137             
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES             H.R. NO.              
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                     HOUSE  RESOLUTION


REQUESTING THE BOARD OF EDUCATION TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE TO SCHOOLS
   IN RECOVERING FUNDS FOR LOST TEXTBOOKS.



 1       WHEREAS, textbooks provide organized presentations of
 2   materials in various subjects that are integral to the
 3   educational process in many schools, particularly at the
 4   secondary level; and
 5   
 6       WHEREAS, at the beginning of the year teachers typically
 7   issue textbooks with the expectation that they will be returned
 8   at the end of the year; and
 9   
10       WHEREAS, if a textbook is not returned most schools issue a
11   withholding slip notifying the student that the student is
12   responsible for the return or replacement cost of the book, but
13   this procedure is not working very well; and
14   
15       WHEREAS, textbooks in the public schools are being lost at
16   an alarming level and, while the numbers vary somewhat from
17   year-to-year, public school students in the secondary schools
18   lost over 16,000 textbooks in 1996-1997; and
19   
20       WHEREAS, for the most part, those students who lost the
21   textbooks have not compensated the schools, and annually about
22   $500,000 is lost due to textbooks that have not been returned;
23   and
24   
25       WHEREAS, one of the difficulties principals face in
26   collecting payment for lost textbooks is to strike a balance
27   between enforcement and hindering the right of students to a
28   public education; and
29   
30       WHEREAS, schools are prohibited from withholding a
31   student's schedule or diploma because the student has lost a
32   textbook, but schools can restrict a student's participation in
33   proms or dances; and
34   
35       WHEREAS, recent legislation allows the Board of Education
36   to charge deposit fees for books, but this alternative needs to
37   be explored further because these fees may create a hardship
38   for low-income families with several children; and

 
Page 2                                   137               
                                  H.R. NO.              
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1       WHEREAS, schools set their priorities under lump-sum
 2   budgeting and purchase replacement texts if they feel it is a
 3   priority; and
 4   
 5       WHEREAS, the Board of Education has approved a requirement
 6   that schools have a plan for acquiring and replacing textbooks;
 7   and
 8   
 9       WHEREAS, however, this policy does not provide any guidance
10   for schools in determining how they may recover the costs of
11   lost textbooks; now, therefore,
12   
13       BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
14   Twentieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session
15   of 1999, that the Board of Education provide guidance to
16   schools in recovering funds for lost textbooks; and
17   
18       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Superintendent of Education
19   report to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to
20   the convening of the Regular Session of 2000 on these methods
21   and how they are being implemented at the school level; and
22   
23       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
24   Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of
25   Education and the Superintendent of Education.
26 
27 
28 
29                         OFFERED BY:  ____________________________