STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3611

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.C.R. No. 199

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 199 entitled:

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO ESTABLISH A FRAMEWORK THAT PLACES RESPONSIBILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR MONITORING ALL CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AND REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE PROJECTS WITHIN EACH COMPLEX AREA WITH THE COMPLEX AREA LEADERSHIP,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Department of Education to establish a framework that places responsibility and accountability for monitoring all capital improvement projects and repair and maintenance projects within each complex area with the Complex Area Superintendent, Business Management Officer, and Administrative Services Assistant assigned to that complex area.

Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from two individuals.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Education.

Your Committee finds that maintenance of school facilities is achieved through capital improvement projects and repair and maintenance projects, which represent significant public investments in school infrastructure. Breakdowns in communication, outdated software, and administrative delays, however, have led to a substantial Department of Education-project backlog. Your Committee therefore finds that a comprehensive framework instituting tiered oversight of these critical projects is essential to promoting effective prioritization, fiscal integrity, and system equity statewide. This measure seeks to support school infrastructure improvements through increased accountability, therefore producing better learning environments.

Your Committee acknowledges the concerns raised in the public hearing on this measure that, while this measure seeks to add an additional level of accountability to project tracking through the inclusion of complex area leaders, the Office of Facilities and Operations is ultimately responsible for project management. The Office, however, has frequently erred in the discharge of its duties, including by allowing its capital improvement project job tracking system to become out of date. Your Committee therefore believes that a more comprehensive and multi-level system of project oversight is necessary. Your Committee further finds that legislators have been compelled to take an active role in advocating for the completion of many school facilities projects in their districts, and should therefore be kept aware of developments in their communities resulting from this measure. Therefore, amendments to this measure are necessary to address these matters.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying that the framework developed pursuant to this measure is requested to:

(A) Be established in the Office of Facilities and Operations, to reflect the Office's responsibility for managing these projects; and

(B) Make each Complex Area Superintendent, Business Management Officer, and Administrative Services Assistant responsible solely for monitoring the projects within their assigned complex area, to improve accountability and school-level communications;

(2) Inserting language that requests the framework to require each Complex Area Superintendent and designated staff to consistently communicate with school and department personnel to ensure all parties are well-informed of ongoing projects, needs, and any developments;

(3) Requesting that the Office of Facilities and Operations:

(A) Educate Complex Area Superintendents and school leaders, including principals, on the capital improvement project process; and

(B) Update its capital improvement project job tracker on its public website;

(4) Specifying that each Complex Area Superintendent is requested to submit the quarterly status report to the legislators representing their respective districts, in addition to the Office of Facilities and Operations;

(5) Amending its title accordingly; and

(6) 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 concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 199, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.C.R. No. 199, S.D. 1.

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

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DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair