BILLS THAT PASSED, OR FAILED, AT THE LEGISLATURE
Education/social services

Advertiser Staff

Education reform study
(SB 3018 SD1 HD1 CD1)
Establishes a joint Senate-House educational governance task force to investigate and recommend changes that will make public education more community centered.

Student loans for teachers
(SB 2816 SD2 HD1 CD1)
Creates a tuition reimbursement program for people who complete a state-approved teacher education program in Hawai'i and teach in the Hawai'i public school system for a minimum of 6 consecutive years.

Charter schools
(SB 2662 SD2)
Authorizes qualified nonprofit organizations to manage and operate a conversion charter school as a division of the nonprofit organization. Also requires the nonprofit entity to contribute $1 for every $4 per pupil allocated by the Department of Education. Gov. Ben Cayetano signed the bill into law.

Government bonds for private schools
(HB 2848 HD1 SD1 CD1)
Proposes a constitutional amendment to allow the state to provide low-cost financing for private schools, colleges and universities including sectarian schools to help them pay for construction projects.

Child support enforcement
(HB 2433 HD1 SD1)
Allows the Child Support Enforcement Agency to levy fines against individuals and entities not responding to its requests for information.

Housing assistance
(HB 2072 HD2 SD1 CD1)
Provides $1 million to assist the needy with housing expenses such as rent, mortgages and utility bills.

Sibling visitation
(HB 1864 HD1 SD1)
Affirms sibling visitation rights and establishes procedures for visitation.

Board of Education
(HB 1969 SD1 CD1)
Allows the state Department of Education to appoint or retain by contract private attorneys. Allows the department to continue to request and secure legal services from the state attorney general's office.

License suspensions
(HB 2752 HD1 SD1 CD1)
Authorizes the licensing authority to deny, suspend, or revoke, or refuse to renew or reinstate a professional or vocational license issued by the state of any person who defaults on a student loan, student loan repayment contract, or scholarship contract administered by the State or the federal government.

Child welfare
(HB 2495 SD1 CD1)
Appropriates $2.3 million in general funds to provide foster board costs and difficulty-of-care payments for foster and adoptive parents, permanent custodians, and guardians of children with special needs.

Abolish BOE
Would have proposed constitutional amendments to abolish the BOE.

Local school boards
Would have replaced the statewide Board of Education with smaller, locally elected school boards. Lawmakers instead passed a bill calling for a joint House-Senate task force to study the issue.

Kindergarten age
Would have raise the required age for kindergarten. Would have required children to be 5 years old before Oct. 1 for school year 2005-06, and would have required children to be 5 years old before Jan. 1 in the following years.

Board of Education
Would have provided for a constitutional amendment making the Department of Education a political subdivision headed by the Board of Education and allowed the board to collect taxes.

Limited teacher liability
Would have limited the liability of educational officers, teachers, and classified personnel against any claims related to the Felix consent decree and to services for children with a disability.

Study of hunger
Would have established a food security commission to target hunger issues in Hawai'i.