Flawed Educational Constitutional Bill Failed to Pass

A bill which would have amended the State Constitution to generate education funding for schools from a surcharge on investment properties and visitor accommodations, failed to pass out of the House and Senate Conference Committee this afternoon.

“The bill was fundamentally flawed and open to serious legal challenges. Constitutional amendment proposals require careful deliberation and reasoned decision making that should not be taken lightly,” said Representative Justin Woodson (Kahului, Puunene, Maui Lani) Chairman of the House Education Committee.

“There were basic flaws with this bill and with SB 686 which would have implemented the amendment. We tried to fix it but concluded that it could not be properly done this session, and we did not want to set it up for failure. The House strongly believes in working on better funding for our schools, but we want to have a strong, meaningful product to move forward. We look forward to working on this with the Senate next session,” Woodson added.