STAND. COM. REP. NO. 503-18

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2018

RE: H.B. No. 1639

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Higher Education, to which was referred H.B. No. 1639 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to support the relocation of the University of Hawaii Maui College culinary arts program to Lahaina.

The University of Hawaii supported the measure with amendments.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Supporting the expansion, instead of relocation, of the University of Hawaii Maui College culinary arts program to Lahaina; and

(2) Changing its effective date to July 1, 2112, to encourage further discussion.

Expanding the University of Hawaii Maui College culinary arts program to Lahaina, which boasts a thriving and vibrant dining landscape, would be a natural fit, exploiting the synergy between an award-winning culinary education program and the numerous hotels and restaurants in Lahaina and creating greater opportunities for public-private partnerships.

At the same time, your Committee notes that millions of dollars have been spent to construct and equip the existing Culinary Academy facilities at the University of Hawaii Maui College. In addition, Kahului is a major population center on Maui, and it would be burdensome for students who do not live in West Maui to need to travel to Lahaina to pursue a culinary education.

Should your Committee on Finance choose to deliberate further on this measure, your Committee respectfully requests that the sum of $400,000 be appropriated for the planning and design of a 41,000-square-foot culinary education facility in Lahaina for the immediate and future growth of the program there.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Higher Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1639, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1639, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Higher Education,

____________________________

ANGUS L.K. McKELVEY, Chair