STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1530

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2009

RE:   H.C.R. No. 76

      H.D. 1

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 76 entitled:

"HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO CONDUCT A FEASIBILITY STUDY ON CONVERTING HARD COVER TEXT BOOKS TO E-BOOKS FOR USE IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this concurrent resolution is to request the Department of Education to conduct a feasibility study on converting hard cover text books to e-books for use in public schools.

     For the purposes of discussion, your Committee circulated a proposed draft in which the original contents were deleted and replaced with language that requests the Governor not to address the 2009 fiscal year budget shortfall by reducing or restricting the Department of Education’s and University of Hawaii’s current appropriations, but, with the Legislature, Department of Education (DOE), and University of Hawaii (UH), develop a plan to use the State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSF) to stabilize funding for the DOE and UH for the 2009-2011 fiscal biennium.

     The Board of Education, Community Children's Council of Hawaii, Special Education Advisory Council, Hawaii State Teacher's Association, and a concerned citizen testified in support of this measure.  The Department of Education supported this measure with amendments. 

     Your Committee has amended the concurrent resolution, as received, by deleting its contents and replacing it with language that requests the Governor not to address the 2009 fiscal year budget shortfall by reducing or restricting the Department of Education’s and University of Hawaii’s current appropriations, but, with the Legislature, Department of Education (DOE), and University of Hawaii (UH), develop a plan to use the State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSF) to stabilize funding for the DOE and UH for the 2009-2011 fiscal biennium.  Your Committee has also:

     (1)  Included the Board of Education and the Board of Regents
          of the University of Hawaii in the development of the
          plan;

     (2)  Included the United States Secretary of Education and
          members of Hawaii’s Congressional Delegation among those
          who should receive certified copies of the resolution;
          and

     (3)  Changed the title of the resolution to, “REQUESTING THE
          GOVERNOR NOT TO ADDRESS THE 2009 FISCAL YEAR BUDGET
          SHORTFALL BY REDUCING OR RESTRICTING THE DEPARTMENT OF
          EDUCATION'S AND UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII'S CURRENT
          APPROPRIATIONS.“

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 76, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.C.R. No. 76, H.D. 1.

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

____________________________

ROY TAKUMI, Chair