STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1061

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    H.B. No. 930

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.B. No. 930 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

     (1)  Create an Erin's Law task force to review policies, programs, and curricula for educating public school students about sexual abuse and sex trafficking prevention, and report recommendations for the establishment of a program to educate public school students on sexual abuse prevention through age appropriate curricula; and

     (2)  Appropriate monies to fund the Erin's Law task force.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the State Public Charter School Commission, Hawaii State Teachers Association, Sex Abuse Treatment Center, Hawaii Youth Services Network, IMUAlliance, Hawaii Alliance of Boys and Girls Clubs, Planned Parenthood Votes Northwest and Hawaii, Parents and Children Together, UNITE, and six individuals.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Education and Department of Human Services.

     Your Committee finds that sexual violence is a serious and ongoing threat to the safety, health, and well-being of children and young people in Hawaii.  Your Committee further finds that nationally, one in six women and one in thirty-three men have been the victim of sexual assault in their lifetimes, with forty-four percent being under the age of eighteen at the time of the assault.  Your Committee additionally finds that the national statistics are consistent with those in Hawaii.  Your Committee also finds that, although programs and Department of Education-approved curricula currently exist in the State to provide training to school teachers and staff and sexual abuse prevention education to students, implementation is not consistent statewide and resources for the provision of training and education are limited.  This measure will facilitate the development of strategies to better protect Hawaii's children and young people from sexual violence and provide resources to implement those strategies throughout the State.

     Your Committee notes that some testifiers in support of this measure, including the Hawaii State Teachers Association, IMUAlliance, and Hawaii Alliance of Boys and Girls Clubs have suggested that additional members be added to the task force whose perspective and expertise would be valuable to the task force.

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Adding a public school teacher, sex trafficking victim service provider, and community based non-profit after school provider as members of the task force; and

     (2)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 930, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 930, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committees on Ways and Means and Judiciary and Labor.

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

________________________________

MICHELLE N. KIDANI, Chair