THE SENATE

S.C.R. NO.

203

THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

urging the board of education to form a special committee or permitted interaction group to monitor and account for how the department of education is spending its federal relIef funds.

 

 


     WHEREAS, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, Public Law 116-136, created the Education Stabilization Fund to provide emergency funding for education systems, and within that fund is the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund, which awards moneys to states based on their relative share of Elementary and Secondary Act (ESEA) grants for fiscal year 2019; and

 

     WHEREAS, allowable uses for ESSER funds include the coordination of preparedness and response efforts with state and local public health departments; providing principals with resources necessary to address needs of individual schools; address needs of low-income children, children with disabilities, English learners, racial and ethnic minorities and students experiencing homelessness and foster care youth; including how outreach and service delivery will meet the needs of each population; purchasing educational technology for students, including low-income students and students with disabilities; providing mental health services and support; planning and implementing activities related to summer learning and supplemental after-school programs, including online instruction; and the maintenance of continuity of services and the continued employment of existing staff; and

 

     WHEREAS, in May 2020, the Department of Education applied for Hawaii's share of relief funds from the United States Department of Education and received $43,385,229; and

 

     WHEREAS, on December 21, 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act, Public Law 116-260, 2021, which authorized $900,000,000,000 in stimulus relief through various programs and a $1,400,000,000,000 omnibus spending; and

 

     WHEREAS, states that received certain federal funds, including moneys from the ESSER Fund established by the CARES ACT and the CRRSA Act, are required to assure that they will maintain support for education programs; and

 

     WHEREAS, on January 5, 2021, the Department of Education received notification from the United States Department of Education that the allocation of ESSER II funds is $183,595,211, which are available for expenditure through September 30, 2023; and

 

     WHEREAS, expanded allowable uses for ESSER II funds include addressing learning loss; preparing schools for reopening; and testing, repairing, and upgrading projects to improve air quality in school buildings; and

 

     WHEREAS, under the CRRSA Act, any state that receives ESSER II funds "shall to the greatest extent practicable, continue to pay its employees and contractors during the period of any disruptions or closures related to the coronavirus" and "shall provide assurances that such State will maintain support for elementary and secondary education ... in fiscal year 2022 at least at the proportional levels of such State's support for elementary and secondary education ... relative to such State's overall spending, averaged over fiscal years 2017, 2018, and 2019"; and

 

     WHEREAS, on February 18, 2021, the Department of Education recommended that these limited federal funds be used in Fiscal Year 2020-21 and 2021-22 for:

 

     (1)  Public charter schools' pro-rata share of the award ($9,000,000);

 

     (2)  Current fiscal year 2020-21 shortfalls ($79,400,000);

 


     (3)  Off-setting a portion of the $41,100,000 Program Review Reduction for Fiscal Year 2021-2022 to restore cuts to the general fund budget that remain assigned at the program level ($82,100,000);

 

     (4)  Learning loss mitigation strategies ($65,700,000); and

 

     (5)  Health and safety measures ($15,00,000); and

 

     WHEREAS, there are ongoing concerns with how the Department of Education has been utilizing these ESSER funds, and there have been disagreements between the Board of Education and Department of Education on how ESSER II funds should be spent; and

 

     WHEREAS, although the Department of Education has reported its use of ESSER I funds on a monthly basis, there has been a lack of transparency and accountability in how the Department of Education and their schools have utilized their funds to service students; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2021, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Board of Education is urged to form a special committee or permitted interaction group to monitor and account for how the Department of Education is spending its federal relief funds; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the special committee or permitted interaction group should meet twice a month to ensure that the Board of Education and the public can receive timely updates on the Department of Education expenditures of funds until all federal funds are expended; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the special committee or permitted interaction group is requested to submit a preliminary report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of Regular Session of 2022, and a final report no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2024; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Education and the Superintendent of Education.

 

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

 

 

Report Title: 

Department of Education; ESSER Funds; CARES Act; Special Committee; Permitted Interaction Group