STAND. COM. REP. NO. 337

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 533
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Education and Technology, to which was
referred S.B. No. 533 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EARLY CHILDHOOD ASSESSMENTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to assure that all children
are safe, healthy, and ready to succeed in school by requiring
parents and guardians to take their three-year-old children to
the nearest public elementary school to assess whether their
psychological and physiological development to date has been
satisfactory.

     Testimony in support of the intent of this measure was
submitted by the Department of Education, the Department of
Health, the Hawaii State Teachers Association, the Good
Beginnings Alliance, the Christian Science Committee on
Publication in Hawaii, the Hawaii Chapter of the American
Physical Therapy Association, the Hawaii Early Intervention
Coordinating Council, the Hawaii Association for the Education of
Young Children, and a concerned citizen.  The Hawaii Congress of
Parents, Teachers, and Students and the American Academy of
Pediatrics submitted testimony in opposition to this measure.

     Your Committee finds that similar to social policy mandating
car seats for children under four or requiring immunizations as a
prerequisite for entry to school, this measure protects the
welfare of children by ensuring the early detection of mental and
physical health problems and improving child outcomes.

 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 337
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     Your Committee believes that the responsibility for
screening and assessment should be placed on parents, and not on
executive agencies.  Therefore, your Committee has amended this
measure by deleting its substance and replacing its contents with
a measure that would:

     (1)  Require parents or guardians of a child to have their
          child screened for psychological or physiological
          development ninety days prior to or following the
          child's third birthday;

     (2)  Require certification screening by the Departments of
          Health, Education, and Human Services; the child's
          pediatrician; or primary health care provider;

     (3)  Require the departments, physicians, or providers
          conducting the screening to adhere to certain
          requirements to be developed before July 1, 2000;

     (4)  Charge the Departments of Health, Education, and Human
          Services, in conjunction with the American Academy of
          Pediatrics, to plan and develop standardized screening
          and a referral protocol; and

     (5)  Appropriate a blank amount for the Department of Health
          to develop the standardized screening and referral
          protocol, effective July 1, 1999.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Education and Technology that is attached to this
report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose
of S.B. No. 533, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass
Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 533,
S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

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



                                   ______________________________
                                   DAVID Y. IGE, Chair

 
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