STAND. COM. REP. NO. 145

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 315

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Higher Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 315 entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate funds to increase the graduate assistant stipend at the University of Hawaii.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the University of Hawai‘i System, Graduate Student Organization of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, Academic Labor United, and numerous individuals.

Your Committee finds that graduate assistants at the University of Hawaii provide academic and program support to academic, administrative, and service units of the university through teaching, research, administrative, and other duties. Graduate assistantships serve as a mechanism to recruit top graduate students to the university, providing graduate students with stipends to cover basic costs. Therefore, increasing the minimum stipend levels for graduate students at the University of Hawaii will positively impact recruitment and retention of graduate students, resulting in greater support for the research mission of the university.

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 S.B. No. 315 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

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DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair