STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2405

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2928

S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Education and Higher Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2928, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Establish a working group to study and prepare an implementation plan for agricultural career pathways and report to the Legislature; and

(2) Appropriate funds for the working group.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Education, University of Hawai‘i System, and Hawai‘i Farm Bureau.

Your Committees find that the State's future depends on further development of the agricultural sector for its security, economic development, and sustainability. A qualified workforce to support agriculture, food innovation, natural resources, and related employment is necessary to advance the State's goals.

Your Committees further find that career pathways map out the education, training, and experiences necessary to prepare young people for employment and career success. Your Committees additionally find that there is a critical need for an implementation plan for career pathways for the agricultural sector that prepares more of the State's young people to be Hawaii's future agricultural workforce, which includes scientists, inspectors, food producers, field technicians, natural resource managers, entrepreneurs, and of course, farmers.

Accordingly, your Committees find that this measure will promote the State's agricultural goals by convening a working group to study and develop agricultural career pathways for students.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Placing the working group within the Department of Education for administrative and fiscal purposes;

(2) Providing that the Department of Education shall select members for the working group in consultation with the University of Hawaii;

(3) Amending the appropriation to be directed to the Department of Education; and

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

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Education and Higher Education that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2928, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2928, S.D. 2, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Education and Higher Education,

________________________________ DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair

________________________________ MICHELLE N. KIDANI, Chair