STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2196

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2381

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2381 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO SCHOOL CLOSURES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to allow school principals to close the school due to natural disaster without needing to consult the complex area superintendent if conditions are deemed unsafe for students and faculty.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii State Teachers Association and three individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of Education.

Your Committee finds that each school's ability to cope with natural disasters and emergencies is unique, and that a quick and timely school closure could be the difference between a safe and unsafe evacuation for student and faculty. By authorizing school principals to close schools due to natural disasters without requiring additional procedures prior to closing the school, a school principal can make this decision in a timely fashion to ensure the safety and well-being of students and faculty.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying that a school principal may close the school due to natural disaster without needing to consult the complex area superintendent in the case of an emergency; and

(2) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2381, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2381, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

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MICHELLE N. KIDANI, Chair