STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1156

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 777

       H.D. 2

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.B. No. 777, H.D. 2, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE HAWAII EDUCATOR LOAN PROGRAM,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to recruit and retain qualified teachers for employment in hard-to fill positions in public schools through the appropriation of funds for the Hawaii Educator Loan Program.

 

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the University of Hawaii and the Hawaii State Teachers Association.  Comments on the measure were also submitted by the Department of Education.

 

     Your Committee finds that pursuant to Act 307, Session Laws of Hawaii 2001, the Legislature established the Hawaii Educator Loan Program.  The program is administered by the University of Hawaii and was established as a tool for recruiting students to become educators and teach in hard-to-fill positions in public schools in the State.  Your Committee further finds that the current teacher shortage problem has also highlighted the need for teachers in public schools located in rural areas throughout the State.  Your Committee believes that the establishment of a similar loan forgiveness program within the Department of Education, geared towards filling positions in rural areas throughout the State, would greatly assist the Department of Education in its recruitment and retention efforts.

 

     Additionally, your Committee recognizes that schedules for the reduction of loan repayment amounts for the Department of Education and the University of Hawaii loan forgiveness programs are also necessary to truly incentivize the programs.

 

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Including a new section that establishes the Educator Loan Forgiveness Program and Special Fund within the Department of Education for teachers who teach in the Hawaii public school system at schools located in rural areas;

 

     (2)  Appropriating funds for the Educator Loan Forgiveness Program;

 

     (3)  Changing the loan forgiveness schedule for the Hawaii Educator Loan Program to require twenty-five per cent of the total amount of the loan and interest to be waived every year for the sixth and seventh years of repayment that a loan recipient works in a hard-to-fill position; and

 

     (4)  Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for purposes of clarity and style.

 

     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. 777, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 777, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

 

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

 

 

 

____________________________

NORMAN SAKAMOTO, Chair