STAND. COM. REP. NO.  4

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2015

RE:   H.B. No. 775

      H.D. 1

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Economic Development & Business, to which was referred H.B. No. 775 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to increase the economic benefits realized from international student enrollment at Hawaii's institutions of higher learning by appropriating funds to the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism for:

     (1)  Marketing Hawaii and Hawaii's institutions of higher learning to attract international students; and

     (2)  Travel and other recruitment expenses related to the marketing of Hawaii as an international education destination.

The Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii testified in support of this bill.  The Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism supported the intent of this measure.

     Hawaii's unique history, optimal geographic placement between the United States and Asia, and globally ranked programs of higher education have all served as factors in establishing Hawaii as a major destination of choice for international students seeking to further their education.  Over the past several years, however, Hawaii has been losing ground to other states in the attraction of international students, particularly students from Asia.  According to the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, while the rest of the United States has experienced an approximately 13 percent growth in international student enrollment over the past three years, Hawaii has experienced an 11 percent decline over the same period.

     While the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism markets Hawaii as an educational location for overseas study, the breadth of this marketing strategy has been diminished from a lack of appropriate funding.  As it is estimated by the Department that an increase of 10 percent in the number of international students studying in Hawaii would result in an approximate concomitant increase in state tax revenues of $16,000,000, your Committee finds that it is prudent to appropriate funds to market Hawaii to international students as an educational destination.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by changing the amount appropriated to the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism for marketing and marketing related purposes from $150,000 to an unspecified amount.

     Should the Committee on Finance deliberate on this measure, your Committee respectfully requests that it consider appropriating $150,000 for marketing Hawaii and Hawaii's institutions of higher learning to attract international students and costs associated with this marketing.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Economic Development & Business that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 775, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 775, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Higher Education.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Economic Development & Business,

____________________________

DEREK S.K. KAWAKAMI, Chair