STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3349

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 3037

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 3037 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CHARTER SCHOOLS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to clarify requirements, eliminate redundancies, and improve processes relating to the governance of public charter schools.

More specifically, this measure:

(1) Amends and consolidates the content required to be included in the State Public Charter School Commission's annual report to the Board of Education and the Legislature;

(2) Streamlines the charter school application process by repealing the requirement that the Commission review charter applications for completeness and notify an applicant's governing board that an application is complete;

(3) Amends certain academic and financial indicators and measures contained in the framework upon which the performance provisions of a charter contract are based; and

(4) Amends the annual financial audit process by allowing charter schools to select an independent auditor from a list of approved independent auditors provided by the Commission, rather than from a list of three independent auditors pre-selected by the Commission.

Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the State Public Charter School Commission and one individual.

Your Committee finds that the housekeeping amendments contained in this measure will facilitate the efficient operation of the State's public charter school system.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2050, to facilitate further discussion on the measure; and

(2) Making technical nonsubstantive changes for purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

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 is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 3037, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3037, S.D. 1.

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

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DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair