general fund of the State; and

WHEREAS, public education in Hawaii is not adequately funded, as Hawaii's education expenditures rank lowest in the nation; and

WHEREAS, lagging state education expenditures drive Hawaii families to compete for private school enrollment, leaving Hawaii with one of the highest rates of private school enrollment in the nation; and

WHEREAS, continuous underfunding of public schools undermines the State's goal of providing a quality education to all of Hawaii's children; and

WHEREAS, it is necessary to develop a new means of funding Hawaii's public education system to ensure that the State will be able to prepare children to meet the social and economic demands of the twenty-first century; and

WHEREAS, for forty-four states, state lotteries represent a small, but valuable source of revenue; and

WHEREAS, on average, about one percent of state revenue comes from lotteries; and

WHEREAS, nationally, in fiscal year 2015, state lotteries generated $66,800,000,000 in gross revenue; and

WHEREAS, after costs for prizes, administration, and advertising, states were still left with net lottery proceeds of $21,400,000,000; and

WHEREAS, funding public education is an important goal and a shared responsibility that can be achieved through creative solutions to provide sufficient revenues to fund quality education in the State; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2018, that the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism is requested to study the feasibility of a state lottery to fund Hawaii's public education; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2019; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Chair of the Board of Education; and Superintendent of Education.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

State Lottery; Education; Funding; Feasibility Study