STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1488

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 622

H.D. 1

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.B. No. 622, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to change the due date of the Department of Education's computer science legislative report from June 30 to twenty days prior to the convening of each legislative Regular Session.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Education.

Your Committee finds that computer science education can help public school students become digitally literate for the twenty‑first century world. Presently, the Department of Education is required to submit its annual computer science legislative report annually on June 30. However, as the existing submission deadline is close to the end of the school year, the Department of Education does not have adequate time to prepare data collected during the last school quarter. Therefore, this measure ensures accurate reporting of computer science curriculum statewide while streamlining operations for efficiency.

Your Committee notes that S.B. No. 1390, S.D. 1 (Regular Session of 2025), which was previously heard by your Committee, is a substantially similar measure that changes the due date for the Department of Education to submit its annual computer science legislative report from June 30 to October 31. According to testimony at your Committee's public hearing on this measure, the Department of Education confirmed that the existing June 30 due date does not allow the Department to fully incorporate data collected in the last quarter of the preceding school year. Your Committee concludes that the language in S.B. 1390, S.D. 1, is preferable because changing the due date from June 30 to October 31 provides the Department of Education with adequate time to compile data from the last academic quarter and the overall preceding school year, which would allow the Department to meet its statutory reporting duty and provide to the Legislature a comprehensive report on computer science education statewide.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Deleting its contents and inserting the contents of S.B. 1390, S.D. 1, a substantially similar measure, which changes the due date of the Department of Education's annual computer science legislative report from June 30 to October 31, and is effective upon its approval; and

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

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 H.B. No. 622, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 622, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

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

________________________________

MICHELLE N. KIDANI, Chair