STAND. COM. REP. NO. 621

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 259
                                     H.D. 2




Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

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

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

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to require parents or guardians
of a child to have the child screened for psychological and
physiological development 90 days prior to or following the
child's third birthday.  The bill also makes an appropriation
therefor.

     Testimony in support of the bill was received from the
Hawaii Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Hawaii
Chapter of the American Physical Therapy Association, and the
Hawaii State Teachers Association.  Testimony in support of the
intent of the bill was received from the Department of Health
(DOH), the Department of Education (DOE), the Hawaii Early
Intervention Coordinating Council, and the Center for
Disabilities Studies.

     The Department of Human Services testified that it
understood the intent of the bill and requested that any
additional funding not replace the Executive Budget request.

     The Good Beginnings Alliance testified that while it did not
support requiring statewide assessment of every three year-old
child, it did support the intent of providing information on
child development and increasing the availability of early
childhood community resources prior to a child's entering
kindergarten.

 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 621
                                 Page 2

 

     Your Committee finds that many children do not receive
timely and comprehensive screening, follow-up evaluation, and
indicated referrals and treatment.  Your Committee further finds
that universal access to early childhood screening should be
available to all children by their third birthday, regardless of
a parent or guardian's ability to pay.  Early screening,
identification, and intervention for developmental delays and
psychosocial problems can help to improve children's outcomes and
influence school success and family function.  

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended the bill by:

     (1)  Deleting language in the findings section that could
          have been interpreted as implying that parents are
          uncaring or irresponsible and replacing it with more
          "family-friendly" language;

     (2)  Providing that the purpose of this Act is to provide
          universal access to early childhood screening before a
          child reaches the age of three;

     (3)  Deleting language that required early childhood
          screenings for children within ninety days prior to or
          following their third birthday and replacing it with
          language that requires screening between a child's
          second and third birthdays;

     (4)  Providing that children will be screened for
          psychological and cognitive, language, motor, and
          behavioral or social-emotional development;

     (5)  Providing that screening and certification of screening
          may be provided by, in order of preference, the child's
          pediatrician, any primary health care provider, DOH, or
          DOE;

     (6)  Providing that the University of Hawaii (UH) will
          assist in the planning and development of a
          standardized screening instrument and referral
          protocol;

     (7)  Providing that DOH, DOE, the Department of Human
          Services, and UH, in conjunction with the American
          Academy of Pediatrics, shall also plan and develop
          access to screening, means to certify if a child has
          been screened, and a plan that includes benchmarking
          and time limits to achieve universal screening; and


 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 621
                                 Page 3

 
     (7)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for
          purposes of style and clarity.

     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.
259, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be
referred to the Committee on Finance, in the form attached hereto
as H.B. No. 259, H.D. 2.

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



                                   ______________________________
                                   KEN ITO, Chair