STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2665

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 3155

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Higher Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 3155 entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Amend the number of University of Hawaii Board of Regents member terms that expire each year from three to two; and

(2) Adjust the terms of the Board of Regents members appointed between 2022-2026 to realign the number of terms scheduled to expire each year.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the University of Hawaii Board of Regents.

Your Committee finds that Act 172, Session Laws of Hawaii 2019, reduced the number of members of the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii from fifteen to eleven, making the number of members whose terms will expire in the coming years not evenly distributed and may result in sudden losses of institutional knowledge. To prevent dramatic shifts in the composition of the Board of Regents, a realignment of terms of members appointed by the Governor is necessary to ensure that a large number of terms do not expire each year. As the Board of Regents guide policy and major decisions for the University of Hawai‘i System, the composition of the Board of Regents is a matter of statewide concern under article X, section 6 of the Hawaii State Constitution. To address the issues surrounding regent terms and to prevent significant loss of knowledge, this measure addresses the Board of Regents member numbers, composition, selection, and term limits.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Reducing the number of regents from eleven to nine;

(2) Amending the composition of the Board of Regents to require one member from each county, totaling four members;

(3) Amending the composition of the Board of Regents to require five at-large members to be selected as follows:

(A) Two members selected from a list of three names submitted to the governor by the President of the Senate;

(B) Two members selected from a list of three names submitted to the governor by the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and

(C) One member selected by the Governor;

(4) Adjusting the terms of the Board of Regents members appointed between 2022-2026 to reflect the new total of regents;

(5) Amending section 1 to reflect its amended purpose; and

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

Your Committee notes that the amendments made to this measure that change the composition and selection process of the Board of Regents is contingent upon the ratification of a constitutional amendment repealing the Candidate Advisory Council of the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii.

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. 3155, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3155, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

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

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DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair