HCR6

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	6
TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2002
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

Requesting the auditor to conduct an examination and evaluation of the feasibility of creating an autonomous public school system and to devise a comprehensive implementation plan.

WHEREAS, an educated citizenry and skilled workforce are critical components of any civilized and economically viable society; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii's public school system has shown little sustained improvement in student performance, despite the adoption of goals, objectives, and performance standards; and

WHEREAS, reading and math scores of Hawaii's students perennially rank among the lowest in the nation; and

WHEREAS, the successful implementation of school programs that achieve enhanced student performance requires unambiguous accountability and authority in administrative and fiscal matters, including budgeting and expenditure control, and unfettered determination of educational policies and needs; and

WHEREAS, for years critics have argued that the public school system's poor performance is an outcome of having separate entities exerting overlapping authority over the complex and unwieldy state public school system; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature raises and appropriates funds for education and directs how those funds are to be used, the Governor exerts fiscal and policy control through executive agencies, particularly over the release of funds and approval of rules, the Board of Education oversees the financial plans, policies, rules, and programs, and the Superintendent of Education carries out the day to day operations; and

WHEREAS, such fractured oversight leads to confused lines of authority, lack of accountability, and inadequate communication among the various decision-makers; and

WHEREAS, furthermore, the lack of clear authority and accountability makes it impossible to identify responsibility for the public school system's success and shortcomings; and

WHEREAS, the strong influence of special interests, such as unions, school community-based management councils, and advocates of children with special needs, further clouds issues of accountability and authority; and

WHEREAS, the Superintendent of Education lacks the specific authority necessary to manage the Department of Education's own internal affairs; and

WHEREAS, many believe that unambiguous accountability and authority is unattainable unless governance of the state public education system is fundamentally changed to delineate clear lines of authority and responsibility in all administrative and fiscal matters, policy issues, and managerial oversight; and

WHEREAS, to achieve this, the Legislature believes that it is imperative to make the state public school system a separate entity, independent from gubernatorial and legislative review and control; and

WHEREAS, granting autonomy to the state public school system will achieve greater flexibility, efficiencies, accountability, and responsiveness; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature envisions that this independent state public school system will be headed by an elected Board of Education that is separate and apart from state government but subject to the general laws of the State; and

WHEREAS, furthermore, to ensure the accountability and responsiveness of the Board of Education to the needs of individual school locales, the Legislature envisions that its members will be elected by the voters of single member districts; and

WHEREAS, the Board of Education's primary role will be policy making and selection of a chief executive officer who will have full authority and control over all aspects of the public education system; and

WHEREAS, consolidating authority in this manner makes the Board of Education solely responsible for public education and resolves the issue of who is in control of public education and, therefore, who is accountable to the public for the results; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature is cognizant that a number of constitutional, legal, and administrative changes will be necessary to achieve an autonomous public school system; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature is further aware that this will be a long and arduous undertaking that may require several years before a solid transition process is in place; and

WHEREAS, moreover, the interests of the State and its citizens require that the transition be accomplished so as to ensure continuity and quality in public education programs; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature is concerned that appropriate planning and actions be authorized and taken to avoid or minimize any disruptions to the public educational system; and

WHEREAS, accordingly, the Legislature intends that this be a deliberate and carefully studied process, allowing sufficient time for data collection, fact-finding, and public hearing and comment; and

WHEREAS, furthermore, to facilitate the restructuring process, the Legislature believes a thorough and thoughtful assessment and analysis of the entire public education system is in order; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2002, the Senate concurring, that the Auditor is requested to conduct a four-year examination and evaluation of the feasibility of creating an autonomous public school system, independent from gubernatorial and legislative review and control, and to devise a comprehensive implementation plan for the transition in governance of the public educational system; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that as the first step of this examination and evaluation, the Auditor is requested to conduct a comprehensive management audit of the present operations of the entire public school system, with the purpose of accomplishing the reorganization of the public educational system in the most effective and efficient way; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to review the Board of Education election process and make recommendations necessary to achieve the election of its members by the voters of single member districts, including addressing apportionment issues; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to consider and address ways in which adequate funding for the public school system could be raised and maintained without undue gubernatorial or legislative interference, including an examination of granting the public school system taxing and bond authority; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to address issues and make recommendations concerning the:

Integration and consolidation of functions and programs provided by other executive departments to the public educational system, including but not limited to facilities repair and maintenance, school health services, administration, personnel and personnel costs, risk management, retirement, and health insurance;
Transfer of employees whose duties affect educational systems or are in functional areas being integrated or consolidated with the public school system;
Transfer of records, equipment, machinery, supplies, contracts, and other personal property used in the performance of these functional areas being integrated or consolidated;
Rights, powers, obligations, and duties necessary for an autonomous public school system to function efficiently and effectively, such as those relating to the power of eminent domain, transfer of title to lands and real property, immunity from legal process, deposit and transfer of public funds, and accounting, auditing, and accountability processes and protocols;
Changes in collective bargaining that may be necessary to achieve the reorganization objectives, including consolidating authority and accountability, such as decertifying educational officers to exclude them from collective bargaining;
Appropriate interfacing of charter schools and school/community-based management councils within an autonomous public school system; and

(7) Legislative and administrative action and timetables necessary for an orderly transition including proposed revisions and amendments, as needed, to the State Constitution and the Hawaii Revised Statutes;

and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to schedule sufficient opportunity to receive public input during its audit and examination process and in preparing proposed legislation to implement the reorganization plan; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to evaluate and make recommendations concerning any other matters pertinent to the objectives of this Concurrent Resolution in achieving an autonomous public school system; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to prepare and submit a progress report to the Governor and the Legislature twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Sessions of 2003, 2004, 2005 and a final report with recommendations, including proposed legislation, necessary to achieve a restructured, autonomous public school system twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2006; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to assist the Auditor in drafting any necessary proposed legislation; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, the Auditor, the Chairperson of the Board of Education, the Superintendent of Education, and the Acting Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Autonomous Public School System; Comp. Implementation Plan