STAND. COM. REP. NO. 183

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 863

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 863 entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require the Department of Education to:

(1) Conduct an electrical assessment on all public and charter schools in the State to determine whether their electrical capacity will allow for the installation of air conditioning units and other air purifying devices and note the level of need in each classroom; and

(2) Submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than December 31, 2021.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii State Teachers Association and one individual. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Education and State Public Charter School Commission.

Your Committee finds that many Hawaii schools face extreme heat in their classrooms. Your Committee further finds that research demonstrates that the longer and more consistently students are exposed to classroom cooling, the better and more stable their performance gains tend to be. Conversely, students exposed to thermal conditioning for only short or intermittent periods of time achieved less than their peers. Further, proper cooling systems lead to better attitudes toward learning, fewer disciplinary problems, and sustained achievement. This measure is a step towards ensuring that classrooms are of suitable temperatures for successful student learning.

Your Committee has amended this measure by clarifying that the Department of Education shall only be required to complete the electrical assessment on all public and conversion charter schools.

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. 863, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 863, 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