STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3727

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 2567

H.D. 1

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Education and Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B. No. 2567, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Establish the Early Childhood Education Investment Special Fund; and

(2) Appropriate funds.

Your Committees did not receive any testimony on this measure.

Prior to the hearing on this measure, your Committees posted and made available for public review a proposed S.D. 1, which deletes the contents of the measure and inserts language to:

(1) Establish a cap on the total number of superintendent-level positions within the Department of Education;

(2) Define "superintendent-level position";

(3) Require the Board of Education to conduct a written performance evaluation of each Complex Area Superintendent every two years; and

(4) Appropriate funds to establish two Deputy Superintendent positions within the Office of the Superintendent.

Your Committees received testimony in support of the proposed S.D. 1 from the Hawaiʻi State Teachers Association and one individual.

Your Committees received testimony in opposition to the proposed S.D. 1 from Ewa Elementary School, Kauaʻi High School, Jefferson Elementary School, Kahului Elementary School, Lahainaluna High School, Hickam Elementary School, and two individuals.

Your Committees received comments on the proposed S.D. 1 from the Department of Education, Department of the Attorney General, Board of Education, Mountain View Elementary School, Haleʻiwa Elementary School, Lihikai Elementary School, Nāhiʻenaʻena Elementary School, Kalihi Uka Elementary School, Pukalani Elementary School, and seventeen individuals.

Your Committees find that as the Department of Education's organizational framework continues to expand over time, it is critical to maintain a healthy balance between state-level superintendent roles and school-level needs. Given the current trend of decreased public school student enrollment and fiscal austerity, this balance is increasingly important to ensure students receive sufficient resources and access to support systems. Your Committees further find that operational issues and violations of existing state law, including the extension of temporary positions beyond the one-year term authorized pursuant to section 302A-1116, Hawaii Revised Statutes, necessitate the imposition of additional oversight mechanisms for the Department of Education. This measure will help to increase accountability and direct crucial funding back to classrooms.

Your Committees acknowledge the concerns raised in testimony by the Board of Education that it does not engage in the daily operations of the Department of Education and is therefore not positioned to fairly and properly evaluate most Department employees. The Board also testified that it would require additional resources to conduct the mandatory evaluations proposed by this measure. Your Committees further note the concerns raised in the testimony of the Department of Education that the disclosure of Complex Area Superintendents' performance evaluations to legislators may compromise employee confidentiality and that the insights of direct supervisors are integral to accurate performance assessments. Therefore, amendments to this measure are necessary to address these matters.

Your Committees have amended this measure by adopting the proposed S.D. 1 and further amending the measure by:

(1) Clarifying that the cap on the total number of superintendent-level positions within the Department of Education shall not apply to temporary superintendent-level positions established by the Superintendent of Education in the event of a state of emergency declared by the Governor pursuant to section 127A-14, Hawaii Revised Statutes;

(2) Specifying that any appointment to a temporary superintendent-level position established during a state of emergency in excess of the established cap shall not exceed a term of one year, or until the state of emergency has ceased;

(3) Authorizing, rather than requiring, the Board of Education to conduct a written performance evaluation of each Complex Area Superintendent every two years;

(4) Requiring the Deputy Superintendents to submit reports on the performance of each Complex Area Superintendent to inform the Board of Education's evaluations;

(5) Clarifying that any written performance evaluations made available to a member of the Legislature upon request shall not disclose any personal information;

(6) Amending section 1 to reflect its amended purpose; and

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

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Education and Ways and Means that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2567, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2567, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Education and Ways and Means,

________________________________ DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair

________________________________ DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair