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Committee advances multiple higher-education bills; votes and committee recommendations summarized
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Summary
The Senate Committee on Higher Education took action Feb. 4 on a series of bills involving medical education, nursing programs, audits and research pilots. The committee recommended passage (with amendments where noted) for several measures and deferred one health-related proposal indefinitely.
The Senate Committee on Higher Education met Feb. 4 and reached committee recommendations on multiple bills. The committee recorded recommendations, amendment instructions and vote outcomes as follows.
Votes at a glance
- SB101 (JABSOM in-state tuition / two-year practice requirement): Committee recommendation to pass with amendments (create SD1, add statement of statewide concern); referred to WAM. Roll call: Chair Kim—aye; Vice Chair Kidani—aye; Sen. Fukunaga—aye; Sen. Hashimoto—aye; Sen. Fevella—excused. Outcome: approved by committee and sent to WAM.
- SB119 (appropriations; SD1 and amounts to be noted in committee report): Committee recommended SD1 and deferral of effective date to July 31; roll call: Chair Kim—aye; Vice Chair Kidani—aye; Sen. Fukunaga—aye; Sen. Hashimoto—aye; Sen. Fevella—excused. Outcome: adopted (committee report to state amounts).
- SB637 (appropriations for university nursing programs): Committee recommended amendments to blank appropriation amounts and place them in the committee report; defer effective date to July (committee recorded the recommendation). Roll call: Chair Kim—aye; Vice Chair Kidani—aye; Sen. Fukunaga—aye; Sen. Hashimoto—aye; Sen. Fevella—excused. Outcome: adopted.
- SB741 (establish external audit committee for UH Board of Regents): Committee recommended to pass as is. Roll call: Chair Kim—aye; Vice Chair Kidani—aye; Sen. Fukunaga—aye; Sen. Hashimoto—aye; Sen. Fevella—aye. Outcome: adopted.
- SB1232 (wastewater technology pilot at UH Water Resources Center; joint hearing with Agriculture): Committee recommended to pass with amendments and defer effective date; roll call: Chair Kim—aye; Vice Chair Kidani—aye; Sen. Fukunaga—aye; Sen. Hashimoto—aye; Sen. Fevella—aye. Outcome: adopted.
- SB686 (coconut rhinoceros beetle short-term management initiatives): Committee recommended pass with amendments including AG-recommended statewide concern language and blanking appropriation amounts for the committee report; roll call: Chair Kim—aye; Vice Chair Kidani—aye; Sen. Fukunaga—aye; Sen. Hashimoto—aye; Sen. Fevella—aye. Outcome: adopted.
- SB657 (Center for Climate Resilient Development funding to SOEST): Committee recommended pass with amendments; blank appropriation amounts and defer date to July; roll call: Chair Kim—aye; Vice Chair Kidani—aye; Sen. Fukunaga—aye; Sen. Hashimoto—aye; Sen. Fevella—aye. Outcome: adopted.
- SB1150 (disease and environmental toxicology center at JABSOM): Committee recommendation was to defer indefinitely after testimony noting that JABSOM indicated the work would be performed in another department or agency. Outcome: deferred indefinitely (no roll call recorded in transcript excerpt).
Notes and next steps
- Several appropriations were "blanked" by committee motion, with the committee instructing staff to include amounts in the committee report rather than in the bill language; effective dates for many appropriations were deferred to July as listed in the committee report.
- Multiple measures were amended to include language noting statewide concern and to incorporate Attorney General recommendations where applicable.
- Items advanced to WAM or otherwise placed in the committee report will require further action by the Senate and budget committees before funds are appropriated or programs are implemented.
