STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1494

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 831

       H.D. 2

       S.D. 2

 

 

 

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B. No. 831, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to clarify the laws relating to public charter school closures.

 

Specifically, the measure:

 

(1)  Specifies that financial insolvency is deemed a surrender of the charter school's charter;

 

(2)  Requires the charter school authorizer to develop a public charter school closure protocol for financially insolvent charter schools; and

 

(3)  Requires the authorizer to determine whether health and safety issues require the charter school's closure.

 

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the State Public Charter School Commission and the Hawaii State Teachers Association.

 

     Your Committee finds that this measure was developed by the State Public Charter School Commission and addresses current educational needs by ensuring that students and teachers are provided a learning environment that is free from the stress of financial issues.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by adopting the amendments proposed by the State Public Charter School Commission, which:

 

(1)  Streamline the new language pertaining to closure protocols to avoid misinterpretations that the authorizer has unilateral discretion when deciding upon the closure of insolvent schools; and

 

(2)  Delete the new language on school closure and closure protocols based upon health and safety issues, which are redundant of section 302D-17(e) and other provisions of chapter 302D, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 831, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 831, H.D. 2, S.D. 2.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

 

 

 

________________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair