<DOC>
[108 Senate Hearings]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access]
[DOCID: f:92451.wais]
S. Hrg. 108-392
LABOR, HEALTH, AND EDUCATION ISSUES IN THE STATE OF HAWAII
=======================================================================
HEARING
before a
SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
SPECIAL HEARING
FEBRUARY 18, 2004--HONOLULU, HI
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.access.gpo.gov/congress/
senate
__________
92-451 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 2003
____________________________________________________________________________
For Sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office
Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800; (202) 512ÿ091800
Fax: (202) 512ÿ092250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402ÿ090001
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
TED STEVENS, Alaska, Chairman
THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi ROBERT C. BYRD, West Virginia
ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South Carolina
CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont
MITCH McCONNELL, Kentucky TOM HARKIN, Iowa
CONRAD BURNS, Montana BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland
RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama HARRY REID, Nevada
JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire HERB KOHL, Wisconsin
ROBERT F. BENNETT, Utah PATTY MURRAY, Washington
BEN NIGHTHORSE CAMPBELL, Colorado BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota
LARRY CRAIG, Idaho DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California
KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois
MIKE DeWINE, Ohio TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota
SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana
James W. Morhard, Staff Director
Lisa Sutherland, Deputy Staff Director
Terrence E. Sauvain, Minority Staff Director
------
Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and
Education, and Related Agencies
ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania, Chairman
THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi TOM HARKIN, Iowa
JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South Carolina
LARRY CRAIG, Idaho DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii
KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas HARRY REID, Nevada
TED STEVENS, Alaska HERB KOHL, Wisconsin
MIKE DeWINE, Ohio PATTY MURRAY, Washington
RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana
ROBERT C. BYRD, West Virginia (Ex
officio)
Professional Staff
Bettilou Taylor
Jim Sourwine
Mark Laisch
Sudip Shrikant Parikh
Candice Rogers
Ellen Murray (Minority)
Erik Fatemi (Minority)
Adrienne Hallett (Minority)
Administrative Support
Carole Geagley
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
Opening statement of Senator Daniel K. Inouye.................... 1
Prepared statement........................................... 2
Opening statement of Senator Daniel K. Akaka..................... 3
Statement of Dr. Evan S. Dobelle, president, University of Hawaii 5
Prepared statement........................................... 8
Statement of Dr. Carl Vogel, director, Cancer Research Center of
Hawaii......................................................... 10
Prepared statement........................................... 13
Statement of Ms. Dew-Anne Langcoan, vice president, Hawaii
Pacific
Health......................................................... 22
Prepared statement........................................... 23
Statement of Dr. Okamoto, president and CEO, the Queen's Health
Systems........................................................ 25
Statement of Dr. Jonathan K. Cho, a practicing community
oncologist..................................................... 26
Prepared statement........................................... 28
Statement of Hon. Ed Case, U.S. Representative from Hawaii....... 32
Prepared statement........................................... 36
Statement of Patricia Hamamoto, superintendent, State of Hawaii
Department of Education........................................ 41
Prepared statement........................................... 43
Statement of Bruce A. Coppa, Chair, Hawaii 3R's Program.......... 43
Prepared statement........................................... 45
Statement of Dennis Manalili, principal, Kaimuki High School..... 45
Prepared statement........................................... 47
Statement of Neil Abercrombie, U.S. Representative from Hawaii... 48
Prepared statement........................................... 51
Statement of Linda Lingle, Governor, State of Hawaii............. 54
Prepared statement........................................... 57
Statement of Donna Kim, vice president, Hawaii State Senate...... 60
Statement of Sylvia J. Luke, vice speaker, Hawaii State House of
Representatives................................................ 61
Prepared statement........................................... 63
Statement of Dr. Clyde M. Sakamoto, chancellor, Maui Community
College........................................................ 64
Prepared statement........................................... 66
Statement of Ramsey R. Pedersen, chancellor, Honolulu Community
College........................................................ 81
Prepared statement........................................... 83
Statement of Lance Inouye, past president, General Contractors
Association of Hawaii.......................................... 85
Statement of Randy Lau, past president, Building Industry
Association.................................................... 88
Statement of Ron Taketa, United Brotherhood of Carpenters and
Joiners, Local 745............................................. 89
Prepared statement........................................... 91
Statement of Lynn Kinney, Painters, Decorators, Paperhangers and
Allied Traders, Local 1791..................................... 93
Prepared statement........................................... 94
Prepared statement of Glaziers Architectural and Glass Metal
Workers Local 1889, AFL-CIO.................................... 97
Prepared statement of the Hawaii Building and Construction Trades
Council........................................................ 97
Prepared statement of the Laborers' Union, Local 368............. 98
Prepared statement of the Hawaii Operating Engineers J.A.C....... 99
Prepared statement of the International Association of Heat &
Frost Insulators & Asbestos Workers Local 132, Hawaii.......... 100
Prepared statement of the Bricklayers & Ceramic Tile Setters
Local 1 and Plasterers' & Cement Masons' Local 630............. 101
Prepared statement of the International Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers, Local 1186, Hawaii.................................... 102
Prepared statement of the Boilermakers, Iron Shipbuilders Union,
Local
204............................................................ 103
Prepared statement of the Roofers, Waterproofers & Allied Workers
United Union of Roofers, Local 221............................. 103
Prepared statement of the United Association of Plumbers and
Fitters Local 675.............................................. 104
Prepared statement of Scott Y. Nishimoto, State of Hawaii
Representative, District 21.................................... 105
Prepared statement of the Pacific Resource Partnership........... 105
Prepared statement of Americas Promise Hawaii.................... 105
Prepared statement of the Joint Venture Education Forum.......... 106
Prepared statement of the Drywall Tapers and Finishers Local
1944, AFL-CIO.................................................. 106
Prepared statement of the Carpet Linoleum and Soft Tile Local
1926, AFL-CIO.................................................. 107
Prepared statement of CRTC, Inc.................................. 108
Prepared statement of Iron Workers Local 625 and Iron Workers
Shopmen Local 803.............................................. 109
Prepared statement of the John A. Burns School of Medicine,
University of Hawaii........................................... 109
Prepared statement of the Universitiy of Hawai'i at Manoa........ 110
Letter from Joseph Kane, Jr...................................... 110
Prepared statement of Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 293........ 111
LABOR, HEALTH, AND EDUCATION ISSUES IN THE STATE OF HAWAII
----------
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2004
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education, and Related Agencies,
Committee on Appropriations,
Honolulu, HI.
The subcommittee met at 9 a.m., at Kaimuki High School,
Library, 2nd floor, 2705 Kaimuki Avenue, Honolulu, Hawaii, Hon.
Daniel K. Inouye presiding.
Present: Senator Inouye.
Also present: Senator Akaka.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR DANIEL K. INOUYE
Senator Inouye. By authority of the Labor, Health and Human
Services, and the Education Appropriation Subcommittee, the
Honorable Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, I have the high honor
of chairing this morning's meeting. I'm pleased and proud to
have with me my colleague Senator Dan Akaka.
The purpose of this hearing is to gather information and to
hear from you on three issues: The first, the expansion of the
Cancer Research Center in Hawaii. Second, the recently granted
legislative authority for Hawaii 3R's to utilize monies in the
Native Hawaiian Education funds to repair those public schools
to 25 percent or more Native Hawaiian children. And third, the
need to expand certified apprenticeship and journeymen training
programs to ensure that we have qualified, homegrown tradesmen
and women to meet the demand that will come as a result of the
privatization of military housing. So we do have a very
ambitious schedule today.
In April 2002, I joined the University of Hawaii president
Evan Dobelle and Dr. Carl Vogel for a tour and briefing of the
Cancer Research Center of Hawaii. At that time, because of my
impression, I committed myself to supporting the growth of the
only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in the
Pacific region.
Hawaii's Cancer Research Center has an outstanding research
track record that is multi-ethnic, multi-generational, and
multi-national, and I'm looking forward to hearing from the
witnesses about the national contributions to be made with the
expansion of facilities and programs.
Many of you may be asking: What are we doing holding this
meeting in a library at Kaimuki High School? We could have
gotten a bigger auditorium or something like that. It is very
simple. This high school is one of the 59 public schools that
has received Hawaii 3R's grant, and with it they painted the
school cafeteria, the ROTC building, and the music room.
3R's is not a big program. In fact, it's a little
initiative that I got involved in about 4 years ago to address
some of the smaller repair and maintenance backlog in the
public school system. Instead of just sitting by and wringing
our hands and doing nothing, we decided that something should
be done.
Grants are given out to these schools that are able to
provide at least a 1 to 1 match in sweat equity and donations,
and in so doing, build community support and pride in the
school system. The new legislative authority to expand and
spend Native Hawaii education funds will permit this program to
reach out to many more schools. And I look forward to hearing
from you about the plans you have.
Last, we need to build up a certified apprenticeship and
journeymen training program to meet the demand for skilled
tradesmen and women, as Hawaii's construction industry is
awakened by the surge of military construction and the
privatization of family housing. Some have suggested an
increase of 10,000 to 15,000 new jobs in the next 5 to 7 years.
And 3,100 new construction jobs this year alone.
PREPARED STATEMENT
Whether it is technology or teaching or construction, it
always makes more sense to grow our own, to train our own,
rather than import workers. This is especially true in Hawaii
where we do not have interstate highways to connect us to other
States. Therefore, I'm very interested in supporting programs
that are State-certified with proven track records to ensure
that we are turning out the best and to partnering with our
community colleges, our unions, and contractor associations in
a matching program that will increase the number of classes and
instructors which, in turn, will increase the number of
qualified apprentices and journeymen to capture the jobs.
Therefore, I look forward to receiving, from this panel, the
host of recommendations and ideas to take advantage of this
economic opportunity.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Senator Daniel K. Inouye
I have the high honor of chairing this morning's field hearing on
behalf of Senator Arlen Specter, Chairman of the Labor, Health and
Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee. I am joined
by my fellow Senator from Hawaii, Senator Dan Akaka.
The purpose of this hearing is to gather information, and to hear
from you on three issues. First, the expansion of the Cancer Research
Center of Hawaii. Second, the recently granted legislative authority
for Hawaii 3R's to utilize $1 million in Native Hawaiian Education
funds to repair those public schools with 25 percent or more Native
Hawaiian children. And third, the need to expand certified
apprenticeship and journeymen training programs to ensure that we have
qualified, homegrown tradesmen and women to meet the demand that will
come as a result of the privatization of military housing.
In April of 2002, I joined University of Hawaii President Evan
Dobelle and Dr. Carl Vogel for a tour and briefing of the Cancer
Research Center of Hawaii. At that time, I committed myself to
supporting the growth of the only National Cancer Institute-designated
cancer center in the Pacific region. Hawaii's Cancer Research Center
has an outstanding research track record that is multi-ethnic, multi-
generational, and multi-national. I am looking forward to hearing from
the witnesses about the national contributions to be made with an
expansion of facilities and programs.
Many of you may be asking what we are doing holding a hearing in
the library of Kaimuki High School. Very simple. Kaimuki High School is
one of the 59 schools that has received a Hawaii 3R's grant, and with
it, they painted the school cafeteria, the ROTC building and the music
room. 3R's is not a big program. In fact, it is a little initiative I
got involved in about four years ago to address some of the smaller
repair and maintenance backlog in the public schools. Grants are given
out to those schools that are able to provide at least a 1:1 match in
sweat equity and donations of supplies and expertise, and in doing so,
build community support and pride in the schools. The new legislative
authority to expend Native Hawaiian education funds will allow 3R's to
reach out to more schools. I look forward to hearing from you about
your good work and plans for the future.
Lastly, we need to build up the certified apprenticeship and
journeymen training programs to meet the demand for skilled tradesmen
and women as Hawaii's construction industry is awakened by a surge of
military construction and the privatization of family housing. Some
have suggested an increase of 10,000 to 15,000 new jobs in the next
five to seven years. And 3,100 new construction jobs this year alone.
Whether it is technology or teaching or construction, it always
makes more sense to grow our own, to train our own, rather than to
import workers. This is especially true in Hawaii where we do not have
interstate highways to connect us to other states. Hence, I am very
interested in supporting programs that are state-certified with proven
track records to ensure that we are turning out the best; and to
partnering with our community colleges, our unions and contractor
associations in a matching program that will increase the number of
classes and instructors which will, in turn, increase the number of
qualified apprentices and journeymen to capture the jobs. I look
forward to receiving from this panel a host of recommendations and
ideas to take advantage of this economic opportunity.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR DANIEL K. AKAKA
Senator Inouye. Before I call upon the first witness, I'm
pleased and proud to call upon my colleague Senator Akaka.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much to my colleague Senator
Inouye. I want to say Aloha to all of you here.
The Audience. Aloha.
Senator Akaka. I wish to thank Chairman Inouye for inviting
me to participate in this hearing that is very, very important
to all of us in Hawaii. We're here to discuss the expansion of
the Cancer Center in Hawaii, the need to increase training and
certification of tradesmen and women to meet the growing demand
of military housing and the need to repair our public schools.
We can go on and on about our needs.
But I want to take this time to say Aloha and thank you to
Evan Dobelle, also Governor Lingle, Representatives Abercrombie
and Case, Senator Kim, speaking on behalf of Senator Bunda, and
Representative Luke, speaking on behalf of Speaker Say, and to
all of you in education and labor here, distinguished people, I
want to say mahalo nui for being here.
Mr. Chairman, I really appreciate your leadership and your
work to increase resources for research and improve access to
vital health care services. There has been tremendous progress
through research in developing more effective treatments of
cancers and in increasing access to health care services.
According to the ``Hawaii: Cancer Facts and Figures 2003
and 2004'' report, age-adjusted cancer mortality rates in
Hawaii and in the United States have continued to decline over
the last decade. Although these rates have declined, cancer
remains one of the leading causes of death in Hawaii, claiming
the lives of approximately 1,700 residents annually. In
addition, cancer disproportionately impacts certain individuals
within our communities, especially among Native Hawaiians who
have significantly higher cancer mortality rates.
Much more needs to be done to increase survival rates of
cancer through better treatments and technology, improving
access to screening and health care, and the promotion of
healthier lifestyles. In order to be successful, health care
services and outreach efforts must be linguistically and
culturally appropriate. Addressing America's diversity and the
challenges it poses to health care continues to be a major
problem. We, in Hawaii, are in a more unique situation given
our multi-cultural composition. We must be vigilant in ensuring
that Hawaii's multi-cultural population and their unique and
often divergent health care needs are met.
The Cancer Research Center of Hawaii's stated mission to
reduce the burden of cancer through research, education and
service, with an emphasis on the unique ethnic, cultural and
environmental characteristics of Hawaii in the Pacific, is
extremely important. Through the Center's work, it will help
reduce the health disparities found among our diverse
population and help others learn from our research and our
experiences. I look forward to continuing to support research
efforts so that the amount of suffering caused by cancer can be
reduced and more people are able to survive their battles with
cancer.
Another area that we will be touching upon in the hearing,
and I thank the chairman for addressing this matter, is the
growing demand on Hawaii's workforce, especially in the
construction industry. And we're looking at what we call a
double whammy.
Last month, at the request of Representative Abercrombie,
the Hawaii Institute of Pacific Affairs, Central Pacific Bank,
and Pacific Resource Partnership organized the first Hawaii
Jobs Summit. The summit brought together representatives from
the building industry, trade unions, the Department of
Education, the University of Hawaii, economists, business
leaders, and contractors to discuss the future demands on
Hawaii's labor workforce. This was an important first step, and
I thank Representative Abercrombie for his leadership in this
effort to shed light on Hawaii's need to address this labor
shortage.
As the industry experts have indicated, the growing demand
on Hawaii's construction workforce, which is expected to
increase by 70 percent over the next 10 years, provides an
excellent opportunity for Hawaii's youth and unemployed workers
to find gainful employment. However, there is much that still
needs to be done in order to ensure that we do not fall short
of meeting this demand. And this is what I mean by the double
whammy, the retirement of our workforce in the next 7 years and
also the need for new construction labor here.
As we address the emerging short-term and potential long-
term labor shortage facing Hawaii, we need the private sector,
the trade industry, the Federal, State, and local governments
to invest in training and certifying all who wish to work in
the industry. We must utilize the existing job training
programs such as Job Corps, internships, and apprentice
programs to fill some of the vacancies. But, in addition, we
also need to expand these programs and work with the
stakeholders to create new and innovative ways to meet the
long-term labor needs.
Mr. Chairman, regarding schools, I appreciate your efforts
to remedy problems in our islands with regard to school
construction. I recall my experiences as a classroom teacher
and principal, and I remember problems with termites, leaky
roofs, and peeling paint. I can picture nodding heads and
wandering eyes that showed me that a child was not paying
attention, and it was a problem that had to do with the
physical environment he or she was in, and not the material
they were supposed to learn.
Of course these problems continue to plague us today and
serve as even more of a challenge, now that more teachers are
incorporating the computer and other new technologies into
their instruction, and this expensive equipment needs a
protected environment if it is to operate well and last long.
When I visited schools in Ewa Beach last year, I especially
recall a meeting with the student government and JPOs at
Pohakea Elementary School, including an astute young man who
was the school president. He brought to my attention the fact
that students desired assistance with their facilities,
primarily air conditioning. At that and other schools, I also
saw the need for room renovations to better configure a
classroom to serve special education kids, repaint aging
buildings, and fix concrete walkways. Clearly, we know the
things that we can implement that have the potential to
increase 10-fold our keiki's ability to learn during the school
day.
However, I understand there are budget limitations that
hinder the Department of Education from addressing many of
these backlogs in infrastructure improvement in a timely
fashion, and we are missing learning opportunities every day as
kids get older and move up and out of the public education
system. This is why the 3R's method to address the $640 million
school construction problem is so compelling.
Mr. Chairman, I'm glad to be here with you. Thank you for
including me, and I thank you again for holding this hearing. I
believe that the topics that we will be discussing today are
very important to the health and well being of Hawaii's
communities and look forward to hearing our distinguished
witnesses. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. I thank you very much, Senator Akaka.
STATEMENT OF DR. EVAN S. DOBELLE, PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY
OF HAWAII
Senator Inouye. May I now call upon our first panel, the
president of the University of Hawaii, Dr. Evan Dobelle, and
the director of the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii, Dr. Carl
Vogel.
Welcome, Dr. Dobelle. And welcome, Dr. Vogel. Please
proceed.
Dr. Dobelle. Good morning, Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka,
distinguished members of the committee and, through them, your
distinguished colleague, chairman of the committee, the senior
Senator from Pennsylvania, Senator Specter.
My name is Evan Dobelle and I have the privilege of serving
as president of the University of Hawaii, a 10-campus public
university system that serves 80,000 students with an annual
expenditure budget of nearly $1 billion.
I'm here this morning with my colleague to provide
testimony on the construction of the University's new Cancer
Research Center, a state-of-the-art facility that will have a
profound impact on this country's ability to fight this deadly
disease. The building of the new center should be of primary
interest to the Nation because Hawaii provides a unique
environment in which to conduct cutting edge research that will
dramatically aid the fight in developing a cure to cancer.
Let me start by putting this topic into a broader context.
Every year over 1 million people in the United States are
diagnosed with cancer. Last year alone the costs associated
with fighting cancer in the United States was approximately
$190 billion. This is a tremendous economic burden on our
country as a whole and the individual citizens and their
families who battle this horrible disease. One of the
challenges this Nation faces is how to effectively develop
proper treatment and care for those who live with cancer, and
more importantly, how we can best find a cure.
Statistics show cancer is the second leading cause of death
in the State of Hawaii as well as our Nation, and it is the
number one killer among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
There are 12.5 million Asian Americans currently living in the
United States making them one of the largest ethnic groups in
the country and the fastest growing minority.
Why is it important that we consider race and ethnicity in
our testimony this morning? The reason is differences exist in
the incidence of cancer by race and ethnicity, but yet our
country's approach to investigating cancer thus far has been
insensitive to that fact. The reality is research can only be
enhanced when race and ethnicity are taken into account, and it
will help our government better formulate national health
strategies relevant to the entire population of our country.
Hawaii is home to the most ethnically diverse population in
the United States. It provides an ideal environment in which to
investigate the causes and study the reasons behind this
insidious disease. Examining a variety of racial and ethnic
groups in a community such as in Hawaii, where there is not a
dominant ethnicity, will assist researchers in learning how
genes, diet, environmental factors, culture and behavior affect
cancer. This opportunity can only be found in Hawaii because
the diversity that exists here cannot be replicated anywhere
else in the world.
The cancer experience among ethnic and racial groups varies
widely across the world as well as here in the United States.
The differences between groups may be related to a variety of
factors, including biology, heredity, environmental factors and
behavior. It is critical to identify clues to cancer causation
as well as ways of detecting these cancers early. Again, the
ability to identify them and treat them and ultimately prevent
them. It also helps take into account differences in
socioeconomic status, education, and access to health care
affecting cancer diagnosis and treatment throughout the world.
It is also important to recognize that our State has the
largest proportion of ethnically mixed individuals in the
country. More than 50 percent of all marriages in Hawaii are
considered ethnically or racially mixed. This makes Hawaii a
vanguard of the U.S. population of tomorrow, thus understanding
the health disparities that exist in Hawaii today is of
critical importance to the rest of the Nation and the world.
In addition to all of these unique cultural aspects, Hawaii
is also home to the U.S. Pacific Command, a unified command of
all branches of the military in the Asia Pacific region. The
Command oversees more than 300,000 military men and women,
which represents 20 percent of all active duty personnel. With
many of these soldiers deployed into remote foreign locales,
they often face unknown health risks that contribute to a
variety of illnesses, including cancer. Given that, it is
critical to the health of our men and women in uniform in the
Pacific that they have access to world class care for all
diseases, and our new facility can provide that to our
military.
The Cancer Research Center of Hawaii has been the only
National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in the
Pacific region for more than 25 years. It is strategically
located to identify the lifestyle and genetic factors that
contribute to cancer risk, to evaluate safe cancer therapies
for ethnic group patients, and to design prevention programs
that are culturally and socially appropriate. The Cancer
Research Center has a long history of community faculty members
who have dedicated careers to studying the striking variations
in cancer incidence and survival among the varying ethnic
populations in Hawaii. This year alone cancer research faculty
generated over $30 million in extramural research funds that
validate the importance of continued research of cancer
patterns among ethnic populations.
Although the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii excels as a
research unit conducting basic scientific research, population
studies, education and community outreach to identify and
communicate the causes and cures for cancer, it does not
currently perform patient diagnosis and treatment.
Incorporating direct patient care and putting research into
practice will significantly enhance both innovation and
research advancements. The location and diversity of the Cancer
Center offers our country an unprecedented opportunity to move
beyond simply researching the disease and into clinical cancer
care as it relates to ethnic populations in all people. With
the addition of a clinical component, the Cancer Center
achieves the designation of a comprehensive center by the NCI.
CRCH has excelled in studying the development of cancer but
the time is here to accelerate the benefits of our research and
put them into practice with an extraordinary physical
structure. A new and expanded Cancer Center facility will allow
for offering clinical trials with new drugs accelerating the
pace of new discoveries, thus leading to ever higher survival
rates for cancer victims. Physically combined into our
biotechnology complex in the Honolulu neighborhood of Kaka'ako
with our John A. Burns School of Medicine and private industry,
Hawaii can truly develop a powerful and sustaining biotech
industry, which only helps diversify our State's economy. And
it all fits in with the dominant recommendation from the
Governor's Blue Ribbon Panel that calls for the establishment
of a state-of-the-art multi-disciplinarian outpatient cancer
care facility run by the University of Hawaii Cancer Research
Center in close cooperation with existing health care
facilities.
We have the knowledge that must now be translated into
practice through clinical application, it thus provides
valuable and currently unavailable information for the Nation
on cancer in minority populations. The State of Hawaii offers
the only opportunity to successfully accomplish this in our
country.
Why should the Congress support such a project in the
middle of the Pacific? Simply put: It is in the Nation's best
interest to do so. The benefits of cancer research in Hawaii
are limitless. We can only continue to progress and truly
benefit society if we translate that science into practice by
conducting cancer research as it directly relates to patients'
disease. A new state-of-the-art facility located in Honolulu
offers cancer researchers across the world that opportunity.
This is not a project that just has impact on a local
population; rather the research and care that happens here will
have dramatic ripple effects throughout the entire global
medical community. We already have strong partnerships with
universities in Japan and in Guam as well as mainland
collaborations with the National Institutes of Health, the
University of California System, and Vanderbilt University.
This program is particularly significant in an age where
large numbers of our military will be fighting a global war on
terrorism for many years to come. As we continue to send the
young men and women off to protect democratic values in very
different cultures that expose them to potentially complicated
health environments, we are obligated to provide them with
cutting edge health related research and progressive public
health policies that will properly ensure they will be cared
for.
With lessons that we are still learning from Agent Orange
in Vietnam and from the Gulf War Syndrome, we must take what
history has shown us from modern day combat and ensure that our
troops be protected by dedicating significant resources in our
national health care infrastructure. A major investment in the
Cancer Research Center of Hawaii would be an extraordinary step
in that direction.
PREPARED STATEMENT
We thank you, Senators, for your time this morning and for
your consideration of this important facility. Simply put, a
strong Cancer Research Center of Hawaii means that essential
clues in this collaborative effort to fight cancer will be
unlocked and it will help in controlling cancer in all
Americans. And we thank you for your time.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Evan S. Dobelle
Good morning Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, and distinguished
members of this committee. My name is Evan Dobelle and I have the
privilege of serving as President of the University of Hawai'i, a ten-
campus public university system that serves 80,000 students and has an
annual expenditure budget of nearly $1 billion.
I am here this morning to provide testimony on the construction of
the University's new Cancer Research Center, a state of the art
facility that will have a profound impact on this country's ability to
fight this deadly disease. The building of this new center should be of
primary interest to the nation because Hawai'i provides a unique
environment in which to conduct cutting edge research that will
dramatically aid the fight in developing a cure to cancer.
Let me start by putting this topic into a broader context. Every
year over 1 million people in the United States are diagnosed with
cancer. Last year alone the costs associated with fighting cancer in
the United States were approximately $190 billion. This is a tremendous
economic burden on our country as a whole and the individual citizens
and their families who battle this horrible disease. One of the
challenges this nation faces is how to effectively develop proper
treatment care for those who live with cancer, and more importantly,
how we can best find a cure.
Statistics show cancer is the second leading cause of death in the
state of Hawai'i as well as our nation, and it is the number 1 killer
among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. There are over 12.5
million Asian Americans currently living in the United States making
them one of the largest ethnic groups in the country and the fastest
growing minority.
Why is it important that we consider race and ethnicity in our
testimony this morning? The reason is differences exist in the
incidence of cancer by race and ethnicity, but yet our country's
approach to investigating cancer thus far has been insensitive to that
fact. The reality is research can only be enhanced when race and
ethnicity are taken into account, and it will help our government
better formulate national health strategies relevant to the entire
population of our country.
Hawai'i being home to the most ethnically diverse population in the
United States, it provides an ideal environment in which to investigate
the causes and study the reasons behind this insidious disease.
Examining a variety of racial and ethnic groups in a community such as
in Hawai'i, where there is not a dominant ethnicity, will assist
researchers in learning how genes, diet, environmental factors, culture
and behavior affect cancer. This opportunity can only be found in
Hawai'i because the diversity that exists can not be replicated
anywhere in the world.
The cancer experience among ethnic and racial groups varies widely
across the world as well as here in the United States. The differences
between groups may be related to a variety of factors including
biology, heredity, environmental factors and behavior. It is critical
to identify clues to cancer causation as well as ways of detecting
these cancers early, treating them, and ultimately, preventing them. It
also helps take into account differences in socio-economic status,
education, and access to healthcare affecting cancer diagnosis and
treatment throughout the world.
It is also important to recognize our state has the largest
proportion of ethnically mixed individuals in the country. More than 50
percent of all marriages in Hawai'i are considered ethnically or
racially mixed. This makes Hawai'i a vanguard of the U.S. population of
tomorrow, thus understanding the health disparities that exist in
Hawai'i today is of critical importance to the rest of the nation and
the world.
In addition to all these unique cultural aspects, Hawaii is also
home to the U.S. Pacific Command, a unified command of all four
branches of the military in the Asia-Pacific region. USPACOM oversees
more than 300,000 military men and women, which represents 20 percent
of all active duty personnel. With many of these soldiers deployed into
remote foreign locales, they often face unknown health risks that
contribute to a variety of illnesses, including cancer. Given that, it
is critical to the health of our men and women in uniform in the
Pacific that they have access to world class care for all diseases. Our
new facility can provide that to our military.
The Cancer Research Center of Hawai'i (CRCH) has been the only
National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in the Pacific
region for more than 25 years. Thus it is strategically located to
identify the lifestyle and genetic factors that contribute to cancer
risk, to evaluate safe cancer therapies for ethnic group patients, and
to design prevention programs that are culturally and socially
appropriate. The Cancer Research Center of Hawai'i has a long history
of committed faculty members who have dedicated their careers to
studying the striking variations in cancer incidence and survival among
ethnic populations in Hawai'i. This year alone CRCH faculty generated
over $30 million in extramural research funds validating the importance
of continued research of cancer patterns among ethnic populations.
Although the Cancer Research Center of Hawai'i excels as a research
unit conducting basic scientific research, population studies,
education and community outreach to identify and communicate the causes
and cures for cancer, it does not currently perform patient diagnosis
and treatment. Incorporating direct patient care and putting research
into practice will significantly enhance both innovation and research
advancements. The location and diversity of CRCH offers our country an
unprecedented opportunity to move beyond simply researching the disease
and into clinical cancer care as it relates to ethnic populations and
all people. With the addition of a clinical component, the CRCH would
achieve the designation of a comprehensive cancer center by NCI.
CRCH has excelled in studying the development of cancer but the
time is here to accelerate the benefits of our research and put them
into practice with an extraordinary physical structure. A new and
expanded CRCH facility would allow for offering clinical trials with
new drugs accelerating the pace of new discoveries thus leading to an
ever-higher survival rate for cancer victims. Physically combined into
our biotechnology complex in the Honolulu neighborhood of Kaka'ako with
our John A. Burns School of Medicine and private industry, Hawai'i can
truly develop a powerful and sustaining biotech industry, which only
helps diversify our state's economy. This all fits in with the dominant
recommendation from the Governor's Blue Ribbon Panel that calls for the
establishment of a state-of-the-art multidisciplinary outpatient cancer
care facility run by the UH Cancer Research Center in close cooperation
with existing health care facilities.
We have the knowledge that must now be translated into practice
through clinical application, thus providing valuable and currently
unavailable information for the nation on cancer in minority
populations. The State of Hawai'i offers the only opportunity to
successfully accomplish this in our country.
Why should the Congress support such a project in the middle of the
Pacific? Simply put: It is in the nation's best interest to do so. The
benefits of cancer research in Hawai'i are limitless but we can only
continue to progress and truly benefit society if we translate our
science into practice by conducting cancer research as it directly
relates to patient's disease. A new state-of-the-art facility located
in Honolulu offers cancer researchers across the world that
opportunity. This in not a project that just has impact on a local
population; rather the research and care that happens here will have
dramatic ripple effects throughout the entire global medical community.
We already have strong partnerships with universities in Japan and Guam
as well as mainland collaborations with the National Institutes of
Health, the University of California System and Vanderbilt University.
This program is particularly significant in an age where large
numbers of our military will be fighting a global war on terrorism for
many years to come. As we continue to send young men and women off to
protect democratic values in very different cultures that expose them
to potentially complicated health environments, we are obligated to
provide them cutting edge health related research and progressive
public health policies that properly ensure they will be cared for.
With lessons that we are still learning from agent orange in Vietnam
and from the Gulf War Syndrome, we must take what history has shown us
from modern day combat and ensure our troops be protected by dedicating
significant resources in our national health care infrastructure. A
major investment in the Cancer Research Center of Hawai'i would be an
extraordinary step in that direction.
Thank you again for your time this morning and for your
consideration of this important facility. Simply put, a strong Cancer
Research Center of Hawai'i means that essential clues in this
collaborative effort to fight cancer will be unlocked and it will help
in controlling cancer in all Americans.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Dr. Dobelle.
STATEMENT OF DR. CARL VOGEL, DIRECTOR, CANCER RESEARCH
CENTER OF HAWAII
Senator Inouye. May I now invite Dr. Vogel.
Dr. Vogel. Good morning, Senator Inouye. Good morning,
Senator Akaka, and members of the senate subcommittee staff. My
name is Carl Wilhelm Vogel and I am the director of the Cancer
Research Center of Hawaii at the University of Hawaii. I'm also
grateful for the opportunity to share with you some of the
exciting research opportunities for cancer here in Hawaii, as
well as some of the challenges that we face in taking full
advantage of these research opportunities.
Our cancer center, as President Dobelle indicated, is one
of currently 61 NCI-designated cancer centers and, therefore, a
member of the most distinguished cancer centers in the Nation.
We have reached membership in this elite group of cancer
centers because of the ethnic diversity of our State which
offers indeed unique research opportunities.
Chart 1 shows the population by race and ethnicity of the
State of Hawaii from the 2000 census. As most of you are
familiar with, there is no majority group in Hawaii, with
Caucasians, Hawaiians, Japanese, Filipinos, and Chinese
representing the five major ethnic groups, and as much as 70
percent of our population is made out of many other ethnicities
from many Asian countries and very many Pacific islands. The
ethnic levels of our State is unparalleled in this country and,
for that matter, in the world.
With regard to cancer research, it provides a unique
opportunity because the incidence of cancer in different ethnic
groups varies tremendously. As chart 2 shows, as an example,
that is the breast cancer incidence in Hawaii, and it is the
highest in our Hawaiian population and the lowest in our
Filipino population; almost a factor of two.
The next chart shows a similar graph showing male
colorectal cancer in Hawaii. And here it is the Japanese
population that is at the highest risk and our Chinese
population is at the lowest risk. And one more example, a very
dramatic example of incidence shown in the next chart, which
shows thyroid cancer for which Filipino women are, by far, at
the highest risk of developing this disease.
Another very similar observation from our cancer center, as
shown in the next panel, it relates to immigrants and cancer in
immigrants. It shows that the incidence of breast cancer is
relatively low in Japan, but higher in Japanese immigrants to
Hawaii, and even higher in second generation Japanese born in
Hawaii. It is still lower than if you are caucasian living in
Hawaii.
There is another aspect of cancer health disparities in our
State which we address in our cancer center. The last chart
shows the average rates for cancer incidence and mortality for
the different ethnic groups. As you can see, Hawaiians have
only the second highest incidence but the highest mortality of
cancer, as Senator Akaka alluded to. Furthermore, whereas heart
disease is the leading cause of death for most Americans, it is
cancer that is the leading cause of death for Asian Americans
and Pacific Islanders.
Given the deficits in incidence of our different ethnic
groups, our cancer center has excelled in the opportunity to
study the causes of cancer. Is it genes? Is it diet? Is it
other environmental factors? Is it culture? Is it behavior? And
the research results relating to the understanding of the
causes of cancer that we discover here are obviously of
relevance for the entire U.S. population. However, we are
severely restricted in conducting clinical cancer research as
it directly relates to patients' disease and the study of new
devices and therapies. Our limitations for clinical cancer
research are a consequence of the fact that our cancer center
is not involved in cancer care. Our limitations for conducting
clinical cancer research are regrettable as we have the same
unique opportunities in our State for clinical research. The
greatest impediment for progress in cancer care is the
translation of newly gained knowledge into clinical
application.
Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, the Director of the National
Cancer Institute, has clearly formulated the goals of the
Nation's effort in addressing the cancer burden: Discovery,
development and delivery. In order to translate newly gained
knowledge, it needs to be developed into new procedures and
drugs in a well-controlled clinical research setting in order
to ultimately make better cancer care delivery available to all
cancer patients.
The NCI-designated cancer centers play a very crucial role
in this translational research, a role that will become even
more important with both a growing body of knowledge and a
growing cancer burden. If there would be a state-of-the-art
care facility in Hawaii, we could not only contribute to the
important translational research effort of the Nation, but also
contribute to insight and knowledge that could not be generated
elsewhere, again due to our multi-ethnic population.
Most clinical trials involving new drugs have been
conducted in a caucasian patient population. However, different
drugs have different therapeutic effects and different side
effects in different populations. It is therefore very
important that minority populations participate in the clinical
trials of new drugs that emerge from the research pipeline. We
would be able to enroll many patients of different minorities
into these studies, as approximately three quarters of our
population in Hawaii would present minorities from a mainland
perspective.
Conducting clinical trials with innovative drugs in Hawaii
will not only have a benefit for the Nation's translational
research efforts, it will also have a very tangible benefit for
patients in our State. For more than 50 percent of our cancer
patients we cannot offer any curative care at this point. The
enrollment in a clinical trial, and particularly in a trial
with a novel drug that emerges from the latest research,
represents, in many cases, the only hope for a cure. And with
an ever increasing body of knowledge, the emergence of
rationally designed drugs that specifically interfere with the
molecular disease process in a given cancer will increase, and
it is only reasonable to anticipate that clinical trials will
increasingly provide a chance for a cure.
Unfortunately, in the absence of a dedicated cancer care
facility that provides comprehensive cancer care in an academic
setting, access to clinical trials, with novel drugs, will be
very limited for cancer patients in Hawaii. As a consequence,
some patients and their families who have the means to do so
are traveling to the mainland to enroll in such clinical
trials, with all of the burden and difficulties, financial and
otherwise, that this travel means for the affected families at
a time when family, life and work is already burdened with a
life-threatening disease. And this is, of course, an option
that is not available for most of our patients.
Limited access to clinical trials was also identified by
the Blue Ribbon Panel appointed by Governor Cayetano a few
years ago and to build a comprehensive cancer center in the
State of Hawaii was indeed a prominent recommendation of this
panel.
There's one last issue that I need to share with you with
regard to the cancer burden in our State. Nationwide, the
overall incidence of cancer is leveling off or even starting to
show signs of decline. However, cancer is predominantly a
disease of age. This fact has very important consequences for
the cancer burden of our Nation in the future. As the life
expectancy of Americans increases, the number of people 65 and
older is constantly increasing. Given these demographics, it is
predicted that the number of new cancer cases in the United
States will double by the year 2050, from approximately 1.2
million new cases per year to almost 2.5 million cases per
year.
Unfortunately, these numbers are even more dramatic for the
State of Hawaii as the growth of our older population is
outpacing that of the United States as a whole. The doubling of
cancer cases for our State will be reached by the year 2030
which will be within the lifetime of many of us in the room
here today.
PREPARED STATEMENT
We need to be prepared to address this growing burden of
cancer in our State. As I am foremost a physician, I have been
working very hard and will continue to do so to convince
stakeholders within our State and at the national level that
you must join forces to build a comprehensive cancer care
facility in our State for our local patients and for the
Nation's effort to combat this terrible disease.
Thank you very much for the opportunity to testify this
morning.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Carl-Wilhelm Vogel
Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, distinguished members and staff of
the Senate Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education,
and Related Agencies.
My name is Carl-Wilhelm Vogel. I am the director of the Cancer
Research Center of Hawaii at the University of Hawaii. I am grateful
for the opportunity to share with you some of the exciting research
opportunities for cancer in the State of Hawaii, as well as some of the
challenges that we face in both taking full advantage of these research
opportunities and delivering the best possible care to our cancer
patients.
Our cancer center is one of currently 61 NCI-designated cancer
centers and, therefore, a member of the most distinguished cancer
research centers in the nation. We have reached membership in this
elite group of cancer centers because outstanding cancer center faculty
have taken advantage of the very unique research opportunities that
exist in our state for cancer research.
The basis for this unique research opportunity is the ethnic
diversity of our state's population. Chart 1 shows the population by
race or ethnicity of the State of Hawaii from the 2000 census. There is
no majority ethnic group in Hawaii, with Caucasians, Hawaiians,
Japanese, Filipinos, and Chinese representing the five major ethnic
groups. The remaining 13 percent are made up of Koreans, Vietnamese,
other Asians, African Americans, Samoans, and many other Pacific
Islanders. The ethnic diversity of our state is unparalleled in the
country and, for that matter, in the world.
Whereas for all races combined, individuals in Hawaii generally
have a somewhat lower cancer incidence compared to the United States as
a whole, there is great variation in the incidence of different cancers
in the different ethnic groups. Let me share with you some incidence
data for selected cancer sites. Chart 2 shows that the incidence of
breast cancer is the highest in Hawaiians and the lowest in Filipinos.
Chart 3 shows the incidence of colorectal cancer in males where
Japanese have the highest and Chinese have the lowest incidence. Chart
4 displays data for prostate cancer where Caucasians have the highest
and Hawaiians have the lowest incidence. Chart 5 shows a dramatic
example of incidence differences for thyroid cancer which is by far
most common in Filipino women. These data demonstrate the incredible
differences of cancer incidence among our different ethnic groups. As a
matter of fact, there is no major ethnic group in our state that is not
at highest risk of developing cancer at a given organ site.
Another seminal observation from our cancer center relates to the
cancer incidence in migrants. Chart 6 shows that the incidence of
breast cancer is relatively low in Japan, but higher in Japanese
immigrants to Hawaii, and even higher in second generation Japanese
born in Hawaii. This breast cancer incidence, however is still lower
than that of Caucasians living in Hawaii. A reversed situation exists
for stomach cancer where immigration to Hawaii reduces the incidence in
Japanese. Collectively, the differences in incidence rates for
different cancers in the different ethnic groups in our state provide
for an unparalleled research opportunity to study the multifactorial
causes of cancer: genes, diet, other environmental factors, culture,
and behavior. This research opportunity is unparalleled, and research
results relating to the understanding of the causes of cancer are of
relevance for the entire U.S. population. As a matter of fact, our
research concepts are being exported to the mainland. Dr. Laurence
Kolonel of our Cancer Center follows a multiethnic cohort of over
200,000 individuals, which includes African Americans and Hispanics in
California.
There is another aspect of cancer health disparities in our state,
which our cancer center is addressing. Chart 7 shows the average rates
of males and females for overall cancer incidence and mortality for the
different ethnic groups. As you can see, Hawaiians have only the second
highest cancer incidence, but by far the highest mortality due to
cancer. Furthermore, whereas heart disease is the leading cause of
death for most Americans, it is cancer that is the leading cause of
death for Asians and Pacific Islanders in our country. This is more
likely to reflect differences in socio-economic status, education, and
access to health care. This is further illustrated by Chart 8 that
displays the percentages of early stage versus late stage of colorectal
cancer at the time of diagnosis among the different ethnic groups. As
you can see, Hawaiians and Filipinos are more likely to be diagnosed
when their cancer is already in an advanced state.
Given this research opportunity our cancer center has excelled in
studying the epidemiology of cancer with particular emphasis on diet
and cancer, behavioral aspects of cancer, and genetics of cancer.
However, we are severely restricted in conducting clinical cancer
research as it directly relates to patient's disease, and the study of
new devices and therapies. Our limitations for clinical research are a
consequence of the fact that our cancer center is for all practical
purposes a research center, and not involved in cancer care. Cancer
patients do not come to our cancer center for diagnosis or therapy. As
a consequence, it is not recognized as a comprehensive cancer center by
the NCI. Our limitations for conducting clinical cancer research are
regrettable as we have the same unique opportunities in our state for
clinical research. As you are very well aware of, the greatest
impediment for progress in cancer care is the translation of newly
gained knowledge into clinical application. Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach,
the director of the NCI, has clearly formulated the goals of the
nation's efforts in addressing the cancer burden: discovery,
development, and delivery. In order to translate newly gained knowledge
it needs to be developed into new procedures and drugs in a well-
controlled clinical research setting involving cancer patients in order
to ultimately make better cancer care delivery available to all cancer
patients. The NCI-designated cancer centers play a crucial role in this
translational research, a role that will become even more important
with both a growing body of knowledge and a growing cancer burden. If
there would be a state of the art cancer care facility in the State of
Hawaii, we could not only contribute to the important translational
research effort of the nation, but also contribute an insight and
knowledge that could not be generated elsewhere, again due to our
multi-ethnic population. Most clinical trials involving new drugs have
been conducted in a Caucasian patient population. However, as all of
you are aware of, different drugs have different therapeutic effects
and different side effects in different populations and individuals.
And much for the same reason that the different genetic makeup of
different ethnic groups in our state contributes to the different
incidence of cancer, it also contributes to the different efficacy and
side effects of anti-cancer drugs. It is therefore important that
minority populations participate in the clinical trials of new drugs
that emerge from the research pipeline. If we were able to conduct
clinical trials with innovative new drugs in phase I and phase II
studies at a comprehensive cancer center in Hawaii we would be able to
enroll many patients of different minorities into these studies as
approximately three-quarters of our population represent minorities
from a mainland perspective.
Conducting clinical trials with innovative drugs in Hawaii will not
only have a benefit for the nation's translational research efforts in
cancer. It will also have a tangible benefit for patients in our state.
In the area of cancer, enrollment in a clinical trial is almost
considered the standard of care. For more than fifty percent of our
cancer patients we cannot offer any curative care at this point. The
enrollment in a clinical trial, and particularly in a clinical trial
with a novel drug that emerges from the latest research, represents in
many cases the only hope for a cure for many cancer patients. And with
our ever increasing body of knowledge the emergence of rationally
designed drugs that specifically interfere with the molecular disease
process in a given cancer will increase; and it is only reasonable to
anticipate that clinical trials in the future will increasingly provide
a chance for a cure. Unfortunately, in the absence of a dedicated
cancer care facility that provides comprehensive cancer care in an
academic setting, access to clinical trials, with novel drugs will be
very limited for cancer patients in Hawaii. As a consequence, patients
and their families are traveling to the mainland to be enrolled in such
clinical trials, with all the burden and difficulties, financial and
otherwise, that this travel means for the affected families. And all
this at a time when family, life, and work is already burdened with a
life-threatening disease, at a time when you want to be as close to
your family, your home, and support base as possible and not spend days
or weeks on end in a hotel on the mainland. As difficult as it is for
those patients and their families who have the education and the means
to travel to the mainland to be enrolled in a clinical trial, this
option is not available for the majority of our cancer patients in the
state. Fragmented cancer care and limited access to clinical trials was
also identified by a blue ribbon panel appointed to look into cancer
care in the State of Hawaii by Governor Cayetano in 1999. Prominently
among the recommendations that the members of the blue ribbon panel
unanimously made in their final report to the governor was a
recommendation to build a comprehensive cancer center in the State of
Hawaii.
There is one last issue that I need to share with you with regard
to the cancer burden in our state. Nation-wide the overall incidence of
cancer is leveling off or even starting to show signs of decline.
However, cancer is predominately a disease of age. Whereas it can
strike children and even fetuses, seventy-five percent of all new
cancers occur in individuals 55 and older. This fact has very important
consequences for the cancer burden of our nation in the future. As the
life expectancy of Americans increases, the number of people 65 and
older is constantly increasing. Given these demographics, it is
predicted that the number of new cancer cases in the United States will
double by the year 2050, from currently approximately 1.2 million new
cases per year to almost 2.5 million cases per year. Unfortunately,
these numbers are even more dramatic for the State of Hawaii as the
growth of our older population is outpacing that of the United States
as a whole. The doubling of cancer cases for our state from currently
approximately 5,500 per year to well over 10,000 is predicted to be
reached by the year 2030, which will be within the lifetime of many of
us in the room here today. We need to be prepared to address this
growing burden of cancer in our state. As I am foremost a physician, I
have been working very hard and will continue to do so to convince
stake holders within our state and at the national level that we must
join forces to build a comprehensive cancer care facility in our state
for our local patients and for the nation's effort to combat this
terrible disease.
I thank you very much for the opportunity to testify to your
subcommittee.
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Dr. Vogel.
I wish to commend both of you for taking the initiative in
recommending that this project be approved by the Congress of
the United States. Because I'm convinced that this center has
the potential of being Hawaii's greatest contribution, with the
help of our citizens, not just Hawaii but our Nation, and for
that matter of the world.
Dr. Dobelle, this is part of the university, is it not?
Dr. Dobelle. Yes, sir, it is.
Senator Inouye. Have you drafted design plans, or any
plans?
Dr. Dobelle. We are in the process of doing that now,
Senator. Working with the facilities at the Kaka'ako site over
the next 6 months, we will develop final siting plans and then
the architectural renderings.
Senator Inouye. In the drafting of this plan and design,
have you been in consultation with the National Cancer
Institute?
Dr. Dobelle. I believe Dr. Vogel has been in conversation,
we had the national health representatives out here this last
week, with representatives from the University of California,
Davis and Vanderbilt University. We've made a number of trips
and Dr. Vogel has made many trips to the National Cancer
Institute as well as NIH.
Dr. Vogel. The National Cancer Institute review panel that
we use at our cancer center at regular intervals has clearly
identified the need to develop a clinical research component as
the greatest one for our cancer center.
Senator Inouye. Is there any cancer center with the
potential of this project in the United States?
Dr. Dobelle. No, sir, there is not.
Senator Inouye. Anywhere in the world?
Dr. Dobelle. No, sir, there is not.
Senator Inouye. Assuming that everything goes well, when
will your plans be ready for submission to the Congress?
Dr. Dobelle. Senator, we can expedite those immediately. I
would say within 6 months. It could probably be within 6 weeks,
if that was critical?
Senator Inouye. Do you have any estimate as to the cost
involved?
Dr. Dobelle. Somewhere in the proximity of $100 million?
Senator Inouye. That is just construction?
Dr. Dobelle. Yes, sir.
Senator Inouye. What about equipment?
Dr. Dobelle. That would include the laboratory, Senator,
excuse me, that would include laboratory. It would not the
desks and furniture, but it would include the physical aspects
of the laboratory as necessary to conduct research.
Senator Inouye. Well, I don't want to rush you because
often times in rushing a project you make unnecessary mistakes.
But if we are to consider this for funding in the next fiscal
year, I would say that you would have to have your plans in our
hands by the end of June at the latest. But, otherwise, we'll
have to consider this for the following fiscal year?
Dr. Dobelle. We will have it to you by the end of June,
sir.
Senator Inouye. Dr. Vogel, is your center ready to take
over this world project?
Dr. Vogel. We are, Senator.
Senator Inouye. Senator Akaka.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
I want to thank you for your statements, which were very
revealing. President Dobelle, you mentioned in your statement
that the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii will be physically
combined into a biotechnology complex at Kaka'ako with the John
A. Burns School of Medicine as well as the private industry.
That is an interesting combination.
My question to you is to ask you to inform the committee
about the benefits that you will expect from this combined
complex in Kaka'ako?
Dr. Dobelle. Thank you, Senator. That goes to the heart of
the question of leveraging taxpayers' resources, and this is
something that not only does well in investigating disease but
also in expanding and diversifying the economy of the State of
Hawaii.
The new John A. Burns School of Medicine under
construction, the first building open in September 2004, the
last building in 2005, would be adjacent to the Cancer Research
Center and the Pacific biotechnology facilities of the
University of Hawaii. There are, as you and Senator Inouye
have, with your colleagues, given resources to the National
Institute of Health where there's almost $23 billion a year now
available for biotechnology research, when you add in the other
monies that are available through cancer, heart funds, and
Muscular Dystrophy, and other kinds of non profit
organizations, there's approximately another $12 to $13
billion, which leaves $35 billion in research available.
If one were to use the term ``market share,'' the increase
of the ability of the Burns School of Medicine, which produces
$7 million in research annually today, along with the Cancer
Research Institute, which produces $30 million a year at the
present time, we expect that we would be able to have at least
$200, $300, or $400 million a year more in research money being
brought to Hawaii, at a minimum; and working with venture
capitalists, this is a powerful enough university, and because
of you and Senator Inouye, with the aid of the largest
federally sourced research institute in the United States.
Many people presume we need multi-universities to create a
biotechnology world. You don't. People will look at 128 outside
of Boston, look at all the universities, Harvard, and MIT, and
others, Boston University, Boston College, look at the triangle
in North Carolina, between North Carolina State--Duke, and
Capitol Hill, the University of Texas--Austin alone, the
University of California--San Diego alone, University of
Washington in Seattle alone.
The University of Hawaii alone, particularly reaching out
to the Pacific to our partners in Japan, in China, in Guam has
the capacity to be a powerful, powerful biotechnology industry
for the world located here in Hawaii. And, therefore, the
resources that are not only being given, perhaps by the
government, to be able to find cures for cancer, particularly
using the protocols of the Asian American population here, also
has the capacity to hugely diversify the economy of Hawaii
which right now is heavily dependent, as you well know, on
tourism and on the military.
Senator Akaka. Dr. Vogel, you mentioned in your statement
what you've been doing. I'd like to ask you to describe just
one of your innovative research projects that has been
conducted by the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii, and
especially how, having it done in Hawaii, makes a difference.
Dr. Vogel. Well, there obviously have been many projects
over many years, Senator Akaka. But one very large project that
comes to mind that is conducted out of the leadership of Dr.
Laurence Kolonel in our Cancer Center is a large multi-ethnic
cohort. Dr. Kolonel and his colleagues here in Hawaii and in
collaboration with the University of Southern California's
Cancer Center have a cohort of over 215,000 individuals
enrolled in a long-term study to track individuals over many
decades and they're collecting a large biorepository of
materials from these individuals so that in the future we can
go back and analyze these and understand why or why not
individuals may have developed cancer. That is the largest
cohort, to my knowledge, in the United States, and probably for
that matter in the world.
Senator Inouye. Well, gentlemen, I thank you very much for
your testimony and I'm certain you can sense our enthusiasm for
it. And I can ensure you that your congressional delegation
will do everything possible to make certain that this
contribution of ours becomes a reality. I think this is a
worthy project, worthy of Hawaii, and worthy of the scientific
community. So I look forward to working with you.
We'll have your design plans when?
Dr. Dobelle. The first of June.
Senator Inouye. First of June. Thank you very much, Dr.
Dobelle and Dr. Vogel.
Dr. Dobelle. Thank you for your leadership, Senator.
Dr. Vogel. Thank you.
STATEMENT OF MS. DEW-ANNE LANGCOAN, VICE PRESIDENT,
HAWAII PACIFIC HEALTH
Senator Inouye. Now may I call upon the vice president of
the Hawaii Pacific Health, Ms. Dew-Anne Langcoan, and the
president and chief executive officer of the Queen's Health
Systems, Dr. Gary Okamoto, and Dr. Jonathan Cho.
Ms. Langcoan.
Ms. Langcoan. Thank you. Good morning, Senator Inouye and
Senator Akaka, members of the committee and guests. My name is
Dew-Anne Langcoan. I'm executive vice-president for Hawaii
Pacific Health, which is the parent organization for Kapiolani
Medical Center, Pali Momi Medical Center, Straub Clinic &
Hospital, Wilcox Hospital, and Kaua'i Medical Clinic on the
Island of Kaua'i.
As we have already heard, the Cancer Research Center of
Hawaii is already an important contributor to the national
cancer scene. However, it has the potential to become a
national role model in cancer research with expansion to
comprehensive status and the addition of an outpatient clinical
cancer facility. To understand the Cancer Center's full
potential, we can look to the priorities set forth by the
National Cancer Institute for 2004.
The NCI plans to redouble its efforts to eliminate
disparities in cancer research and treatment related to gender
and race. Progress in the treatment of cancer will depend
largely on the development of new drug therapies. The FDA has
already begun to recognize the importance of studying such
ethnic differences by often requiring ethnic diversity among
clinical trials participants. Hawaii is a very unique location
to conduct such clinical trials because of its ethnically
diverse population which is also clustered in a close
geographical area. It is just about the only place in the world
where a physician researcher can simultaneously study the
treatment of Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, or Hawaiian
patients as compared with a larger population of caucasian
patients. Expanded research capabilities in Hawaii would
improve worldwide cancer treatment by customizing therapy to
each patient's ethnicity.
Another priority of the NCI is increasing the understanding
of genes and the environment on the effective approaches to
cancer. The study of family registries and environmental risk
factors are high priorities. Researchers require a stable
population in order to have a stable gene pool to study.
Hawaii's population is very stable with low rates of in and out
migration and often times multiple generations of the same
family living in the same area. Next to Utah, Hawaii offers the
most robust concentration of multi-generational families who
have lived in the same environmental area. Both factors are
critical to effective genetic cancer research.
Next, the National Cancer Institute's vision is to more
fully integrate discovery activity by bringing basic scientists
and clinicians together to find the answers. The vast majority
of cancer centers across the country are based in university
hospitals with exclusive physician faculty groups. In such
closed systems getting new treatments into the university's
primary care clinics is relatively easy but the dissemination
of that knowledge to private practitioners of the community is
very slow and often impossible. Cancer centers struggle to get
new discoveries and clinical trials into main stream medicine.
Here, again, Hawaii is unique. Instead of a single dominant
university hospital, Hawaii has adopted a community-based
network of affiliated hospitals and teaching faculty
physicians. With expansion into a clinical facility via a
public/private partnership, the Cancer Research Center of
Hawaii must develop a model that works within our community-
based framework. Rather than competing with private hospitals
and physicians, the clinical facility can serve all providers
and connect the community as a hub with many spokes into the
cancer care delivery network. Few cancer centers across the
country have achieved such close integration with community
providers. Hawaii's comprehensive cancer center could serve as
a template for a system that quickly moves new discoveries from
the bench to the bed side.
PREPARED STATEMENT
Finally, the NCI is interested in furthering the study of
bioinformatics. The ability to capture electronic cancer
medical data for an entire community, trend it and study it
through disciplined research is unprecedented to date. Hawaii
has a once in a lifetime opportunity to create such a community
wide cancer data repository. Three of the largest health care
providers in the state have independently selected the same
vendor for their future electronic medical record needs. No
other community in the country can boast a single information
platform from which to collect cancer data. Hawaii could be the
first.
Hawaii is unique in so many ways, and its ability to
contribute to cancer research throughout the country and the
world is immense. Funding for an expanded research and clinical
facility can provide the needed fuel to accelerate Hawaii's
fulfillment of its potential.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Dew-Anne Langcoan
Honorable Committee Chair, Members and Guests: The Cancer Research
Center of Hawaii plays a vital role in cancer treatment today by making
available cooperative clinical trials and research leadership to
physicians and local hospitals. While already an important contributor
to the national cancer scene as one of only 61 NCI designated cancer
centers, the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii has the potential to be a
national role model for cancer research with an expansion of the Center
to comprehensive status and the addition of a centralized outpatient
clinical cancer facility. To understand the tremendous research
potential the Cancer Center has, we can look to the priorities set
forth by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for 2004.
The NCI plans to redouble its efforts to eliminate disparities in
cancer research and treatment related to gender and race. Hawaii can
play an important role in accomplishing this goal via the study of the
differences in effects of therapies and drug treatments between ethnic
groups. Progress in the treatment of cancer depends largely on the
development of new drug therapies, and the FDA has already begun to
recognize the importance of studying such ethnic differences.
Historically, the FDA approved drugs on the assumption that those found
safe and effective in Caucasian males would be equally safe and
effective in other humans including women, children and people of other
ethnic origins. Today, however, it is widely accepted that a person's
response to a medication does indeed vary according to gender, age and
ethnicity. Increasingly, the FDA requires ethnic diversity among
clinical trial participants. Hawaii is a unique location for such
clinical trials because of its ethnically diverse population that is
also clustered within a close geographical area. It is just about the
only place in the world where a physician researcher can simultaneously
study the treatment of Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Hawaiian,
or patients of other ethnic origin as compared with Caucasian patients.
Expanded research capabilities in Hawaii would improve worldwide cancer
treatment by furthering the customization of therapy to the patient's
ethnicity.
Another priority of the National Cancer Institute is increasing the
understanding of genes and the environment on the effective approaches
to cancer prevention, early detection, and treatment. The study of
family registries and environmental risk factors for susceptibility of
cancer genes are high priorities in the national cancer agenda. To
accomplish such, researchers require a stable population in order to
have a stable gene pool to study. Hawaii's population is very stable
with low rates of in and out migration and often times multiple
generations of the same family living in the same area. Next to Utah,
Hawaii offers the most robust concentration of multigenerational
families who have lived in the same environmental area--both factors
are critical to effective genetic cancer research studies.
Thirdly, the National Cancer Institute's vision is to strive to
more fully integrate discovery activities by bringing basic scientists
and clinicians together to find the answers. The vast majority of
cancer centers in the country are based in university hospitals with
closed faculty physician groups. While the translation of new
discoveries into the university's own primary care clinics is
relatively easy in such a closed system, dissemination of the knowledge
to community based private practitioners is very slow and often
impossible. Cancer centers across the nation struggle to get new
discoveries and clinical trials into mainstream medicine in order to
reach a large number of patients. Here again, Hawaii us unique. Rather
than a single dominant university hospital, Hawaii has adopted a
community-based network of affiliated teaching hospitals and physician
faculty. With an expansion into a clinical facility via a public/
private partnership, the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii must develop
a model that works within our community-based framework. Rather than
competing with private hospitals and physicians, the clinical facility
must serve all providers and connect the community as the hub with many
spokes into the cancer care delivery network. Few cancer centers across
the country have achieved such close integration with community
providers. Hawaii's comprehensive cancer center can serve as a template
for a system that quickly moves new discoveries into mainstream
medicine for faster benefit to patients.
Finally, the National Cancer Institute is interested in furthering
the study of bioinformatics. The ability to capture electronic medical
data for an entire community, trend it and study it through disciplined
research is unprecedented to date. Hawaii has a unique, once in a
lifetime, opportunity to create such a community-wide cancer data
repository with three of the largest healthcare providers in the state
having independently selected the exact same vendor for their future
electronic medical record needs. No other community in the country can
currently boast a single information platform from which to collect
data. Hawaii could be the first. Additionally, a community-wide
electronic medical record would make it even easier for primary care
providers to access clinical trials from their desktops thus increasing
the speed of getting the latest in scientific knowledge to the patient
bedside.
Hawaii is unique in so many ways, and its ability to contribute
toward the advancement of cancer research throughout the country is
immense. Funding for an expanded research and clinical facility can
provide the needed fuel to accelerate Hawaii's fulfillment of its
potential by pulling together, academic, clinical, research and
community cancer providers as a team in the fight against cancer.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, ma'am.
STATEMENT OF DR. OKAMOTO, PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE
QUEEN'S HEALTH SYSTEMS
Senator Inouye. Now may I call upon Dr. Okamoto.
Dr. Okamoto. Good morning, Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka,
and I'd like to acknowledge other distinguished guests and
witnesses who are here today. Thank you for this opportunity to
share my views regarding cancer care and its relationship to
our national interest.
Queen's roots go back to the mid-1800s when epidemics were
decimating the indigenous Hawaiian population and were
threatening the very existence of Hawaii as a sovereign nation.
Seeking a strategy to restore the health of their people, Queen
Emma and King Kamehameha IV founded Queen's Hospital in 1859.
Now, 145 years later, Queen's Medical Center, its doctors
and nurses, face the silent epidemic of cancer among the people
of Hawaii that you have heard from preceding experts. Cancer
clearly negatively affects several objectives of our broad
national interest which are of great relevance to our
discussion today: The health of our citizens, our economic
productivity, and quality of life.
My testimony, however, attempts to address these objectives
of national interest from the standpoint of a community based
strategy that builds on existing institutions and their core
competencies in cancer care and at the same time respects the
importance of having a comprehensive cancer designation for our
Cancer Center that Dr. Vogel described.
We propose that the Queen's Medical Center be designated as
a comprehensive coordinator, a role, if you will, for cancer
research, education, and service in Hawaii. In a collaborative
relationship that builds upon our existing track record, the
medical center leaders can bring together the Cancer Research
Center of Hawaii, the John A. Burns School of Medicine, the
University of Hawaii School of Nursing, the Tripler Army
Medical Center, the Veterans Administration and Clinic Program,
and other key providers, like Hawaii Pacific Health, who have
demonstrated their expertise in research, education and
clinical service.
For Hawaii's small size and geographic isolation, such a
programmatic approach would optimize finite resources and avoid
wasteful duplication of facilities, technology and health care
professionals. Our community-based model calls for a community-
based system of coordination among existing capable
institutions and not for a model of centralization and
redundancy.
The proposed coordinated cancer program would have four
broad inter-related objectives. First, integration: Existing
providers of cancer care would be coordinated and integrated
into a program that links clinical services with research and
education. The integration must bring value to the person and
family in their home and community and island culture.
Second, economic sustainability: The program would need to
be sustainable in the long run avoiding the duplication of
capital intense resources and recognizing the critical
shortages of many knowledgeable workers in health care. The
program would set goals for individual institutions to build on
their respective core competencies in cancer.
Third, flow of research to provider: Research needs to be
driven by patients and patient care, not the other way around.
Across the Nation the finest comprehensive cancer programs,
such as MD Anderson and The Mayo Clinic, have the patient as
the focus of treatment. With appropriate Federal support,
Queen's could build upon its existing relationship with the
University of Hawaii and other local health care institutions
to create a seamless flow between patient care and research.
Fourth, access: Access to the highest quality of cancer
care to community screening, to outreach workers linking at-
risk individuals to the appropriate physicians, nurses,
resources and facilities as quickly as possible is our highest
priority. We know that native Hawaiians have the highest
mortality rates for cancer, for example, because they do not
receive cancer care earlier enough. Early diagnosis and timely
intervention is essential to cancer care and survival. We know
that only the wealthiest among us have the economic means to
travel to the Continental United States to access centers like
Mayo and MD Anderson. And Queen's is determined to provide
Hawaii's people with access to similar quality of care as the
best centers in our Nation. To offer anything else would
compromise the values of our Ali`i founders. And we would do
that in coordination and integration with other leading health
care providers.
Through such a comprehensive cancer program that is
community based, we believe that cancer care capacity of Hawaii
would be expanded and strengthened to address national interest
concerns, namely, access to health care, economic productivity
and quality of life.
Thank you for the opportunity to share my views.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Dr. Okamoto.
STATEMENT OF DR. JONATHAN K. CHO, A PRACTICING
COMMUNITY ONCOLOGIST
Senator Inouye. Dr. Cho.
Dr. Cho. Good morning, Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka,
distinguished members of the audience. My name is Jonathan Cho
and I'm a physician specializing in the care of cancer
patients.
For the past 12 years, I have been associated with the
Cancer Research Center of Hawaii through its clinical trials
program. This association has enabled my patients and I to
actively participate in clinical trials. The Cancer Research
Center of Hawaii has been the focal point of cancer research in
Hawaii for many years. Their commitment to the promotion of
clinical studies over the years has given hundreds of patients
access to new cancer treatments.
I'm here today to provide a practicing physician's
perspective on having a comprehensive cancer center in Hawaii.
I see several advantages for the establishment and development
of such an institution. Unlike many other diseases, optimal
care of the cancer patient requires a coordinated effort by
many different disciplines. First, having a comprehensive
cancer center would provide a setting in which such coordinated
multi-disciplinary care would be delivered.
Second, a comprehensive cancer center would provide cancer
patients access to new and innovative cancer treatments.
Presently, the majority of cutting edge cancer treatments are
administered in academic centers and/or in designated cancer
centers throughout the country. Patients cared for at these
institutions have the opportunity to receive state-of-the-art
treatment. The presence of a comprehensive cancer center here
will make it much easier to attract and conduct such studies in
Hawaii and thus give our patients similar opportunities.
Third, a comprehensive cancer center in this community is
likely to enhance the knowledge of the medical professional
caring for cancer patients. Such an institution would attract
notable researchers and academicians. This, in turn, may result
in training programs for young physicians and paramedical
personnel creating an environment which nurtures learning and
research. Continued medical education programs would improve,
all being focused, and hopefully resulting in enhancing the
medical professional's knowledge base.
Finally, and probably most important, Hawaii's unique and
diverse ethnic population creates fertile ground for the study
of cancer. According to the 2000 U.S. census, Hawaii leads the
Nation with 41.6 percent of its 1.2 million people reporting an
Asian heritage. This is significant because, as a small State,
Hawaii has the fourth highest percentage of foreign-born
residents in the United States.
The National Cancer Institute's cooperative network
institutions conducting cancer clinical trials is always
interested in the treatment, responses and toxicity information
contributed by Hawaii's ethnically diverse participants.
The development of a comprehensive cancer center would
generate clinical research information on ethnic differences in
treatment responses and toxicities that would not be available
elsewhere in the Nation and would thus have far-reaching
implications both nationally and internationally.
At this time I'd like to share the plight of a patient of
mine. JM is a Laotian male of immigrant parents who attended a
local high school and after graduation went on to attend a
community college here in Honolulu. During his first year of
college, JM was diagnosed with colon cancer. After the tumor
was removed, he received 6 months of chemotherapy. At the
completion of his treatment, he resumed his studies at the
community college level. However, 8 months thereafter he
developed a recurrence of his cancer. And despite receiving
additional chemotherapy, his cancer progressed. Inquiries were
made to several centers on the mainland and although JM was
eligible for investigational therapy, he was unable to go due
to financial and other psychosocial restraints. He received no
further therapy. Now I really don't know if JM would have
benefited from further investigational therapy, however, it is
unfortunate that he did not have the opportunity to be treated.
This case is but one example of many patients not having
access to innovative and potentially beneficial treatment. For
those who can afford such treatment, most would absorb the cost
in time and money to seek out treatment outside of Hawaii.
PREPARED STATEMENT
In closing, as a practicing community oncologist, I fully
support any effort to establish and develop an NCI approved
comprehensive cancer center in Hawaii as an extension of the
Cancer Research Center of Hawaii. As I see it, the potential
benefits clearly outweigh any potential risk. But, more
importantly, we owe it to our patients who truly believe, and
rightly so, that research brings them hope.
Thank you very much for your attention.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Dr. Jonathan K. Cho
Thank you, very much, for giving me the opportunity to address your
committee today.
I am a physician, specializing in the care of cancer patients. For
the past twelve years, I have been associated with the Cancer Research
Center of Hawaii through its clinical trials program. This association
has enabled my patients and I to actively participate in clinical
trials. The Cancer Research Center of Hawaii has been the focal point
of cancer research in Hawaii for many years. Their commitment to the
promotion of clinical studies has given hundreds of patients, over the
years, access to new cancer treatments.
I am here today to provide a practicing physician's perspective on
having a comprehensive cancer center in Hawaii. I see three major
advantages for the establishment and development of such an
institution. Unlike many other diseases, optimal care of the cancer
patient requires a coordinated effort by many different disciplines.
First, having a comprehensive cancer center would provide a setting in
which such coordinated, multidisciplinary care would be delivered.
Secondly, a comprehensive cancer center would provide cancer patients
access to new and innovative cancer treatments. Presently, the majority
of ``cutting edge'' cancer treatments are administered in major
academic centers and/or designated cancer centers throughout the
country. Patients cared for at these institutions have the opportunity
to receive ``state of the art'' treatment. The presence of a
comprehensive cancer center here will make it much easier to attract
and conduct such studies in Hawaii and, thus, give our patients similar
opportunities. Lastly, a comprehensive cancer center in this community
is likely to enhance the knowledge of the medical professional caring
for cancer patients. Such an institution would attract notable
researchers and academicians. This, in turn, may result in training
programs for young physicians and paramedical personnel creating an
environment, which nurtures learning and research. Continuing medical
education programs would improve, all being focused and, hopefully,
resulting in enhancing the medical professional's knowledge base.
Finally and probably most important, Hawaii's unique and diverse
ethnic population creates fertile ground for the study of cancer.
According to the 2000 U.S. Census, Hawaii leads the nation with 41.6
percent of its 1.2 million people reporting an Asian heritage. This is
significant because as a small state, Hawaii has the fourth highest
percentage of foreign-born residents in the United States. The National
Cancer Institute's cooperative network of institutions conducting
cancer clinical trials is always interested in the treatment responses
and toxicities information contributed by Hawaii's ethnically diverse
participants The development of a comprehensive cancer center would
generate clinical research information on ethnic differences in
treatment responses and toxicities that would not be available
elsewhere in the nation and would thus have far-reaching implications
both nationally and internationally.
Before closing, I would like to share a case of mine with you.
JM is a Laotian male of immigrant parents who attended a local high
school and after graduation went on to attend a community college here
in Honolulu.
During his first year in college, he was diagnosed with colon
cancer. After the tumor was removed, he received six months of
chemotherapy. At the completion of his treatment, he resumed his
college education, but eight months later developed a recurrence of his
cancer. Despite receiving additional chemotherapy, his cancer
progressed. Inquiries were made to several cancer centers on the
mainland. Although he was eligible for investigational therapy, he was
not able to go due to financial restraints. He has received no further
therapy.
I don't know if JM would have benefitted from further therapy.
However, it is unfortunate that he did not have the opportunity to be
treated. This case is but one example of many patients not having
access to innovative and potentially beneficial treatment. For those
who can afford such treatment, most will absorb the cost in time and
money to seek out treatment outside of Hawaii.
In closing, as a practicing community oncologist, I fully support
any effort to establish and develop an NCI approved comprehensive
cancer center in Hawaii as an extension of the Cancer Research Center
of Hawaii. As I see it, the potential benefits clearly outweigh any
potential risk but, more importantly, we owe it to our patients who
truly believe, and rightfully so, that research brings them hope.
Thank you very much for your attention.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Dr. Cho.
Dr. Okamoto, what is the nature of your relationship, the
Queen's Health Systems relationship, with the Burns Medical
School University of Hawaii and the cancer center?
Dr. Okamoto. What is Queen's Health Systems relationship
with the John A. Burns Medical School and the Cancer Center of
Hawaii?
Our relationship has been traditionally a committed one and
going forward, also a committed one. We have a very close
partnership with the University of Hawaii. We are a significant
contributor to its teaching faculty. We have many joint
programs in the recruitment of the best and brightest
physicians and researchers. For example, together we are able
to attract a Dr. Chang, of national reputation, to do research
using a three test MRI, which will put Hawaii on the map as one
of the few with that kind of technologic capability. We also
have contributed a large sum of money to kick start the
Department of Native Hawaiian Health, focusing on the health
needs and disparity among Native Hawaiians. So, clearly, an
active ongoing program and we have great confidence in its
leader, Dean Cadman.
In a similar vein, we have had a long-standing relationship
with the Cancer Center of Hawaii. As you probably know, the
Cancer Center has been on a long-term ground lease on the
campus of the Queen's Medical Center for probably no more than
a few dollars a year, if even that much.
Our proposals to the cancer center have also been looking
at some joint projects that will enable them to build their
research capacity in land contiguous with the medical center
taking advantage of the built-in clinical capability that we
have presently on the campus.
We are big supporters of the importance of research and its
application to good clinical care.
Senator Inouye. I assume that all three of you are
supportive of the center, this project. Now have you had any
working relationship in the planning and design of this new
center?
Ms. Langcoan. At Hawaii Pacific Health, we have been in
active discussions with Dr. Vogel regarding what the center may
look like, what it may be comprised of, and most importantly
how it will partner with other health care providers in the
community.
Senator Inouye. Are you satisfied with the progress?
Ms. Langcoan. Thus far, yes.
Senator Inouye. Dr. Okamoto.
Dr. Okamoto. We have not been. We have made a decision,
Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka, that it is not in the public
interest to create duplication of technology, to attract health
care knowledge workers that are in extreme shortage in Hawaii,
and that what we ought to do is to try harder, through good
leadership and a program, and move away from the concept that
the Cancer Center is brick and mortar, but to look at the
concept that cancer is about a program that integrates existing
providers through perhaps contractual and other business
relationships to build on what we already have, and that way
take the kind of research that Dr. Cho mentioned directly to
the patients in their community as opposed to centralizing all
of this at one site.
Senator Inouye. Dr. Cho, am I correct to assume that the
medical society in Hawaii is fully supportive of this project?
Dr. Cho. We have the organization, the Society of Clinical
Oncologists, that has actually had several discussions with Dr.
Vogel. The Cancer Center leadership has been very sensitive to
the feelings of the community physicians in terms of the
development of a comprehensive cancer center.
Hawaii is just very unique, as you know, in that it's a
community-based clinical research organization in that the
cancer center has kind of been the driving force. And again
throughout--at least on several occasions, we've had
discussions with Dr. Vogel in terms of planning and how best to
incorporate a partnership between community physicians and the
comprehensive cancer center.
Senator Inouye. Thank you.
Senator Akaka.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
Ms. Langcoan, in your statement you mention how unique
Hawaii is and the kind of benefits that come about because of
Hawaii. And you mentioned that next to Utah, Hawaii offers the
most robust concentration of multi-generational families who
have lived in the same environmental area over the years.
Can you describe to this committee the significance of
conducting genetic cancer research in an area such as Hawaii?
Ms. Langcoan. Okay. I'll do my best. I'm not a scientist.
But my understanding is that, in looking at some of the genetic
links and the triggers that may cause a person's genetic makeup
to result in a cancer where other individuals may not be; they
may have been exposed to the same environment or same materials
and not develop cancer, to understand the triggers you need to
understand family histories and have multiple generations of
mapping of their genes to understand which gene may be the weak
link, so to speak. So you need to have control over as many
different factors as possible in the study of participants
environment, diet, and other activities.
So families that all live in the same area, generally
having the same diet structure, generally being exposed to the
same environmental impact, have fewer variables for the
researcher to study. And because of our geographic isolation,
and the lack of in and out migration, we tend to have that in
great numbers here? Many generations sometimes live in the same
household not only in the same area. And to couple that with
being able to get multiple generations within different ethnic
groups, that does not exist anywhere else in the world,
including Utah where you will have multiple generations maybe
only in a single ethnic group.
Senator Akaka. Dr. Okamoto, you mentioned about community-
based strategy that's in need of working together in
communities. Can you describe the impacts that cancer is having
on our communities and what needs to be done to improve access
to early detection and treatment to help increase the survival
rates for people affected with cancer? And I think you
mentioned that the Hawaiians were one of these who didn't have
early detection.
Dr. Okamoto. Yes, Senator Akaka, I will be glad to. I don't
know whether I can address all of the questions you've asked of
me, but let me borrow on my direct experience at Queen's with
Moloka'i General Hospital. It is a hospital that we own and
operate. We assumed--acquired it from the community when its
doors were about to close back in the late 1980s. As you know,
Moloka'i has a large population of Native Hawaiians, I think
more than 60 percent. But, with it, unfortunately, on that
island there's a high degree of poverty. So to talk about
health disparities and to talk about the at-risk population, I
think Moloka'i meets those criteria.
Our strategy on that island is really to emphasize the
importance of primary care, to support those efforts that go
into primary care, to work with the community on helping them
understand the responsibility of families and individuals,
employers, even ourselves at Moloka'i General Hospital, to
embrace healthy lifestyles and to incorporate in that healthy
lifestyle thinking and behavior, the idea that prevention and
preventative tests are important. We are not there yet. We have
a way to go to develop that infrastructure that really says to
the community, and working with the community, that we are
actually implementing that philosophy which we embrace.
I think one of the problems that we have seen in Hawaii,
not unlike other regions of the country, is that we have become
very medicalized and we believe that having a medical
establishment in terms of brick and mortar is one way to
address any national interest on health. And when we look at
the amount of our gross domestic product that goes into health
care and our longevity, there is a disconnect because there are
many nations around the world who have, I believe, addressed
more basic fundamental health concerns that affect longevity
and, in doing so, also promote the idea of early cancer
detection and care.
Senator Akaka. Dr. Cho, on accessing clinical trials, there
has been difficulty of residents having their access to
clinical trials. What is needed to expand access to these
trials and the impact that expanding access would have on
cancer research?
Dr. Cho. Well, clinical trials have, as you know the
background, the backbone of everything we do in cancer therapy
and other aspects of cancer. And there are many obstacles to
access in clinical trials. There's physician barriers, there's
financial barriers, there's geographic barriers. And Hawaii,
being small and somewhat isolated, creates a very unique
situation in terms of neighbor islands, in terms of how
community practice is done, and the lack of a comprehensive
cancer center for patients to go to.
So there are a number of barriers in Hawaii. But
surprisingly, in terms of on a national level, we do fairly
well in terms of accruing to clinical trials, but certainly
well below what we should be attaining in terms of clinical--
access to clinical trials and studies.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much. And I'd like to thank
all of you. Thank you.
STATEMENT OF HON. ED CASE, U.S. REPRESENTATIVE FROM
HAWAII
Senator Inouye. Now it's my pleasure to call upon a very
distinguished Member of the Congress of the United States who
represents us, the Honorable Ed Case of the U.S. House of
Representatives.
Mr. Case. Senators Inouye and Akaka, it's good to see you
here. Good to be home--I think we all feel that way--and spend
some time with our mutual constituents. And members of the
Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, HHS, and
Education, Chair Specter, and ranking member Harkin and staff,
it's good to have you here as well. Good morning and aloha.
I know that I join all of Hawaii, and especially the
600,000 citizens of our United States that I represent in
Hawaii's Second Congressional District, in thanking you for
coming to Hawaii, for bringing this crucial subcommittee to
Hawaii, and for taking the time to see for yourselves what we
need and also what we're doing.
I have submitted to the subcommittee some extended
testimony. It's too long for me to read. I would ask please
that it be inserted into the read.
Senator Inouye. No objection. So ordered.
Mr. Case. But what I'd like to do here is just highlight
some of the high points and try to give you a big picture
overview of the jurisdiction of this subcommittee as I believe
it impacts my Second District. And let me first of all paint a
big picture which both of you know very well, as you have
represented my district a lot longer than I have. It's part of
your district as well. But perhaps for the subcommittee's
edification, I'd like to put my remarks in context so you can
understand why Federal assistance is so crucial in this area
and why it has to be structured in a way that works in terms of
the nature of delivery in the Second Congressional District.
Of course, physically the Second Congressional District is
not an urban district. It is a suburban and rural district. It
encompasses all of Hawaii, with the exception of urban
Honolulu. So most of this island's suburban and rural parts as
well as the rest of Hawaii, all the way out to the northwestern
Hawaiian islands--although I don't think the subcommittee has
too much jurisdiction out there. But it is clearly, in that
sense, not unlike other congressional districts in having
suburban and rural constituents.
However, there are distinguishing factors that we all need
to understand about the Second Congressional District. First of
all, a very simple fact. It is an island district, unlike many
parts of our country, in fact most parts of our country. And
because it is an island district, because it's geography
creates some specific conditions and challenges, the delivery
of services by our Federal Government to my district has to be
a little bit different as well.
Let me give you a perfect example of this in terms of how
the Congress and the administration, 5,000 miles away, can
sometimes have good intentions without actually understanding
what we actually need in Hawaii.
We are fighting again the battle over Essential Air
Service. This is a provision of Federal law which assists rural
isolated communities in ensuring air transportation services,
and we, in Hawaii, benefit from that provision of Federal law.
Last year there was an amendment introduced into the
Congress which essentially had a good intention. It said that
if an Essential Air Service hub was less than, I think, 100
miles from a major transportation hub that essentially either
EAS should not apply or it should be subsidized in some way.
The idea was a good one. If you're close to a major
transportation hub, why are you so isolated? Why are you so
rural?
But let's take the example of Moloka'i. Moloka'i, as the
crow flies, is a distance of 40 miles from Honolulu
International Airport. But, guess what? It's across water, so
there's no other way of getting there. So you go to somebody in
Kalaupapa, which is an EAS community, and say: Well, sorry,
you're out of luck because you're 40 miles from Honolulu
International Airport, you can get there some other way: It
doesn't work.
That kind of thinking applies throughout the Second
Congressional District. Geography dictates how we deliver
services in our district.
The second unique quality of the Second Congressional
District, which is true throughout Hawaii, but particularly in
the Second Congressional District, it's already been made
reference to, and that is just our ethnic diversity; one of the
highest proportions of Americans of Asian ancestry, the highest
number of Native Hawaiians, the highest number of Filipino
Americans throughout any congressional district, and that also
creates specific needs which have already been well addressed.
Let me address, briefly, a couple of the areas within this
committee's jurisdiction and just kind of provide a rapid tour
of the universe as it affects my district.
Let me talk about education first. And let me start out by
saying, unequivocally, that I believe education is, to my
constituents, on balance, the number one priority in our
district. And I believe that it should be the number one
priority in our district. And the challenges are many and the
opportunities are many. I'll just mention a couple very
briefly.
First of all, the number one problem in education, in my
district, I believe, is Federal mandates which are not fully
funded. I'm referring to ``No Child Left Behind'' and the
Individuals and Disability Education Act, both of which are
Federal mandates, both of which are Federal laws, good Federal
laws. I believe in these Federal laws.
But the problem is that they are not fully funded. So it's
of great concern to all of us that the administration again has
short funded ``No Child Left Behind'' by $10 billion in its
current budget. The IDEA share is now only 22 percent of the 40
percent originally promised. This creates problems of funding,
but it also creates major problems to our States, because our
States still have to comply with the Federal laws and find
other ways to do it that take resources away from other parts
of education unfairly and from other parts of the funding of
State operations.
Also, the flexibility that is needed in the administration
of ``No Child Left Behind'' is something that we have to use to
adjust to local circumstances. Superintendent Hamamoto, earlier
this year, had to deal with the problem of Kupuna, the great
Kupuna program, having to comply with the dictates, or possibly
having to comply with the dictates, of No Child Left Behind, so
that you would have these great Kupuna who wanted to teach
Native Hawaiian culture and affairs to the students and yet
didn't meet the technical qualifications of ``No Child Left
Behind'' because they weren't, quote, unquote, ``certified.''
They were great teachers but they just weren't certified.
That's the kind of flexibility that we need with ``No Child
Left Behind'' to make it work.
School facilities is an incredibly important part that has
already been made reference to. And I want to particularly
mention the 3Rs program that Senator Inouye was so
instrumental--and, Senator Akaka, you as well--in starting up
and seeing through really to an operational level.
The 3Rs program has been a very successful approach that we
have tried to use collectively to provide for a much greater
extent of contributions to our backlog in terms of facilities.
One of the major successes over the last year, of course, has
been the fact that the Native Hawaiian Education Act has been
provided, through the Native Hawaiian Education Act, $1 million
of funding for targeting school facilities that have a high
population of Native Hawaiians in them. That is a tremendous
result, a tremendous advance forward in terms of the 3Rs
program that I commend both of you and certainly commit to
following through as much as I can.
CHARTER SCHOOLS
Let me mention charter schools because I think anybody who
has been in charter schools understands both the needs and the
opportunities available for public education in our State. And
this is particularly important in those charter schools in the
more rural areas and those that service Native Hawaiian
populations. You can't help but go into some of the Native
Hawaiian charter schools in our State and be absolutely
impressed, absolutely awed by how much is done with so little.
Clearly, our Federal Government has a role in assisting
charter schools and I'm happy to say that this administration
has supported that particular role with a maintenance of good
solid funding for our charter schools. We all need to work on
this. Charter schools, I think, are where the future public
education lies in our State and in our country and we need to
help them along.
IMPACT AID
Impact aid, as you well know, Senators, has been a major
challenge for us in Hawaii and other parts of our country which
have large military facilities, large military presences. The
whole idea of impact aid is a good and fair one, which is that
as our Federal Government, through its military, utilizes our
public schools, it also recognizes an obligation to contribute
to the operation of those public schools. We have all spent a
lot of time and effort trying to get that level of funding to a
fair level of funding. We're getting there.
Unfortunately, in the current budget, there is simply level
funding provided, so it doesn't account for inflation, it
doesn't account for the possibility of increased activity by
our military in our public schools here. So this is something
that I think we're all going to have to fight hard for. It
certainly impacts the Second District in a community such as
Wahiawa, which have a large military population.
HEALTH CARE
Let me first say that I completely endorse the colleagues
who spoke before me in their efforts to support the Cancer
Research Center and other types of research in terms of health
and needs for Hawaii in the Pacific to lead the way for our
country. The Cancer Research Center, although located in the
First Congressional District, is a Hawaii issue. It helps all
of us in Hawaii. It is a tremendous asset to our State. We all
need to support this, regardless of where we live. And I
definitely want to add my endorsement of that.
I also very much support the comments, especially by the
previous panel, particularly Dr. Okamoto, on local delivery of
health services. The centralized large hospital model which is
prevalent and even depended upon in many large urban areas of
our country, or even suburban areas with access to urban areas,
doesn't work in a place like Hawaii, especially given the
geography.
In a place like Hawaii where you are--especially in my
Second Congressional District--where you are dealing with
geographical distance, where you are dealing with isolation,
local delivery of health services, at least at a primary care
level, is the way to go.
The advances here have been in community health centers and
other smaller primary care, preventative care-oriented types of
delivery of health care services. The Waianae Coast is a
perfect example. We spoke also about Moloka'i. We need to
expand our community health center approach. We need to take
them into places like West Hawaii, which now wants to develop a
community health center, North Oahu and Hau'ula or Laie which
want to develop a community health center. That's the way to
develop health care as we go forward. And that is another area
in which I'm happy to say that the administration has
recognized the value in a substantial increase in funding in
its current budget for community health centers, and I believe
we very much collectively should be supporting that initiative
by the Federal administration.
I can't not mention, Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka, your
great efforts on drug abuse and especially the discouraging of
ice. It is a risk that we all face in letting that slip away
from our public consciousness. We've achieved so much in the
last couple of years collectively. We got the administration to
agree to significantly higher levels of funding.
Senior Inouye, you were instrumental in getting delivery of
that to parts of the Second Congressional District, the Big
Island. In expanding it, Senator Akaka, you also worked very
hard on that and you should be recognized for that.
We can't let this issue die. We have to keep going on this.
So, here again, there is some great concern that the
current administration's budget for fiscal year 2005 proposes a
3 percent decrease in Department of Justice funding. That
clearly would have an impact on some of the drug abuse programs
that have been so instrumental in fighting drug abuse
generally, and ice specifically, in Hawaii.
Two other areas. In the area of human services, I have to
stop and highlight the great efforts by our community action
programs on all of the islands: The Big Island Community Action
Program, MEO, Maui Economic Opportunity, and comparable
programs on Kaua'i and Oahu. These are nationally recognized
programs.
It is important for us all in Hawaii to realize that we are
on the cutting edge of community action programs in our entire
community. MEO, just last year, was recognized as one of the
top four community action programs in the entire national
country. The Big Island Economic Opportunity Program, which I
believe your subcommittee is visiting tomorrow, was just
awarded one of just a few grants for developing overall
strategies to get people off of government assistance. This was
a grant that was hotly competed for. It came down to just a few
of them. Big Island got it. So we obviously have something good
going here that doesn't only work in Hawaii. It works for the
entire country and we need to support that.
Finally, I do want to endorse comments made earlier and the
praise provided to Representative Abercrombie on his jobs fair.
It is very important that we recognize that as employment
opportunities look up in Hawaii, job training, workforce
training is going to be key to keeping those jobs in Hawaii.
The construction industry is a particularly important area to
do that in.
But I also want to highlight in the Second Congressional
District the continuing effort to develop dual use technology,
economic development, development that is headquartered around
some of our military installations, PMRF on Kaua'i, Kihei on
Maui, on the Big Island now in the increased military
investment at Pohakaloa. These give us opportunities for dual
use technology development in military research, defense
communications, astronomy, and all of these areas. We need the
same kind of approach in terms of workforce training, workforce
development in these areas. So whatever we can do in Congress
to provide Federal assistance for workforce training is
something that is going to pay off big time in terms of
productive jobs being retained in Hawaii.
PREPARED STATEMENT
I've rushed it. I've got a lot to say. I'm sorry about
that. The testimony is there. Again, I just simply want to
thank both of you, Senators Inouye and Akaka, for caring. You
have done such a tremendous job, along with Representative
Abercrombie, in the areas under the subcommittee's
jurisdiction. But we've got a long laundry list to continue to
work on. We're half way along and we've got to keep it going.
And I certainly stand ready, willing and able to help you in
whatever way I can. Mahalo.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Ed Case
Chairman Specter, Ranking Member Harkin, Senator Inouye, and
Members of the Subcommittee: Aloha! I want first to extend a deep and
sincere mahalo to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor,
Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies for holding
this hearing here in our Hawai'i. Your Subcommittee's support of so
many vital programs throughout Hawai'i over the years, your recognition
and accommodation of our often unique needs, and your effort to travel
so far to learn firsthand the impressive results of the programs you've
funded and the many challenges we still face, is greatly appreciated by
all of the 1.3 million citizens of the proud Fiftieth State.
Overview.--I represent Hawai'i's Second District, which includes
all eight of the major islands of Hawaii, as well as the Northwestern
Hawaiian Islands. The only area of Hawai'i I do not represent is urban
Honolulu.
The Second District is predominantly suburban and rural, and much
of it is also very isolated. In these characteristics, it is not unlike
other such districts throughout our country, where federal assistance
is often vital to assuring a basic quality of life to residents without
access, physically or economically, to opportunities and services
available in our country's urban cores.
But Hawaii generally and my Second District specifically is also
virtually unique in other ways. First, of course, Hawaii is one of the
few regions of our country which is an archipelago, with its residents
separated by water. This creates unique challenges requiring unique
solutions.
For example, Kaunakakai on the Second District's Island of Moloka'i
is only about 40 miles from Honolulu, but the services available in
Honolulu are not readily accessible to the people of Moloka'i. Incomes
are low on Moloka'i and interisland flights are scarce and expensive.
Therefore, Moloka'i residents are extremely dependent on locally
available services in health care, education, and job training.
Hawai'i generally and my Second District specifically are also
among the most ethnically diverse in our entire country. Minorities
make up more than half of our population, including the highest
percentage of Asian and Pacific Islander populations in the nation. We
have 20 percent of our population comprised of Native Hawaiians, our
state's indigenous population. And Hawai'i ranks third of all states
for the highest percentage of persons born outside of the United
States. Thus, delivery of services by our federal government is most
effective when designed with an understanding of language and cultural
barriers that might exist. This Subcommittee has shown great
sensitivity to this need in the past by funding targeted services to
meet the special needs of Native Hawaiians, including the Native
Hawaiian Education and Health Care programs.
In this context, I am delighted to learn that Subcommittee staff
has already taken the opportunity to visit our schools and health
centers, as well as various programs at the University of Hawai'i. I am
especially pleased to know that you will be visiting tomorrow my home
Island of Hawai'i, where so many of the challenges as well as
innovative solutions which offer examples for our entire country are
centered.
Priorities.--I would like to take this opportunity to outline what
I see as priority areas for Hawai'i generally and my Second District
specifically in the areas under your Subcommittee's jurisdiction.
EDUCATION
Education should be, and is, our primary challenge and top
priority. This is particularly true throughout the Second District
because of the factors described above. Here are some of the primary
areas where targeted federal assistance will make a huge difference.
Native Hawaiian education.--Among the most exciting developments in
the field of education is the evolution of an emphasis on Native
Hawaiian education, which centers on Hawai'i's indigenous population,
and the creation of programs uniquely tailored to meet the needs of
this community.
At the federal level, the Native Hawaiian Education Act, which
currently consolidates six grant programs (Native Hawaiian Family-Based
Education Centers; Native Hawaiian Curriculum Development, Teacher
Training, and Recruitment; Native Hawaiian Gifted and Talented; Native
Hawaiian Higher Education; Native Special Education; and Native
Hawaiian Community-Based Education Learning Centers) is one of the most
important contributions. I fully support and commend President Bush for
requesting full funding at $33 million for fiscal year 2005, the same
level funded in fiscal year 2004. Senator Inouye was instrumental in
the Act's establishment and funding all these years. It is notable that
we finally have the full support of the Department of Education.
To assist the state in Hawaii's 3R's projects, the Native Hawaiian
Education Act recently authorized $1 million to be used for
construction repairs at public schools with significant numbers of
Native Hawaiian children, many of which are located in my district.
These funds are badly needed. I understand that out of 72 projects that
the state is currently considering as part of its construction
projects, 36 are in my district, including Wai'anae Intermediate,
Nanakuli Elementary and High School, Blanche Pope Elementary, and
Kaunakakai Elementary. Total costs for schools in my district would be
$1,058,893 out of $2,292,482 statewide.
I would also like to express my support for the University of
Hawai'i Law School's efforts in developing a program in Native Hawaiian
law. I understand that $300,000 has been appropriated as seed money.
The program's objective is to provide outreach on Native Hawaiian
rights to the community and schools at all levels, to promote the
development of Native Hawaiian rights, and to provide an archive of
Hawaiian records through digitalization in conjunction with Hamilton
Library and other parties.
Charter schools.--As an ardent advocate for Hawaii's charter
schools, I fully support the President's fiscal year 2005 request for
$219 million for charter schools funding. I was extremely pleased that
President Bush's fiscal year 2005 budget requests $100 million for
much-needed credit enhancements for charter school facilities.
As I travel around my district, from Kanu O Ka 'Aina in Kamuela on
the Big Island of Hawai'i to Kula Aupuni Ni'ihau A Kahelelani Aloha in
Makaweli on the Island of Kauai, I hear two main concerns from the
charter schools: (1) obtaining more assistance for facilities and (2)
ensuring federal IDEA and Title I funds are properly dispersed to
charters. Clearly construction funding is one of the greater challenges
facing our charter schools locally and nationally. It is my hope that
we can see increased federal funding for these projects and an
extension of Hawaii's 3R's program to include charter school
construction projects.
I am also very excited about the state's new and innovative public-
private partnerships law, which I cosponsored as a state legislator,
that will allow qualified nonprofits such as Kamehameha Schools to
partner with various charter schools to help more Native Hawaiian
children. This new partnership allows conversion charter schools, such
as Waimea Middle School, to receive much-needed funding and
instructional support from Kamehameha Schools. As you can see, Hawai'i
is building on Congressional support for charter schools and continues
to seek innovative ways to support the creation and success of these
schools.
NCLB/IDEA.--I would also like to take this opportunity to express
my strong support for the goals of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act
and for the federal commitment to provide 40 percent of the total cost
of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). However, I
believe that there has been a severe short-funding of these two
critically important laws that creates a terrible burden on states and
leaves true education reform out of reach.
I am disappointed that the President's fiscal year 2005 budget
proposes to fund NCLB at $9.4 billion under authorized levels. Since
NCLB was signed into law, it has been underfunded by $26.5 billion or
21.7 percent. I am also very dismayed that the budget only requests an
increase for IDEA of $1 billion, which does get the federal government
more than halfway to full funding (40 percent) for our special needs
children, but still more than $36 billion short of full funding. While
the budget represents a small increase in education funding, I would
strongly urge the Subcommittee to substantially increase NCLB and IDEA.
Besides being an unfunded mandate, NCLB and its one-size-fits-all
regulations, formulated 5,000 miles away from Hawaii, do not always
work in my district. There needs to be more flexibility for rural areas
such as Hana, an extremely isolated community on Maui that qualifies
for Essential Air Service because of its remoteness. Teacher retention
is a big issue for Hana Elementary and High School and all my schools,
and NCLB further exacerbates the problem. As you know, under NCLB a
teacher who has a degree in only one content area is not considered to
be ``highly qualified'' to teach more than that particular content
area. This should not apply to a rural isolated school with a limited
amount of teachers that is forced to use one teacher to teach a
multitude of subjects.
Impact Aid.--As you travel around Hawaii, you will undoubtedly note
our large military population. As military action continues in
Afghanistan and Iraq, and with Hawaii a major component of the
military's transformation into a quick response unit, it is now more
important than ever to give the necessary support to our military
families and to strengthen the Impact Aid program to directly reimburse
the state for the loss of traditional revenue sources due to the
military presence.
I was dismayed that the President's budget calls for level funding
in fiscal year 2005, which will not account for inflation, and will
likely jeopardize services and programs for these families. I would
strongly encourage the Subcommittee to support our state and our
military families by increasing funds for Impact Aid.
HEALTH
Challenges we face in regard to healthcare are as unique as each of
our islands. We share the concerns of other rural areas in our nation
in terms of healthcare access, delivery, and quality. However, we must
again take into account our geographic isolation, not only from the
contiguous United States but also from our neighbor islands to the
Island of O'ahu, as well as our multicultural population which deserves
culturally sensitive and linguistically appropriate healthcare.
Community health centers.--We all know that community health
centers improve the health of our nation by providing comprehensive
primary and preventive health care services to underserved populations,
regardless of their ability to pay. Our community health centers play
an even larger role in our rural communities where options and access
are severely limited.
I support President Bush's fiscal year 2005 budget request of $219
million to help our community health centers extend services to an
additional 1.6 million individuals. New health centers in remote
communities need our continued support, and I am hopeful that such
funds could aid in the establishment of community health centers in
areas like West Hawai'i and North O'ahu or further the development of
Moloka'i 'Ohana Health Care.
I appreciate that the Senate Appropriations Committee has
recognized that federal community health center funds are often not
available to small, remote communities in Hawai'i because our
population base may not be large enough to meet particular
requirements. I agree with the Committee's recommendation that the
Health Resources and Services Administration examine its regulations
and application procedures to ensure that they are not unduly
burdensome and are appropriately flexible to meet the needs of our
distinctive communities. I further join the Committee in supporting
increased use of telemedicine to maximize resources and collaborative
communication.
Minority healthcare.--It has been empirically demonstrated that
minority populations across our nation disproportionately lack access
to quality healthcare. For example, minority groups are less likely to
have health insurance and are less likely to receive appropriate
healthcare services. These communities are also significantly
underrepresented in our healthcare workforce. I am fully committed to
the elimination of racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare access,
quality, and in our healthcare workforce, because we all deserve equal
treatment when it comes to our health. I believe that the Cancer
Research Center of Hawai'i serves as a shining example of how we can
nationally strive to better serve our multicultural populations.
I would like to especially commend the Senate Appropriations
Members and staff for their efforts on Native Hawaiian health care. I
know that fiscal year 2004 saw a welcome increase in funding of $12
million for the Native Hawaiian Health Care Program. I hope that this
level of funding is either maintained or increased for fiscal year
2005. Health education, disease prevention service, and primary care
services for Native Hawaiians is a key objective, and Papa Ola Lokahi
has done an excellent job in employing a culturally appropriate
strategic plan in cooperation with the Native Hawaiian health care
systems that serve the Hawaiian community on all of the islands in the
state. An important component of the Act is the Native Hawaiian Health
Professionals Scholarship Program, which seeks to increase the number
of Native Hawaiians in health care professions. I believe that this is
consistent with national efforts to increase the number of
underrepresented minority populations in health professions.
Drug/ice abuse.--General drug abuse, of course, has plagued many of
our communities for decades. We know that the roots of drug abuse lie
largely where educational and economic opportunity are lacking and the
social and community fabric are torn. Thus, in the big picture and long
term, our best efforts to stamp out drug abuse lie in fixing our
economy, improving our schools, and strengthening our families and
communities.
I commend the work of this Subcommittee in providing assistance for
a major rural health concern: fighting our crystal methamphetamine
epidemic. We all know that the true solution to the scourge of ice lies
in supporting the efforts of our law enforcement officers, preventing
drug use through education, and providing local rehabilitation options
to treat the disease of addiction. I agree that it is up to our federal
government to take the lead on this issue as it is the only entity with
the full resources and ability to coordinate this indispensable multi-
pronged approach to stamping out drug abuse.
Most encouraging, whole communities are rising up across our state
to say: yes, ice is our problem, and we must all be part of the
solution. Kahaluu on the Island of O'ahu was the first community to
hold ``ice breaker'' meetings and start sign-waving efforts. My own
home island, the Big Island of Hawai'i, will soon be holding its third
islandwide ``Hugs Not Drugs'' sign-waving campaign, which in the past
has had the support of over one thousand citizens from twenty-three
communities and neighborhoods. I am also happy to report that the
Coalition for a Drug-Free Lana'i, the North Hawai'i Drug-Free Coalition
Network, and the West Kaua'i Community Coalition are all recipients of
grants provided under the Drug-Free Communities Support Program in
2003.
HUMAN SERVICES
My district also has a large population of financially
disadvantaged families, all of whom have great needs ranging from job
training to transportation to child care. Hawai'i's geographic makeup
is in and of itself a barrier to seeking employment in other states or
other islands.
Community action programs.--However, Hawai'i's Community Action
Programs are doing a tremendous job servicing the needs of the entire
community and are making lives better through job training, Head Start
centers, even offering a local bus service. We currently have four
extremely successful Community Action Programs; Honolulu Community
Action Program (HCAP), Maui Economic Opportunity (MEO), Hawai'i County
Economic Opportunity Council (HCEOC), and Kaua'i Economic Opportunity
(KEO).
MEO was recently awarded the ``Award for Excellence in Community
Action'' by the National Action Partnership. This prestigious award,
which is given to the top four Community Action Agencies in the nation,
demonstrates MEO's excellence through the many programs that improve
Maui's communities and help people change their lives.
HCEOC has also been extremely successful in obtaining funds to meet
the community's needs, so much so that it was recently awarded a
Department of Labor grant for $4.2 million to develop new strategies to
get people off of government assistance and back to work. There were
only a handful of these competitive grants awarded and HCEOC was among
this select group.
These Community Action Agencies depend on federal support to meet
the growing needs of the communities they serve. I encourage the
Subcommittee to fund programs that these agencies rely on at the
highest possible level. They do pay off!
Labor: Defense and Information Technology-Related Workforce Training
Many of us have long believed in the potential synergy between our
nation's increasing military presence in Hawaii and private sector
research and development in defense and related industries. If and as
we can realize that synergy, we can ensure development of sustainable
industries and quality employment, especially on Islands other than
O'ahu.
There are already two examples of this potential coming to
fruition. On the Island of Kaua'i, our country's Pacific Missile Range
Facility is the largest employer. But now we also see increased
development of private industry clustered around and servicing as well
as accessing the facilities of PMRF. Similarly, on the Island of Maui,
private development centered in Kihei around military-related
investment has created a solid base of quality employment for that
island's constituency.
In large part to this end, for years our state and local
governments have committed resources to nurturing high tech,
particularly information technology, development in Hawai'i. In
response to the aggressive support of our high tech sector, Hawai'i now
has 19 enterprise zones and a similar number of industrial and
technology parks. The islands have produced leading edge research in
genetics, energy, astronomy, oceanography, photovoltaic, and
climatology.
As with any state, however, we also have an equal number of
challenges. Hawai'i generates fewer patents than 45 other states, and
the level of industry research and development activity trails 41
states. These challenges are particularly burdensome on Hawai'i's
military and related industries, which depend on a high tech workforce.
The military's research facilities include Pearl Harbor, the Maui Space
Surveillance System on Haleakala, the Maui High Performance Computing
Center in Kihei, and PMRF on Kaua'i--the worlds largest instrumented,
multidimensional testing and training range.
These military research and testing centers depend upon a vibrant
local workforce. The federal government needs to build long-term
relationships with our local school and universities, with special
attention to community colleges on the Neighbor Islands that are eager
to help educate the next generation of local born and bred high tech
workers to service defense facilities on their islands.
Without adequate support, the federal government, and the military
in particular, will not be able to realize the full potential of their
operations in Hawai'i, nor the full fruition of the benefits to local
communities from fully diversified economies. I thus strongly urge the
Subcommittee to support increased funding for local job training and
vocation education programs that the President has proposed to cut by
$316 million for fiscal year 2005.
CONCLUSION
Again, for all of us in the Second District and throughout Hawai'i,
I express to the Subcommittee my deep appreciation for coming to our
islands for this hearing and for the support you have given us over the
years. We look forward to working with you to allow Hawai'i to show the
way for our entire country in the vital matters within your purview.
Mahalo, and aloha!
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Congressman. I can
assure you that your full text will be made part of the record
and I will be studying and reading that.
I must commend you for your statement. It was a
comprehensive one. And when I closed my eyes, I thought I was
listening to a presidential candidate.
Mr. Case. Senator Inouye, my ambitions are very direct this
year. They lie in a different sphere.
Senator Inouye. I congratulate you on your statement.
Mr. Case. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much.
Senator Akaka.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
I want to say aloha to our brother Case. Thank you so much
for your comprehensive statement.
Mr. Case. Thank you, Senators.
Senator Inouye. Thank you.
Now may I call upon the superintendent of the State of
Hawaii Department of Education, Ms. Patricia Hamamoto, the
chairperson of the Hawaii 3R's program, Mr. Bruce Coppa, and
the principal of Kaimuki High School, Mr. Dennis Manalili.
STATEMENT OF PATRICIA HAMAMOTO, SUPERINTENDENT, STATE
OF HAWAII DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Senator Inouye. I first call upon the superintendent, Ms.
Hamamoto. Before I do, congratulations on your historic
achievement in addressing the joint session.
Ms. Hamamoto. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. Very few of us have had that privilege.
Ms. Hamamoto. It was an honor. Thank you.
Good morning, Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka, and
distinguished guests. Let me begin by first saying mahalo and
we appreciate this opportunity to testify in front of you in
living color. It makes a difference being able to do it here in
Hawaii as opposed to traveling such a far distance to be able
to convey to you many concerns we have as well as to express
our appreciation in all that you've done to ensure that Hawaii
is taken care of.
This morning my part will be to talk about the 3R's, and
specific to the 3R's will be the authorization of the $1
million that now extend to the Native Hawaiian Act to allow
those schools that have a high impact of Hawaiian children to
have a facility that we can ensure that we can maximize our
educational opportunities.
As you know, the Department of Education is very
appreciative of the Federal grant given to the Hawaii 3R's to
repair the military dependent impacted schools. And as it
began, and we all know the history very well, what began as a
way to provide the extra support for the military impacted
schools has provided, for the Department of Education, and vis-
a-vis the State of Hawaii, the flexibility to use resources to
help other schools in many other areas.
As time progresses--and I won't go into the details of the
3R's program because Mr. Coppa is much more articulate and much
more versed and has quite a lot of expertise and experience,
and I think he does a better job of explaining the program than
I could ever do. But for us in the school part, for the
department, it has allowed us that flexibility to reallocate
much of our resources to help other schools. It means that we
continue to put our fair share in helping the military schools
to achieve that level of safety, of the well being for their
child, and to ensure that our children, as well as our faculty
and our parents, are provided with that kind of learning
environment that will support teaching and learning. It also
allows us then to provide for our other schools that are not
heavily impacted by the military presence a sense of
flexibility that we will have those resources to take care of
the immediate needs.
I think when 3R's started, while we understand that it
deals very heavily and relies on volunteers, it's a partnership
between the local school, community, the people who work at the
school, the parents, and most importantly the significant part
comes from the private or the nonprofit; in this case it may be
labor unions who provide the expertise and the skills, as well
as the community and the businesses, and in most instances, the
military which provides not only the sweat equity but also the
resources.
Perhaps--and I don't want to--I refer to it as an
unanticipated positive outcome but what it has done is it has
solidified and strengthened the partnerships with the military
organization and the Armed Forces. It has created that
connection between the military who do a lot of traveling with
the home community and it has provided the roots. For our
children and for the citizens of Hawaii, it has given us a much
broader and inclusive as well as a very diverse view to share
with the partners that come in from out of State. And for us,
in a global society, the ability and the opportunity to
interact, to engage in the many diverse cultures that come to
Hawaii make for us a much richer and more robust experience. I
think it adds value to what we talk about when we talk about
the aloha spirit and how Hawaii is very unique and what it can
do and what it has done. And that was also referred to earlier
by our previous panelists.
With that, we also understand that with the strong support
from the military, we have been able to increase the actual
benefits to the school approximately two and one half times the
actual monetary grant. And, as you know, this comes in the way
of the sweat equity, it comes in by donations and contributions
from the community and the labor unions as well as from private
businesses. One can of paint goes a long way and one can of
paint that is donated makes for another can of paint that we
can use somewhere else.
The exterior painting project, for instance, at Pearl
Harbor Kai, and, Senator, you were there. I think it was about
a year and a half ago. We were both there at that time. The
renovation of the Quonset hut auditorium project at Hickam
Elementary and the exterior painting project at Pope
Elementary. These are just a few of the many, many, many, many
examples of the benefits provided by Hawaii 3R's and its
volunteers.
The Hawaii 3R's program enlisted over 250 volunteers to do
the work at that one time in Pearl Harbor Kai. And, as we now
know, with the extension or the authorization of the $1 million
via the Native Hawaiian Act, we now have approximately--of our
250 DOE schools, we have over 120 schools that we have
identified with a native population of more than 25 percent
that will benefit by what we are now being able to use.
So as we move down the road into the future, we see the
3R's program of not having minimum benefit but continue to be
able to benefit Hawaii and to sustain that kind of ownership
that the parents, the community and the partners have in the
school. It primarily is, as you said on that occasion at Pearl
Harbor Kai--and I don't have the exact quote, but as I remember
you remarked that the foundation of American democracy was a
sense of citizenship and volunteerism that makes America as
strong as it is. And I believe the 3R's program is the example,
is exemplary, in actually living what citizenship and
volunteerism is in Hawaii.
PREPARED STATEMENT
With that, I would like to close my portion and turn it
over to Mr. Coppa who can elaborate more on the 3R's program.
Thank you.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Patricia Hamamoto
PURPOSE OF HEARING
To discuss the expansion of the Cancer Center of Hawaii; increasing
Hawaii's trades program to meet the demand brought about by the
privatization of military family housing; and the 3Rs program's recent
authority to utilize Native Hawaiian education funds to repair those
public schools with significant numbers of Hawaiians.
DEPARTMENT'S POSITION
The Department of Education (DOE) is very appreciative of the
federal grant given to Hawaii 3Rs to repair the military dependent
impacted schools. Hawaii 3Rs has made this into a valuable and
productive program.
Hawaii 3Rs actively solicited and got the strong support of the
business and public communities for this program. With its strong
support and the support from the military, they have been able to
increase the actual benefits to the schools approximately by two-and-
one-half times the actual monetary grant.
The exterior painting project at Pearl Harbor Kai Elementary, the
renovation of the quonset hut (auditorium) project at Hickam
Elementary, and the exterior painting project at Pope Elementary
exemplify the benefits provided by Hawaii 3Rs and the volunteers.
Hawaii 3Rs enlisted 250 volunteers to do the work at Pearl Harbor Kai.
The $1 million grant from the Native Hawaiian Education Act will enable
Hawaii 3Rs to extend their impact to other schools. Based on their past
successes, DOE is looking forward to working with Hawaii 3Rs to
leverage this grant and improve our schools further.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Ms. Hamamoto.
STATEMENT OF BRUCE A. COPPA, CHAIR, HAWAII 3R's PROGRAM
Senator Inouye. May I now call upon 3R Coppa.
Mr. Coppa. Good morning. Aloha, Senator Inouye and Senator
Akaka. Thank you so much for coming to Hawaii and having this
hearing. I'm the executive director of Pacific Resource
Partnership. Today I'm here as Chair of the 3R's program.
You know, we also, at Pacific Resource Partnership, along
with the Hawaii Business Round Table, do a poll on a quarterly
basis. And in the summer of 2003, the poll indicated clearly
that education was the top of the line for the citizens of
Hawaii.
But, more importantly, the number one issue that people
were concerned about was our facilities, the repairing and the
rebuilding of our school facilities, the number one issue. And
the second issue was our textbooks. So I think it's so
appropriate that we would be in a library today and also one of
our projects for 3R's.
My final comment, just before I get started, you know, I
was sitting in the chair and I was looking up at that schedule
up there and it reminded me, as a student in public school,
that from eight o'clock to two o'clock when you're in public
school it seemed like a lifetime before the day would end. What
I wouldn't do today to have a two o'clock day end of the work
day.
Anyway, let me just say that it was about 4 years ago the
State legislature and the Governor and the Department of
Accounting and General Services was struggling with a mounting
problem in our schools. It was related to repairs and
maintenance. We had $640 million of backlog in repairs. That's
not including what we were looking at in terms of new schools.
It was at that time that, Senator Inouye, through your
leadership, we've come up with the program the 3R's. And,
really, it's a simple concept. We take sweat equity, we take
the community, as Superintendent Hamamoto pointed out, and we
capitalize it. We match some money to it. And what we're able
to do is get almost three times the match for each dollar
that's donated.
Let me share with you some of the projects and some of the
dollars that are being put forward. Since 2001, Hawaii 3R's was
awarded over $2.3 million for 72 projects statewide, completing
$5.7 million worth of projects. So, clearly, you can see the
dollar matched with the sweat equity and the donations from the
community, whether it's from the churches or from the military,
clearly, we're able to maximize our capacity.
Hawaii 3R's has awarded eight grants to Maui schools, four
to Kaua'i schools, six to Hawaii schools, and two to Moloka'i
schools. Oahu schools have received 52 grants. Over 1,000
community members and organizations have participated in the
Hawaii 3R's projects and continue to contribute to ongoing
school projects.
Let me just say at this time, the military, even through
this time of crisis in the world where they're having to be
deployed from Hawaii, they continually come up to the plate and
maximize their ability to help with the school repairs and
maintenance. Every project we go on you see somebody from the
military, whether it's at Pope or at Pearl Harbor, they're
there supporting us. It's amazing to see these young guys and
girls or women picking up these wheelbarrows of concrete and
moving it around. It's really a sight to see.
The State of Hawaii, last year, gave $148,000 to Hawaii
3R's program with the help of the State legislature, who has
been very supportive of our program and again maximizing the
dollar.
From the Federal side, the military has contributed over
$600,000 in 2002 and $1 million in 2003 and has pledged another
million in 2004. So, clearly people, are getting on board.
We're now going after the private funds because they also see
the ability to capitalize on their dollar.
Senator Inouye, I can't thank you enough for that million
dollars that's coming to the Native Hawaiians and where schools
of 25 percent or more we're going to be able to expand this
program. This continuing effort where everyone is working
together, as the superintendent pointed out, we're clearly able
to maximize our dollar and put our sweat equity where it really
goes.
PREPARED STATEMENT
The construction industry has benefited from all of the
structures we have built here on Hawaii. It's our time to try
to give back, and if we can do that through sweat equity and
volunteerism we'll be there. And, again, thank you for your
leadership, Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, and members of the
subcommittee.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Bruce A. Coppa
Good Morning Mr. Chairman: My name is Bruce A. Coppa and serve as
the Chair of Hawaii 3R's, an organization that serves public schools
throughout Hawaii by funding repair and maintenance of their
facilities. I am also the Managing Director of the Pacific Resource
Partnership and have been in the construction industry for over 30
years.
I am here today to first of all thank you for your leadership,
vision and support of this program. I vividly recall how in 2001 we all
came together to create Hawaii 3R's to tackle the estimated $640
million repair and maintenance backlog that faced Hawaii's public
schools. Because of your support through the Joint Venture Education
Forum (Department of Defense), and State and private funding, Hawaii
3R's has awarded over $2.3 million for 72 projects statewide--
completing $5.7 million worth of projects since August 2001.
Hawaii 3R's has awarded eight grants to Maui schools, four to Kauai
schools, 6 to Hawaii schools, two to Molokai schools, and 52 grants to
Oahu schools. More than giving out grants, Hawaii 3R's has been able to
bring together over 1,000 community members and organizations to
complete these necessary repairs to their neighborhood schools.
What makes this program unique is its successful partnership with
almost every educational stakeholder, from parents to businesses and
especially the State. Hawaii 3R's works because everyone is working
together to accomplish the same goal of providing better learning
environments for our children.
I would like to highlight the State's involvement. We not only have
the full support of the State Department of Education, but we also have
the help of a full-time Department of Accounting and General Services'
Coordinator. His specific duties and tasks are to make sure that Hawaii
3R's and the State are working in the most effective and efficient way
possible.
In summary, we have done a lot of work in the last few years, but
we still have a lot to do. The impact of the federal dollars has been
felt statewide and will continue to help the schools that need it most.
I would like to thank you for the newly passed legislation through
the Native Hawaiian Education Act. The $1 million shall be used for the
renovation and maintenance of schools with a 25 percent or more Native
Hawaiian students. There are 122 schools that have the potential to
receive grants from Hawaii 3R's.
Again, I would like to thank you for your unyielding support of
public schools through Hawaii 3R's. With your help, we can continue to
make a difference in the lives of our young people and give them the
learning environments that they deserve.
Together we can Repair, Remodel, and Restore Hawaii's public
schools. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Mr. Coppa.
STATEMENT OF DENNIS MANALILI, PRINCIPAL, KAIMUKI HIGH
SCHOOL
Senator Inouye. Now may I call upon the principal of this
school. And before I do, I thank you very much for the use of
your facility. Mr. Manalili.
Mr. Manalili. Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, members of the
subcommittee. I appreciate the opportunity to testify before
you today in support of the Hawaii 3R's program. I am Dennis
Manalili, principal of Kaimuki High School. We're honored and
proud that our school was selected for this hearing. On behalf
of students, faculty and community, thank you for giving us
this opportunity.
Kaimuki High School was built over 50 years ago. Like many
50 year old buildings, there is a need to repair, remodel and
restore our school to meet present standards. Our students need
to learn in a facility that is on a level playing field as
newer facilities or facilities that have been constantly
maintained and improved.
In September 2003, we had a backlog of over 100 projects.
Although this number is extremely high, there has been
significant progress in the past few years. To help deal with
the shortage of State funds, there have been several
initiatives to reduce this backlog. One of them is the State
accounting--Department of State Accounting, DAGS, to renovate
the classroom, the other is the Hawaii 3R's program.
I have learned that money saved is like money earned.
According to the 3R annual report, projects completed through
Hawaii 3R's saved the State $2.5 million. Money saved from
these projects could be used to provide quality facilities for
quality instructors to run quality programs.
For example, at Kaimuki High School, we have one librarian
and two science teachers who are nationally board certified. To
provide our librarian and science teachers with quality
facilities, about $1 million has been appropriated to prevent
water leaks by replacing and relocating the air conditioners on
the roof and to establish a science learning center. The
millions that are saved from Hawaii 3R's could be applied to
other schools.
This morning, members of the appropriations committee
visited projects that were coordinated by Hawaii 3R's. These
projects included the painting of the school cafeteria, the
swimming pool utility room, and the music building in 2003, and
the painting of the ROTC/ESLL building, and nearby portable
classrooms in 2002. If not for Hawaii 3R's in which there is
approximately a 3:1 sweat to dollar ratio, only one third of
the projects would have been possible.
According to research conducted by Edmonds and Lezotte,
effective schools are relatively safer, relatively cleaner,
relatively more orderly, relatively quieter, and so on. The
differences between effective and ineffective schools were
relative: The incidence of broken windows does not discriminate
but the time it takes to fix the window does. It is clear that
broken windows do not cause either elevated or depressed
achievement. The relevance of the window is that it's a stand-
in for adult attention to environment. A broken window that
goes on for a long time without being repaired gives a message
to everybody that the people who are responsible for the place
don't care very much about it.
Well, last year nearly 100 volunteers for our Hawaii 3R's
project showed that they care and many of them continue to
support our school. For example, as you enter the library, to
the right was a display case. That display case was built with
sweat equity and funds from the Kaimuki High School alumni and
the Kaimuki High School Foundation and what they have there are
priceless works of Stuart Mederios who started school here when
it was built about 50 years ago.
When I think of the Hawaii 3R programs, I think of a
television commercial. Cost of refreshments: $50. Cost of
bentos for lunch, provided by Representative Nishimoto: $500.
Cost of paint and other supplies, maybe $5,000. But the cost of
life-long supportive partnerships within the school, with our
school superintendents, with our legislatures, with our
governors, and with our national delegation, partnership that
actively support public education in achieving its vision:
Priceless.
PREPARED STATEMENT
Mr. Chairman, members of the subcommittee, on behalf of
Kaimuki High School and other schools and communities, thank
you for your priceless support to achieve our dream of making
Hawaii's public schools something that we can be proud of.
Thank you.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Dennis Manalili
Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka and Members of the Subcommittee, I
appreciate the opportunity to testify before you today in support of
the 3R's program's recent authority to utilize Native Hawaiian
education funds to repair those public schools with significant numbers
of Hawaiian children. I am Dennis Manalili, principal of Kaimuki High
School. We are honored and proud that our school was selected for this
hearing. On behalf of the students, faculty, staff and community, thank
you for giving us this opportunity.
Since becoming principal of Kaimuki High School last January. I
learned that the school's was population was ethnically diverse. About
70 percent are Asian or Pacific Islanders, and in this group is the
Hawaiian/Part Hawaiian population, which is about 18 percent, or nearly
250 students. I also learned that this school was built over fifty
years ago. Like many fifty year-old buildings, there is a need to
repair, remodel and restore our school to meet present standards. Our
students need to learn in a facility that is on a level playing field
as newer facilities, or facilities that have been constantly maintained
and improved.
In September 2003, we had a backlog of over one hundred projects.
Although this number is extremely high, there has been significant
progress over the past few years. To help deal with the shortage of
State funds, there has been several initiatives to reduce this backlog.
One of them is using State Department of Accounting Personnel (DAGS) to
renovate classrooms. The other is the Hawaii 3R's Program.
I have learned that money saved is like money earned. After the
first year, the projects completed through Hawaii 3Rs saved the state
about 2.5 million dollars. Moneys saved from these projects could be
used to provide quality facilities for quality instructors to run
quality programs. For example, at Kaimuki High School, we have one
librarian and two science teachers who are nationally certified. To
provide our librarian and our science teachers with quality facilities,
about one million dollars has been appropriated to prevent water leaks
by replacing the air conditioners on the roof and to establish a
science learning center.
This morning, members of the Appropriations Committee visited
projects that were coordinated by Hawaii 3R's. These projects included
the painting of the school cafeteria, the swimming pool utility room
and the music building in 2003, and the painting of the ROTC/ESLL
building and nearby portable classrooms in 2002. If it was not for
Hawaii 3Rs, in which there is a 3:1 ``sweat to dollar'' ratio, only one
third on the projects would have been possible.
According to research conducted by Edmonds and Lezotte, effective
schools are relatively safer, relatively cleaner, relatively more
orderly, relatively quieter and so on. The differences between
effective and ineffective schools were ``relative'': the incidence of
broken windows doesn't discriminate, but the time it takes to fix the
windows does. It's clear that the broken windows don't cause either
elevated or depressed achievement: the relevance of the window is that
it's a stand in for adult attention to environment. A broken window
that goes on for a long time without being repaired gives a message to
everybody that people who are responsible for the place don't care very
much about it. Well, last year, nearly one hundred volunteers for our
Hawaii 3Rs project showed that they cared, and many of them continue to
support our school.
When I think of the Hawaii 3Rs program, I think of a television
commercial. Cost of refreshments: $50.00. Cost of bentos for lunch:
$500.00. Cost of paint and other supplies: $5,000.00. Cost of lifelong
supportive partnerships that actively support public education in
achieving its vision: priceless.
Mr. Chairman, Members of the Subcommittee, honored guests: On
behalf of Kaimuki High School and other schools and communities, thank
you for your priceless support to achieve our dream of making Hawaii's
public schools something we can all be proud of.
Senator Inouye. After that, why should I ask any questions.
Well, I want to thank the panel very much for what you're
doing for us.
Mr. Coppa, as you pointed out, our prime concern, our first
priority, are the children of Hawaii. And what you're doing is
helping to bring this about.
Mr. Coppa. Thank you, Senator, and thank you for your----
Senator Inouye. And thank you, Ms. Hamamoto. Thank you very
much.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
I, too, want to congratulate all of you for what you are
doing, and I'll be working together with Hawaii 3R's and our
public school system and want to wish you all well.
Mr. Coppa. Thank you, Senator.
Mr. Manalili. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much.
With that, I'd like to call a 5 minute recess. In 5
minutes, we'll have the gavel.
STATEMENT OF NEIL ABERCROMBIE, U.S. REPRESENTATIVE FROM
HAWAII
Senator Inouye. And now it's my great pleasure to call upon
a very energetic, very powerful colleague, Congressman Neil
Abercrombie.
Mr. Abercrombie. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Mr.
Chairman, with your kind permission I would like to submit
formal testimony and then speak a bit more informally at this
time.
Senator Inouye. Your full statement will be made part of
the record.
Mr. Abercrombie. Thank you very much, indeed, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to testify
before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health
and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. I'm here
today to present information on workforce development and
training from my perspective as the Honorary Chairman of the
Hawaii Jobs Summit. I'm proud to contribute to the effort to
prepare Hawaii's workforce for what is projected to be dramatic
economic growth.
Mr. Chairman, the people in this room represent the broad
cross section of people who are involved in this economic
growth as part of the long-term Federal development strategy
for the State of Hawaii, which you, as the Dean of our
Delegation, has lead and which Mr. Case, myself, former and now
much lamented departed Patsy Mink, and Senator Akaka have
played a role.
On September 13, 2003, the Army RCI signing commemorated
the increasing Federal investment in Hawaii. A celebration
ensued, and through conversations there with Jim Tollefson,
Bennette Evangelista, and Bruce Coppa, the idea of a Jobs
Summit was born. The Chamber of Commerce and the Pacific
Resource Partnerships shared my desire to act on the community-
wide concern that Hawaii's labor pool may not be ready to
fulfill the demands of upcoming Federal, State, county, and
private construction projects. Another shared concern was the
recruitment, training and availability of skilled seafaring
labor for Norwegian Cruise Lines new American flagged ships.
Since the new federally based jobs were driving this new
demand, I asked the Chamber of Commerce, Pacific Resource
Partnership and the Hawaii Institute for Public Affairs, the
acronym for which is HIPA, to convene a summit. Which is, in
effect, Mr. Chairman, a community audit, a community audit
which was deemed an essential first step to accurately assess
Hawaii's capabilities to absorb this new work. This audit would
include an inventory of public and private sector projects and
a projection of current and future labor supply and demand.
A community leadership group from the business, labor,
education, training, and government sectors was organized to
contribute to the process. Organizations represented on the
Jobs Summit Advisory Committee include, but are not limited
to--and, Mr. Chairman, I have literally dozens that are
involved from Norwegian Cruise Lines through the General
Contractors Association, Winners at Work, HGEA, the Hawaii
Hotel and Lodging Association, Minority Business Development
Center, selected members of the State legislature, et cetera.
Dr. Sang-Hyop Lee, a University of Hawaii labor economist
formulated the highly specialized original research on the
construction industry's expected demand. For a broader
perspective, Dr. Burt Barnow, Associate Director for Research
at the Institute for Policy Studies at John Hopkins University,
assisted the group by researching the national construction
scene and prepared a presentation on policies used by other
States to handle new workforce demands generated by large
projects.
At the January 20, 2004 Jobs Summit, Dr. Lee and Dr. Barnow
presented their research and data to over 175 community
stakeholders. I will submit all the Jobs Summit presentations
for the record, with your permission, but let me provide a few
highlights that have significant indications.
Dr. Lee's combination of historical survey research
indicates that over the next 5 years 7,325 new workers will be
required in the construction industry alone. Now you
understand, parenthetically, Mr. Chairman, that we're
concentrating now on the federally dominated construction and
maritime jobs creation and related Federal activity. This, of
course, then has to blend in and meld with existing private and
other public county and State efforts.
Mr. Bob Kritzman of Norwegian Cruise Lines suggested he is
seeking 3,000 ship board employees, 2,000 of which will be
needed by mid-2004.
The University of Hawaii's Mike Rota used DLIR projections
to conclude that we will need more than 21,000 new workers per
year to sustain Hawaii's entire economy through 2010.
Bruce Coppa provided Pacific Resource Partnership's public
and private construction projects outlook for the fiscal year
2004. They included 16 large private construction projects
already under development.
You can see, Mr. Chairman, that this is a perfect storm of
opportunity for us and that this is a challenge and a problem
that we would have been delighted to try to address sooner but,
as a result, I believe, of the efforts of the delegation over
the past decade this is now coming to fruition.
The construction projects cited by Mr. Coppa include
everything from Coco Palms, which I know we're delighted is
being resuscitated after all these years, to Gentry Ewa Makai,
Kapolei Senior Project, Crescent Heights, 16 of them just in
his estimation.
The Federal projects: Billions of dollars, of course, in
military construction, privatization housing projects. $350,000
million in other DOD projects. Ford Island development, and
over $400,000 million in other Federal projects, for example,
the new NOAA building that will be built over the next 5 years.
State projects: At least $100,000 million in the various UH
campuses. The Department of Accounting and General Services
capital improvement projects are listed at more than $375,000
million. We expect more than $300 million in Department of
Transportation projects. And, of course, many millions of
dollars in supplemental budgets for repairs and maintenance of
schools, parks and harbors.
The Jobs Summit program also included expert panels on
workforce development and training and the spillover effects in
such areas as Hawaii's real estate markets, wages and the
social impacts on families and the community. The Jobs Summit
break-out sessions gave the participants an opportunity to
discuss the challenges that need to be addressed, the
opportunities to be seized and what activities and resources
were needed to meet Hawaii's workforce demand.
The outcome of this important community input brings me to
why I am here before the subcommittee today. There is more work
which needs to be done. The Jobs Summit was just the beginning.
The conveners of the Hawaii Jobs Summit propose that this
effort evolve into a Hawaii jobs initiative with a time frame
of 12 to 18 months. Additional research will be undertaken,
data will be collected and analyzed, collaborative discussions
will continue with appropriate groups, and an action plan will
address the areas of shortfall, assignment of responsibility
and criteria for evaluation. This is not theory. This is full
participation and an action plan, Mr. Chairman.
HIPA has submitted a $212,000 funding request to the Hawaii
State legislature. Initial discussions are taking place with
local governments and the private sector to request their
continued support. I would like to work with you, Senator
Inouye, Senator Akaka, and all the members of the Labor, Health
and Human Services, Education, and Related Areas Subcommittee,
my good friends there, to work for an appropriate mechanism to
provide $1 million in Federal funding for this effort.
The strategic plan that is under development includes
additional research in the following areas: Type of demand by
workforce category; current training programs and their ability
to expand; current and future worker supply; demographic
profile of people needing workforce training; project
timelines; housing demand, rental and single family; and
private construction demand over the next 10 years.
Our problem, Mr. Chairman, is this. There are a great many
individuals and groups, most of whom are represented in this
room today, who have a great deal of information but it is not
necessarily coordinated yet, it is not necessarily put together
in the kind of plan that all of us who want to put our
intentions forward are going to be able to actually carry
forward in a plan that we can operate with. That's what this
proposal and initiative is about.
Although Hawaii's geography presents unique challenges,
people will continue to seek out information from other States
that have experienced large workforce demands. Research and
data must be facilitated and gleaned from further collaborative
discussions of the spillover effect on housing, family and the
community; wages, education and training. The results of the
additional discussions would be presented in a second summit in
November of 2004--we're not going to string this out. We're
going to move expeditiously, with your assistance--where an
action plan for legislative and administrative action would be
presented.
We think we can cut through the politics on this, Mr.
Chairman. We think that we can make sure that this is not seen
as a partisan advantage one way or another or an ideological
clash, that this would be action plan for legislative and
administrative action cooperatively.
PREPARED STATEMENT
In summary, Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka, I share your
commitment to supporting the long-term economic vitality of
these islands. And through today's hearing, I believe we can
focus our work on making sure Hawaii's families share and
prosper in the economic growth that lies ahead. Mahalo nui loa
for the opportunity to testify before you today.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Neil Abercrombie
Mr. Chairman, I am honored to be here today in my role as
Representative of the First District of Hawaii, as well as in my
position as Honorary Chairman of the Hawaii Jobs Summit. I am proud to
have played a part in the conception and direction of the Hawaii Jobs
Summit. And, I am equally thrilled to contribute to the effort to
prepare Hawaii's workforce for what is projected to be dramatic
economic growth.
This projected growth is a part of a long term federal development
strategy for the State of Hawaii in which Senator Inouye has played a
major part. One of the events commemorating the federal investment in
Hawaii was the Army Residential Community Initiative signing ceremony,
on September 13, 2003. It was at this ceremony that the idea of a Job
Summit was born. Jim Tollefson and Bennette Evangelista of the Chamber
of Commerce of Hawaii and Bruce Coppa of Pacific Resource Partnership
shared my desire to act on the community-wide concern that Hawaii's
labor pool may not be ready to fulfill the demands of upcoming federal,
state, county, and private construction projects. Another shared
concern was the recruitment, training, and availability of skilled
seafaring labor for Norwegian Cruise Lines new American flagged ships.
Since the new federally based jobs were driving this new demand, I
asked the Chamber of Commerce, Pacific Resource Partnership and the
Hawaii Institute for Public Affairs (HIPA) to convene a summit and
prepare the factual information. A community audit was deemed an
essential first step to accurately assess Hawaii's capabilities to
absorb this new work. This audit would include an inventory of public
and private sector projects and a projection of current and future
labor supply and demand.
A community leadership group from the business, labor, education,
training, and government sectors was organized to contribute to the
process. Organizations represented on the Jobs Summit Advisory
Committee include, but are not limited to: Norwegian Cruise Lines,
Actus Lend Lease, Fluor/Hunt Development, Hawaii Military Communities,
the Building Industry Association, Hawaii Carpenters Union, Hawaii
State AFL-CIO, Electrical Workers Local 1186, Laborers' Union Local
368, Building and Construction Trades, Associated Builders and
Contractors, General Contractors Association, Swinerton Pacific, Dick
Pacific, Hawaiian Dredging, Nanakuli Housing, Central Pacific Bank,
Bank of Hawaii, Oahu Workforce Investment Board, the University of
Hawaii (UH), Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development and
Tourism (DBEDT), Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations
(DLIR), Winners at Work, Hawaii Business Roundtable, U.S. Small
Business Administration, Hawaii Government Employees' Association
(HGEA), Job Corps Hawaii, Alu Like, Inc., Hawaii Hotel and Lodging
Association, military RCI and PPV project managers, Minority Business
Development Center of Honolulu and selected members of the Hawaii State
Legislature.
Dr. Sang-Hyop Lee, a labor economist at the University of Hawaii
Department of Economics, formulated the highly specialized, original
research on the construction industry's expected demand. To give a
broader perspective, Dr. Burt Barnow, Associate Director for Research
at the Institute for Policy Studies of Johns Hopkins University,
assisted the group by researching the national construction scene and
preparing a presentation on policies used by other states to handle new
workforce demands generated by large projects.
At the January 20, 2004 Jobs Summit, Dr. Lee and Dr. Barnow
presented their research and data to over 175 community stakeholders. I
will submit all the Jobs Summit presentations for the record but let me
provide a few highlights that have significant indications.
--Dr. Lee's combination of historical and survey research indicates
that over the next five years, 7,325 new workers will be
required in the construction industry alone.
--Bob Kritzman of Norwegian Cruise Lines suggested that he is seeking
3,000 ship board employees; 2,000 are needed by mid-2004.
--The University of Hawaii's Mike Rota used DLIR projections to
conclude that we will need more than 21,000 new workers per
year to sustain Hawaii's entire economy thru 2010.
--Bruce Coppa provided Pacific Resource Partnership's public and
private construction projects outlook for fiscal year 2004.
Other than 16 large private construction projects under
development; federal projects include the multi-billion dollar
military housing projects, Ford Island development, $350
million in Department of Defense projects, and $400 million for
other federally appropriated projects. State projects amount to
$100 million in improvements to UH system campuses, $375
million Department of Accounting and General Services
construction improvement projects, $300 million in Department
of Transportation improvements, and the Governor's multi-
million dollar supplemental budget proposal for repairs and
maintenance of schools, parks and harbors.
The program also included expert panels on workforce development
and training; and the spill-over effects on Hawaii's real estate
market, wages and the social impact on families and the community.
Another important component of the Jobs Summit was the break-out
session workgroups. Using their professional expertise and the research
presented at the summit, these groups discussed challenges that need to
be addressed; opportunities to be seized; and what activities and
resources were needed to meet Hawaii's workforce demands.
The outcome of this important community input brings me to why I am
here before the subcommittee today: There is more work to be done. The
Jobs Summit was just the beginning.
The conveners of the Hawaii Jobs Summit propose that this effort
evolve into a Hawaii Jobs Initiative with a time frame of 12 to 18
months. During that time, additional research will be undertaken, data
will be collected and analyzed, collaborative discussions will continue
with appropriate groups and an action plan will address the areas of
shortfall, assignment of responsibility and criteria for evaluation.
The Hawaii Institute for Public Affairs has submitted a $212,000
funding request to the Hawaii State Legislature for this work.
Additionally, initial discussions are taking place with local
governments and the private sector to request their continued support.
I would like to work with Senator Inouye to find the appropriate
mechanism to provide $1 million in federal funding for this effort.
The strategic plan that is under development includes additional
research in the following areas:
--Type of demand by workforce category;
--Current training programs and their ability to expand;
--Current and future worker supply;
--Demographic profile of people needing workforce training;
--Project timelines;
--Housing demand (rental and single family); and
--Private construction demand over the next 10 years.
While acknowledging that Hawaii's geography presents unique
challenges, HIPA will continue seeking out information from other
states that have experienced large workforce demands. Additionally,
research and data must be facilitated and gleaned from further
collaborative discussions of the spillover effects on housing, the
family and the community, wages, education and training. The results of
the additional discussions would be presented at a second summit in
November 2004 where an action plan for legislative and administrative
action would be presented.
In summary, Senator Inouye, I share your commitment to supporting
the long term economic vitality of these islands. Through today's
hearing, I believe that we can focus our attention on making sure
Hawaii's families share and prosper in the economic growth that lies
ahead. Mahalo nui loa for the opportunity to testify before you today.
Senator Inouye. I thank you very much, Congressman, and I
want to commend you for taking the initiative in convening the
summit. I think it means much not just for today but for the
future. Listening to you, I can just imagine what may be going
through the minds of our colleagues from other States, they're
worried about exporting American jobs and here we are, we're
training our own here.
Mr. Abercrombie. We're creating jobs. I want to say
particularly, Senator, if you'd allow me, and I know that this
is something that was a long time in coming and I was pleased
to participate from whatever efforts we could make from the
House side in the creation of a cruise industry that's creating
jobs in the United States, in Hawaii to be sure, but in the
United States as well. And I think this is going to be an
enormous advantage in terms of economic prosperity and growth,
not just for jobs but in terms of diversifying the travel and
tourism industry in a way that's going to bring great
prosperity to the State. That's why we emphasize that
particular aspect in terms of the overall job requirements.
Senator Inouye. This cruise line business, as you know, has
had many obstacles, starting off with 9/11 and bankruptcy, the
sinking of the ship, but as you know----
Mr. Abercrombie. Yes. Apparently, they have no weather
forecasters in Germany.
Senator Inouye. But it's floating now?
Mr. Abercrombie. Yes.
Senator Inouye. But listening to you, I'm impressed that it
takes two to tango, and I think that's the secret of Hawaii,
that we've been able to work together, the Governor, the
congressional delegation, the State legislature and the
community, and for just one mission, the improvement of Hawaii.
And so I'm pleased to listen to your testimony and I thank you
very much for your initiative and leadership.
Mr. Abercrombie. Thank you for your courtesy, Senator.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I want to
hand my accolades to you, my friend, and commend you for what
you're doing for Hawaii and also commend you for the
significant aloha spirit that you carry while you're up there
in Washington, D.C., and I want to commend you for that.
Mr. Abercrombie. Thank you.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much for your testimony.
Mr. Abercrombie. Just may I conclude, Mr. Chairman, by
saying that while I'm pleased to be working with the wonderful
individuals and groups that I have cited, I can assure you that
they are carrying the burden of all of the work effort here,
particular mahalos to Jim Tollefson, and Bennette Evangelista,
and Bruce Coppa, and Bill Kaneko and the staff work associated
with that. I can't begin to tell you what an enormous
undertaking it has been and the cooperation of all of the
groups listed in making this happen is, believe me, proof
positive of your point that we do in fact have the aloha spirit
here.
Our diversity in Hawaii defines us, it does not divide us.
Maybe that division exists in other parts of the United States
and indeed in the rest of the world but here in Hawaii that
diversity is our crowning glory of the aloha spirit. Thank you
very much.
Senator Inouye. Thank you.
STATEMENT OF LINDA LINGLE, GOVERNOR, STATE OF HAWAII
Senator Inouye. Now it's my great pleasure and privilege
and honor to call upon the Governor of Hawaii. But before I do,
I'd like to welcome her back to Hawaii and to thank her and
commend her for representing us in Iraq and I'm certain all
people were very happy to see you, Madam Governor. Welcome
back.
Ms. Lingle. Thank you very much, Senator. And good morning,
Senator Akaka, Senator Inouye, Mr. Abercrombie, and the people
of Hawaii.
I'm very pleased to be here to participate in this hearing
for the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor,
Health and Human Services, and Education.
After enduring the years of economic stagnation, the State
of Hawaii is on the horizon of an exciting period of growth,
development and prosperity.
The impending boom in the construction and housing industry
brought about as a result of the multi-billion dollar contract
with the military has catapulted government, businesses,
unions, educators, and the community to forge greater
partnerships and collaboration on the development and execution
of solid strategic plans to meet the demand this wave of
opportunity brings for all of the citizens in Hawaii.
The situation has compelled each sector to reexamine
traditional methods of finding and training skilled workers and
nurturing a workforce through job training and continued and
remedial education to develop skills that will help individuals
obtain gainful employment. It has surfaced issues and problems
that we have been trying to deal with for many years and is now
forcing all of us to think creatively to work together and
build a solid platform not only to ensure today or tomorrow's
success but also the long-term future of Hawaii. There is no
one group or entity that can do this alone. We need to work in
partnership in this great new beginning for Hawaii's economic
success.
There is a great sense of urgency within the community to
move, act, and take whatever steps are necessary to seize this
opportunity. We can do this but it will take the effort and
commitment of each one of us to build a strong labor and
economic foundation for the State of Hawaii, its citizens, our
children, and future generations. There are several challenges
we face that will take innovative and creative solutions to
work through, however, none are insurmountable.
First I want to speak about the availability of workers. A
major challenge in projecting needed workforce is the lack of
specific numbers of workers to be hired for the upcoming
military construction projects.
At a recent meeting between the Department of Labor and
Industrial Relations and the training coordinators of
construction trades, it was reported that recruitment of a
sufficient number of candidates for apprenticeship programs
would not pose a major problem in the near future. All trades
reported that their recruitment efforts would produce
sufficient numbers of qualified candidates. For example, the
carpenters reported have 300 workers on the bench right now,
although they have scheduled another recruitment for
apprentices in April 2004 in anticipation of a hiring increase.
This is encouraging information.
However, Hawaii's aging population also has significant
ramifications on the State's workforce. The 2000 Census
reported that 38 percent of our population is 45 years of age
or older. The baby boomers' impending mass retirements will
strain the supply of labor in our State while increasing labor
demand in the health-medical and social service industries.
Young workers who rapidly advance into mid and upper level
positions due to labor shortages will need accelerated training
to fill these jobs. Hawaii has traditionally imported workers
to meet the State's labor shortages. However, the median cost
of housing in Hawaii is almost $400,000, which places our State
at a disadvantage when competing for these workers with our
neighboring States. In Nevada, Arizona and California
construction is also expected to increase over the next 10
years and housing there is significantly more affordable. This
will likely mean that our historical labor stream may be less
available to us.
I want to talk about education reform now. Historically,
there are 21,000 annual job openings in Hawaii, 12,000 of those
jobs, construction included, require education past high
school. Yet of the 13,616 public and private students who
enrolled in the ninth grade in the fall of 2001, only 64
percent are expected to graduate on time this year. A large
portion of this population is expected to pursue post-secondary
education or opportunities outside of Hawaii, leaving
industries to compete for a smaller pool of new workforce
entrants who are capable of basic math and reading at an eighth
grade level.
In 2002, the National Center for Public Policy and Higher
Education produced a national State-by-State assessment. In
this report only 16 percent of Hawaii's eighth graders were
proficient in their grade level math and 19 percent in their
grade level reading. Most disturbingly, only 8 percent of
eighth graders from low income families were found to be
proficient in their grade level math.
The experience of the carpenters has been that 40 percent
of their applicants failed a written test that is required for
all applicants to be accepted into their apprenticeship
training program. This 40 percent failed a test because they
cannot satisfactorily complete eighth grade math and reading.
To compound the problem, half of those who do pass will
fall out of the training program due to failed drug tests or
being ill prepared to handle the rigors of the training
program.
The very foundation of a strong skilled and successful
workforce is education. Hawaii is blessed with students who can
learn, teachers who can teach, principals who can lead, and
communities that want to support their schools. Even so, the
public education system is not performing at an acceptable
level. Study after study has concluded that this is not a
people problem, it is a structural problem. That is why I have
proposed a series of education initiatives to restructure the
public school system in Hawaii.
The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, through
its Workforce Development Council and Division, has
continuously partnered with the State's construction trades,
local Workforce Investment Boards, community colleges, and
other public and private agencies to aggressively promote trade
and apprenticeship programs and assist with recruitment
efforts. These recruitment efforts are conducted by 14 One-Stop
Centers for workforce assistance located throughout the State.
The One-Stops provide job seekers and employers with access to
electronic job matching services, resource facilities, business
equipment, Internet access and job and career counseling
services. These centers collectively contain the largest data
bank of approximately 48,000 job seekers in Hawaii. All centers
are gearing up to intensify recruitment efforts and enhance
their services and programs.
The State is also participating in numerous job fairs and
outreach activities to reach more people in the community and
promote the numerous workforce development programs and
services that are available. The Workforce Development
Division, in partnership with private businesses, other
government departments and agencies, and trade industries,
produced an annual job fair in Honolulu in January which drew
over 3,000 job seekers and included almost 100 employers. Some
trades reported they received hundreds of applications for
apprenticeship programs. Another job fair is scheduled for May
2004 and is projected to attract even more job seekers due to
high school and college graduations occurring at that time.
The Department of Labor, in collaboration with the neighbor
island Workforce Investment Boards, community colleges and
trades is also launching a pilot program called the Pre-
Apprenticeship Program through the Workforce Development
Council. The pilot project, funded by the Workforce Investment
Act Discretionary Fund, is intended to provide remedial
training in math and reading that will significantly increase
the success rate of Hawaii applicants for apprenticeship jobs
in construction and in other industries facing a lack of
skilled workers.
The University of Hawaii's community colleges will design a
curriculum and select instructors from programs at community
colleges and community schools for adults. The curriculum will
be aligned with the specific entry requirements of the
employers and be transportable for use by other entities
throughout the State. The pilot will include participating
employers, unions and at least 100 people who have been unable
to pass the entry apprenticeship test. Local Workforce
Investment Boards in each county will collect data to track and
monitor each participant's progress and evaluate the success of
the pilot. Advertising for first recruitment of this pilot will
take place in March. Beginning in May, local Workforce
Investment Boards in each county will work with trade
organizations to steer applicants to these pre-test refresher
or remedial courses.
Another effort being spearheaded by the University of
Hawaii, Honolulu Community College, is developing arrangements
with the Department of Education for the implementation of a
pilot project to be implemented in the summer where high school
students can earn credit for vocational training at the
college. We fully support this innovative project because it
will eventually lead toward a stronger and more consistent
vocational technical curriculum across all public high schools.
It is also directly in line with President Bush's recent State
of the Union address in which he pledged to increase financial
support to the community colleges to enable them to better
train individuals in industries that are creating the most new
jobs.
Better linkages between a secondary school, working world
and post-secondary education will be promoted and supported to
improve students awareness of construction trades and encourage
their selection of the trades as vocational choices. A major
outreach event is tentatively planned for late summer or early
fall to promote and educate youth, schools and job seekers
about apprenticeship programs, with focus on the construction
trades.
Federally funded employment and training programs for
adults and youth, such as those under the Workforce Investment
Act which are administered by our Department of Labor and
Industrial Relations will increase their focus on construction
trades and look towards equipping their participants for
possible entry into these jobs.
The State continues to seek Federal funding to effectively
support, facilitate and drive many of these ongoing efforts I
have described today.
PREPARED STATEMENT
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to testify. And I
would also like the privilege to introduce the director of our
Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Nelson Befitel,
for all of the work that he has done on these initiatives for
all of his outreach with both labor unions as well as the
business community. And thank you again for this chance to
participate.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Linda Lingle
GREETINGS
Good morning Senator Inouye, Congressman Abercrombie and honorable
members of the committee. I am pleased to participate in this hearing
for the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education.
IMPROVING THE ECONOMY
After enduring years of economic stagnation, the State of Hawaii is
on the verge of an exciting period of growth, development and
prosperity. There is an impending boom in the construction and housing
industry brought about as result of multi-billion dollar contract with
the military.
This has catapulted government, private businesses, workers'
unions, educators and the community to forge greater partnerships.
They're collaborating on development and execution of solid, strategic
plans to meet the demands this wave of opportunity brings for all our
residents.
This situation compels each sector to re-examine traditional
methods of finding and training skilled workers. Involves nurturing a
workforce through job training and continued and remedial education to
develop skills that will help individuals obtain gainful employment.
Brings to the surface issues and problems we have been trying to deal
with for many years. Forces us all to think creatively and work
together to build a solid platform, not only to ensure today or
tomorrow's success but to ensure long-term prosperity.
There is no one group or entity that can do this alone. We need to
work in partnership in this great, new beginning for Hawai`i's economic
success. Great sense of urgency within the community to take whatever
steps necessary to seize this opportunity.
We can do this, but it will take the effort and commitment of us
all to build a strong labor and economic foundation.
CHALLENGES IN PROJECTING WORKFORCE DEMANDS
There are several challenges that will take innovative and creative
solutions to work through. However, none are insurmountable. Lack of
specific numbers of workers needed in different trades may result in
inaccurate projections for recruitment and training. This increases the
possibility that workers who are selected may be unemployed for long
periods while waiting for jobs to materialize.
Conversely, there's the equally disturbing prospect of an
insufficient number of qualified workers for jobs in demand. Because
subcontract specifications for the military construction projects had
not been released, projecting workforce needs was a major challenge.
However, at recent meeting between Department of Labor and
Industrial Relations and training coordinators of construction trades,
it was reported that recruitment of sufficient number of candidates for
apprenticeship programs would not pose a major problem in the near
future. All trades reported their recruitment efforts will produce
sufficient numbers of qualified candidates.
Carpenters reported having 300 workers on the bench right now,
although they have scheduled another recruitment for apprentices in
April 2004 in anticipation of hiring increase. Should their projections
prove inaccurate, more workers will be unemployed until the jobs are
created.
EFFECTS OF AGING POPULATION ON WORKFORCE
Hawaii's aging population also has significant ramifications on
state workforce. 2000 Census reported that 38 percent of our population
is 45 years of age or older.
Baby boomers' impending mass retirements will further strain the
supply of labor in this state while increasing labor demand in the
health-medical and social service industries. Young workers who rapidly
advance into mid- and upper-level positions due to labor shortages will
need accelerated training to fill these jobs.
Hawai`i has traditionally imported workers to meet labor shortages.
However, median cost of housing in Hawai`i is $400,000, which places
our state at a disadvantage when competing for imported workers with
our neighboring states.
In Nevada, Arizona and California, construction is also expected to
increase over the next 10 years and housing there is significantly more
affordable. This will likely mean that our historical labor stream may
be less available to us.
EDUCATIONAL CHALLENGES
Historically, there are 21,000 annual job openings in Hawai`i.
Twelve thousand (12,000) of those jobs, construction included, require
education past high school.
Yet of the 13,616 public and private students who enrolled in the
ninth grade in the fall of 2001, only 64 percent are expected to
graduate on time this year.
A large portion of this population is expected to pursue post-
secondary education or opportunities outside of Hawai`i. This means
industries will compete for a smaller pool of new workforce entrants
who are capable of basic math and reading at an eighth-grade level.
In 2002, the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education
produced a national state-by-state assessment. In this report, only 16
percent of Hawai`i's eighth graders were proficient in their grade-
level math and 19 percent in their grade-level reading.
More disturbingly, only 8 percent of eighth graders from low-income
families were found to be proficient in their grade-level math. This
education gap creates a problem for construction and other industries,
because these eighth graders will enter the workforce in the second and
third years of the initial period of the military housing construction
projects.
The experience of carpenters has been that 40 percent of applicants
fail the written test required for acceptance into the apprentice-
training program. They fail the test because they cannot satisfactorily
complete eighth-grade math and reading. To compound the problem, half
of those who do pass the written test will fall out of the training
program because they fail drug tests or are ill-prepared to handle the
rigors of the training program.
NEED FOR EDUCATION REFORM
All this points out the need for education reform in our state. The
very foundation of a strong, skilled and successful workforce is
education.
Hawai`i is blessed with students who can learn, teachers who can
teach, principals who can lead, and communities that want to support
their schools. Even so, the public education system is not performing
at an acceptable level.
Study after study has concluded that this is not a people problem--
it is a structural problem. We need to act with a sense of urgency to
help our children succeed in the classroom and later in the workplace,
in whatever career they choose.
WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING TO HELP
Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, through its Workforce
Development Council and Division, partners with construction trades,
local Workforce Investment Boards, community colleges and other public
and private agencies.
The department aggressively promotes trade and apprenticeship
programs and assists with recruitment efforts. These recruitment
efforts are conducted at fourteen (14) One-Stop Centers for Workforce
Assistance located throughout the state.
The One-Stops provide jobseekers and employers with access to
electronic job matching services, resource facilities, business
equipment, Internet access and job and career counseling services.
These centers collectively contain the largest data bank of
approximately 48,00 job seekers in Hawai`i. All centers are gearing up
to intensify recruitment efforts and enhance services and programs.
My administration has undertaken several initiatives to deal with
the ``projected'' shortage of skilled workers. In many cases, my
administration serves as a facilitator to numerous groups and agencies
engaged in efforts to help this situation.
State also participating in numerous job fairs and outreach
activities to promote numerous workforce development programs and
services that are available. Workforce Development Division--in
partnership with private businesses, other government departments and
agencies, and trade industries--produced an annual job fair in Honolulu
in January.
This event drew over 3,000 jobseekers and included almost a hundred
employers, and some trades reported receiving hundreds of applications
for apprenticeship programs. Another Job Fair is scheduled for May 2004
and is projected to attract even more jobseekers due to high school and
college graduations occurring at that time.
PRE-APPRENTICESHIP PILOT PROGRAM
Department of Labor--in collaboration with Neighbor Island
Workforce Investment Boards, community colleges and trades--is
launching the Pre-Apprenticeship Program.
This pilot program is offered through the Workforce Development
Council and funded by the Workforce Investment Act Discretionary Fund.
The program is intended to provide remedial training in math and
reading that will significantly increase the success rate of Hawai`i
applicants for apprenticeship jobs in construction and in other
industries facing a lack of skilled workers.
University of Hawai`i's Community Colleges will design the
curriculum and select instructors from programs at Community Colleges
and Community Schools for Adults. The curriculum will be aligned with
the specific entry requirements of employers and can also be used by
other entities throughout the state.
This pilot program will include at least 100 people who have been
unable to pass entry apprenticeship tests, along with participating
employers and unions.
Local Workforce Investment Boards in each county will collect data
to monitor each participant's progress and evaluate the program's
success. Advertising for the first recruitment of this pilot project
will take place in March.
Beginning in May, local Workforce Investment Boards in each county
will work with trade organizations to steer applicants to these pre-
test refresher or remedial courses.
PILOT PROJECT FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
Another effort being spearheaded by the University of Hawai`i,
Honolulu Community College, is developing arrangements with the DOE for
implementation of a pilot project to be implemented in the summer. High
school students will earn credit for vocational training at HCC.
We fully support this innovative project because it will eventually
lead to stronger and more consistent vocational technical curriculum
across all public high schools. It is also directly in-line with
President Bush's recent State of the Union address in which he pledged
to increase financial support to community colleges to enable them to
better train individuals in industries that are creating the most new
jobs.
Better linkages between secondary school, working world and post-
secondary education will be promoted and supported to improve students'
awareness of construction trades and encourage their selection of the
trades as vocational choices.
A major outreach event is tentatively planned for late summer or
early fall to promote and educate youth, schools and jobseekers about
apprenticeship programs, with focus on the construction trades.
FEDERAL FUNDING
Federally funded employment and training programs for adults and
youth, such as those under the Workforce Investment Act administered by
the DLIR, will increase their focus on construction trades to equip
participants for possibly entry into these jobs.
The State respectfully requests assistance with federal funding to
effectively support, facilitate and drive many of these ongoing
efforts.
Automation of existing manual processes, functions, data collection
and certification identification is critical to ensure rapid response,
quality support and service delivery. We also need funding to increase
our capabilities to provide Internet-based programs and information to
the community. High demands for outreach activities will also require
additional funding to fully promote construction trades and educate
students, school faculty and jobseekers about these industries.
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to testify. I will be
happy to answer any questions you may have.
Senator Inouye. Governor, I thank you very much for your
most thought provoking and challenging statement. It is obvious
that there's much to be done, and I'm certain I speak for the
congressional delegation that we stand ready to work with you
to come up with solutions.
Ms. Lingle. Well, thank you, Senator Inouye and Senator
Akaka, for your continued friendship and support for these
efforts. And my bottom line message is: The challenge is a big
one, we are up to it, and the State will be successful. Thank
you.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much.
STATEMENT OF DONNA KIM, VICE PRESIDENT, HAWAII STATE
SENATE
Senator Inouye. And now it's my privilege to call upon the
vice president of the Senate of the State of Hawaii, the
Honorable Donna Kim. Senator Kim.
Ms. Kim. Aloha. Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, members of
the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee, on behalf of our Senate
President Robert Bunda, I express our senate's gratitude for
your efforts to bring more Federal dollars to Hawaii and to
assist and train our local construction workforce.
In about 3 minutes our senate president will hit the gavel
and our session will be beginning. And so, in that light, I
will keep this testimony short and so please allow me to
paraphrase.
I don't have to tell you that Hawaii's construction
industry is only now recovering from a decade of recession. The
number of workers in the industry declined from a high of
35,000 to less than 20,000 by the end of the 1990s. During this
time, revenues for public and private sector construction fell
from an aggregate of more than $4 billion a year to half that
volume. Our trade unions lost thousands of members to other
careers or to better opportunities on the mainland, not to
mention retirement.
On a personal note, my father and brother both were
carpenters, so I knew all too well how difficult it was during
the recession when they were out of work and sitting on the
bench.
Today, we have the potential to equal our best years ever
as major projects are initiated, including that of the military
with the new national defense priorities and the aging
conditions of existing buildings and military housing.
The interest rates are low and our people are buying new
homes before they are even completed. Our trade unions are
aggressively training a new generation of skilled tradesmen and
women to give them the ability to meet the market demands, and
assistance from you and from Washington will only reenforce
this effort. This will also assure contractors that we have a
ready, steady, able, and trained workforce.
Military presence is essential to our economy. And in my
senatorial district from Kalihi to Aiea, I have a few military
installations. Upgrading of the military housing stock in our
neighborhood is vital to keeping our military 'ohana in decent
housing and not competing with our local residents for rental
units during this very tight housing market.
We appreciate you being here. I appreciate the opportunity
to testify in front of you. And, again, we thank you for your
efforts on behalf of Hawaii and our construction industry.
Senator Inouye. Senator, I thank you for your very generous
comments. It's always been a pleasure to work with the
legislature.
Ms. Kim. We appreciate that.
Senator Inouye. I think, as the Governor indicated, working
together and nothing is impossible.
Ms. Kim. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much.
STATEMENT OF SYLVIA J. LUKE, VICE SPEAKER, HAWAII STATE
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Senator Inouye. Now may I call upon the Vice Speaker of the
Hawaii State House of Representatives, the Honorable Sylvia
Luke.
It's always good to see you.
Ms. Luke. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. How are your babies?
Ms. Luke. One baby. Thank you for your----
Senator Inouye. You're not having another one?
Ms. Luke. Well, it's a toll with a 1\1/2\ year old. You
know how it is. But thank you for your concern.
Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka, members and staff of the
Senate Appropriations Subcommittee, my name is Sylvia Luke,
Representative from the 26th house district and vice-speaker of
the Hawaii House of Representatives.
You had a tremendous amount of speakers and they said all
great things, and in order to keep my comments short you have
my written testimony and I will summarize my testimony, if
that's okay.
Senator Inouye. Your full statement will be made part of
the record.
Ms. Luke. Thank you. House Speaker Calvin Say asked me to
convey his apologies for not being here. And, you know, I would
say that I'm lucky, you know, because he wasn't here I was able
to be here and speak to you and I find this a great pleasure to
be with you today. And on behalf of the House, we really thank
you for holding this hearing in Honolulu and for inviting all
of us to share our thoughts with you on labor, health and
education issues that confront our State.
We were asked to share with you our perspective on our
State's relationship with the military and, in particular, the
State's ability to meet the demand for quality and qualified
workers to construct military housing. We are grateful for all
that the military brings to our State, from emergency
assistance programs to the many jobs that simply would not
exist were it not for the military's presence in our islands.
As you know, Mr. Chairman, I chaired a committee on war
preparedness last session and it was actually during that
process that the house members were truly able to appreciate
the positive impact the military has on our community. And
whether it was through partnership with the Department of
Education or the economic impact it would have on deployment,
it was the first time that the house members were truly able to
appreciate all that the military does in our State, and we
again thank you for coming to testify in front of that
committee.
Two of the things most important to military families in
Hawaii are quality educational programs for their children and
reasonably priced housing. In response to these needs, we're
currently considering bills that would establish a full time
military liaison in the Hawaii State Department of Education
and to establish a position for the military on our statewide
board of education. We're also considering a bill this session
that would streamline regulatory approvals for military
construction projects.
In recent years, we've passed legislation to allow the
Department of Education to enter into agreements with Federal
agencies to construct, repair and renovate schools on military
bases. We also passed legislation that defines ``State
resident'' to help local individuals and companies qualify for
bid preferences already written into Federal law.
We further authorized $10 million per year to support the
Workforce Investment Act and an additional quarter million
dollars per year to fund the Workforce Development Council.
Hawaii's housing and educational issues are critical to all
of us, both military and civilian. We've gained from the
perspectives of military families and the perspectives they
have shared with us based on their experiences with educational
systems around the world. We also know the addition of new and
upgraded housing for military personnel will not only create
added employment for our residents but new housing for the
civilian markets as well.
The leadership of our State house believes a strong bond
between the military and civilian communities in Hawaii benefit
all of us, and we're committed to supporting those programs and
initiatives that will make the bond even stronger in years
ahead.
PREPARED STATEMENT
I thank you again for this opportunity and having this--
holding this hearing in Honolulu. And I must apologize, we do
have session at noon, so I will be leaving early, if that's
okay.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Sylvia J. Luke
Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, members and staff of the Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee: My name is Sylvia Luke, Representative
from the 26th house district and Vice-Speaker of the Hawaii House of
Representatives. House Speaker, Calvin Say, asked me to convey his
apologies for not being able to be with you today. He specifically
asked that I convey his thanks to you for holding this hearing in
Honolulu and for inviting all of us to address you on the labor, health
and education issues that confront our state. You have a long agenda
today and many fine speakers, so I will keep my comments brief.
We were asked to share with you our perspective on our state's
relationship with the military and, in particular, the State's ability
to meet the demand for qualified workers to construct military housing.
In military circles Hawaii has long been known as a high-cost duty
station, but one where military people feel comfortable and welcome.
Hawaii is known as a place that cares about the military presence in
our community and tries to do what is right for its military residents.
In turn, we are grateful for all that the military brings to our state,
from emergency assistance programs to the many jobs that simply would
not exist were it not for the military's presence in our islands.
Two of the things most important to military families in Hawaii are
quality educational programs for their children and reasonably priced
housing. In response to these needs, we are currently considering bills
that would establish a full-time military liaison in the Hawaii
Department of Education and establish a position for the military on
our state-wide Board of Education. We are also considering a bill this
session that would streamline regulatory approvals for military
construction projects.
Educational reform is high on our legislative agenda this year. In
the House we are looking at a range of initiatives to address the needs
of educators at the school level. We know that the foundation for a
bright educational future for our state--and its workforce--rests with
what we do in the classroom at individual schools across our state.
Educators, parents and students are ready to go if we just untie their
hands and give them the tools to prove what they are capable of.
In recent years, we've passed legislation to allow the Department
of Education to enter into agreements with federal agencies to
construct, repair and renovate schools on military bases. We also
passed legislation that defines ``state resident'' to help local
individuals and companies qualify for bid preferences already written
into federal law. We've further authorized $10 million per year to
support the Workforce Investment Act and an additional quarter million
per year to fund the Workforce Development Council.
You'll be hearing from others today about their actions and ideas
to improve the day-to-day relationships between our communities and our
military. You, no doubt, will hear of the many programs our trade
unions and construction industry have initiated to prepare workers for
the growing number of federal construction projects. These include
expanded enrollments in apprenticeship training programs, institution
of refresher courses and continuing education programs for journey
workers, and active recruitment of new members to address estimated
manpower requirements.
The Hawaii House of Representatives has and will work with such
groups to address needs that require state government involvement.
Hawaii's housing and education issues are critical to all of us, both
military and civilian. We've gained from the perspectives military
families have shared with us based on their experiences with
educational systems around the world. We also know the addition of new
and upgraded housing for military personnel will create not just added
employment for our residents, but new housing options in civilian
markets as well.
The leadership of our State House believes the strong bond between
the military and civilian communities in Hawaii benefits us all, and we
are committed to supporting those programs and initiatives that will
make the bond even stronger in years ahead.
Mahalo and aloha.
Senator Inouye. I'd like to thank you on behalf of the
military, if I may, a senior member of the defense committee. I
certainly would be most pleased to learn of your support and
your friendship. Thank you very much.
Ms. Luke. Thank you, Senator Inouye.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much for coming. Please
convey our aloha to the Speaker and to the House.
Ms. Luke. I will.
Senator Inouye. Thank you.
Ms. Luke. Thank you again.
STATEMENT OF DR. CLYDE M. SAKAMOTO, CHANCELLOR, MAUI
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Senator Inouye. Now may I call upon the Chancellor of the
Maui Community College, Dr. Clyde Sakamoto, and the Chancellor
of Honolulu Community College, Mr. Ramsey Pedersen.
Chancellor Sakamoto.
Dr. Sakamoto. Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, members of the
committee, thank you for being here. I am Chancellor of Maui
Community College, Clyde Sakamoto, and have the privilege of
responding to some of the interests that the Senators and
Congress has had in rural economic diversity, economic
diversification and workforce development in rural Hawaii.
I'm also representing two other institutions in rural
Hawaii, Kaua'i and Hawaii Community Colleges which serve, along
with Maui Community College, on Moloka'i and Lana'i as well
serving some 6,000 students in the credit programs.
I'm also principal investigator of the Rural Job Training
Act and also the Rural Development Programs. And these programs
have, with your support, touched over 6,000 lives in rural
Hawaii finding a whole range of various kinds of workforce
development activities.
I have an extensive testimony that I would request to be
read into the record, with your permission.
Senator Inouye. So ordered.
Dr. Sakamoto. And would like simply to speak to some of the
kinds of issues that we're confronting in economic
diversification and development in rural Hawaii. And they are
complex, in part, because many of our communities are small
communities, as you well know, and ones that are remote and
have very few economic development alternatives. And so we are
working to leverage what resources exist in terms of assets
that these items have on Maui, as an example, assets related to
our Maui high performance competing center, the work that's
emerging relative to the Department of Defense and its
relationship with Haleakala. On Kaua'i, with the Pacific
missile firing range and the kinds of developments that are
occurring around that particular facility with private
contractor's requiring workforce that are skilled in scientific
technological skill sets.
With the smaller islands of Lana'i and Moloka'i, the
challenges are even more significant, as you well know. The
ability to leverage economic alternatives depends upon the
economic cycles, as you're well aware. And we have, on Moloka'i
and Lana'i, have had great challenges as we have had in other
parts of the State.
The solutions that we've undercovered are ones that are
grounded in a concept that relies upon the infrastructure of
our rural community colleges working with private/public
sectors in the community to create sustainable economic
development and diversification solutions.
I can tell you that one of our most recent successes
represents a very complex arrangement, to address the oral care
requirements in rural Hawaii. The public health director,
district director Dr. Pang informed us about 2 years ago that
the situation on Maui was such that over a third of Maui and
Maui counties in the State's population went unserved in terms
of dental care services. We then responded with the help of
landowners who had a facility, with the help of a dentist who
had recently vacated a facility with fiber opatories to create
a dental assistant program that has a 170 client-waiting list
in the community. And this has, in turn, leveraged some
resources from the Catholic charities with about $270,000 worth
of a dental care van being attributed to the college. And also
leveraged contributions from the State's Department of Human
Services with $150,000 grant and training that's resulting in
Medicaid reimbursements to sustain the entire effort.
So it's a complex set of partnerships and collaborations
that have occurred in partnership with dentist professionals,
with the State, with the county, as well as with the Rural
Development Project, all of which goes right to the heart of a
workforce development.
As you know, with problems in oral care, workers are not
able to present themselves effectively before any company or
any possibility of employment. And so it goes really to the
heart of employment, as does the challenge with drugs.
On the Big Island, we have a partnership with the Hawaii
Police Department, and that partnership involves one of
acquiring equipment to support the Hawaii Police Department's
drug lab. And it is in this regard that we're seeking support
in terms of flexibility for the implementation of the resources
that are coming to us from the Department of Labor in allowing
us the flexibility to suggest that there's certain strategies,
such as acquiring drug lab equipment, that go to the heart of
the workforce development pipeline that will allow us to
address the issue of drug analysis that will allow the Hawaii
Police Department to then be able to analyze what the drugs may
be so that the criminal justice system is able to function in a
fashion to contribute to the rehabilitation of some of the
folks who have been arrested and who then require treatment.
Without the drug equipment, we have not been able to
correct that situation and would like flexibility from the
overseers of the grants that we've received out of the
Department of Labor to allow this kind of scenario to emerge.
And so we're seeking that assistance.
We're also seeking assistance for several other areas in
terms of resources that would allow some of the smaller kinds
of initiatives that come from places like Lana'i that involve
web site development, as an example, that's been successful and
smaller initiatives that are extremely unique to the rural
parts of Hawaii, and we would be grateful for that kind of
assistance.
We are also, as community colleges in rural Hawaii,
supportive of the workforce that goes to the heart of our
health programs, our business programs, our needs in the
community in terms of criminal justice, and the trades as well.
And it's in the trades area that we are working with colleagues
in Honolulu to anticipate the kinds of demands that Honolulu is
going to experience in terms of workers from Maui in the
construction area potentially migrating to Honolulu. And so we
are in the process of examining what the dimensions of this
migration may be and working with our apprenticeship programs
on each of the islands to determine what the requirements will
be to address what we foresee will be a work shortage, a
workforce shortage, on the neighbor islands in terms of the
construction area.
PREPARED STATEMENT
We are prepared with our rural development--the development
resources to address some of these requirements and look
forward to working with our colleagues in Honolulu, working
with Representative Abercrombie and others in the Jobs Summit
to collaboratively bring about some workforce kinds of
solutions in rural Hawaii as well as in Honolulu.
So, we thank you for the opportunity to testify before you
and appreciate all of the support that we've gotten from
Congress on our rural development initiatives in the Hawaii
Community Colleges. Thank you.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Dr. Clyde M. Sakamoto
Thank you for the opportunity to address the Labor, Health and
Human Services and Education Appropriations Subcommittee.
The Rural Development Project was initiated by support from the
U.S. Department of Labor's Secretary Pilot and Demonstration funding.
This category of resources has permitted Maui Community College (MCC)
to explore and examine the development of a labor force in rural Hawaii
through strengthening the local higher education infrastructure and its
partnerships with the private, public and nonprofit sectors. To
leverage these invaluable resources, MCC created partnerships with
Hawaii and Kauai Community Colleges in two other rural counties in the
state.
Maui (including the islands of Molokai and Lanai), Hawaii, and
Kauai counties have, therefore, initiated projects to address the
development of a workforce in the rural communities of the state. The
range of projects continues to respond to remote communities isolated
by major bodies ocean from the economic center of the state in Honolulu
on Oahu. More recently, projects have also begun in rural communities
on Oahu. The projects require and have benefited from flexibility in
developing and supporting rural economic and career options.
RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROJECT/RURAL JOB TRAINING INITIATIVE
Program Summary
The Hawaii Rural Development Project began in 1997 with a grant to
assist with the transition of agricultural workers on Lanai into the
hotel and resort industry. The discretionary funding for this pilot and
demonstration project was released by the Secretary of the U.S.
Department of Labor. The project has increased in scope to serve all of
rural Hawaii.
The University of Hawaii is the recipient of this grant.
Implementation is supported through the University's rural community
colleges, which have infrastructure for education and training on each
of the islands. This project has components located on the islands of
Hawaii, Kauai, Lanai, Maui, Molokai, and Oahu. Advisory committees in
collaboration with the respective community colleges from each of the
islands help guide the decision making process for the use of these
funds.
The core goal of the project is to provide technically up-to-date
infrastructure and to develop and implement programs that are designed
to help residents of Hawaii's rural communities, the unemployed/
underemployed and also the hardest-to-employ welfare recipients acquire
skills, work experience and resources necessary to find and keep jobs.
Opportunities to train for new and persistent position vacancies will
also be considered.
Evaluation of the effectiveness of this pilot and demonstration
project will focus on clients identified, employers enlisted, training
and education provided, placements made, new business (entrepreneurs)
start-ups, resources from other sources that are leveraged, and
infrastructure created that will outlast the life of the federal funds
for this grant.
Critical workforce shortage areas are being addressed. Programs in
progress include nurse training, healthcare worker training, teacher
training and preparation, principal/vice principal and DOE
administrator recruitment and retention, educational assistant
training, dental assistant training, custodian training, dental
services for low income and underserved populations, leadership
training, small business support, computer literacy, farm management
training as well as a variety of community education and workforce
development initiatives throughout the state.
Diversification of the economy and training the workforce to
accommodate emerging industries are necessary for Hawaii to develop
alternatives to the visitor industry as an economic base.
The grant allows for the development of new initiatives to support
such diversification. It will also support the continuation of
successful existing training services. Demand and shortage areas
targeted by the Community College component will include training in
the following sectors: Technology, health care, diversified and
specialty agriculture, entrepreneurial development, and biotechnology.
A number of programs will focus on very specific needs. Kauai
Community College will provide specialized training in network hardware
and software, hazardous waste management, electronics, and supervisory
and management skills required by the Pacific Missile Range Facility.
Specialty training will be provided by Maui Community College for
emergency medical personnel serving remote communities that will
enhance the level of available service using a combination of
telemedicine and conventional healthcare practices. Unexploded Ordnance
Certification training has been provided to Hawaii residents to allow
for employment and participation in the ordnance removal program on the
island of Kahoolawe. Workforce shortages in the community health care
sector will be addressed by developing a training program for community
worker case managers. Skilled worker shortages in the metal trades will
be alleviated by the new machine shop program at Hawaii Community
College in Hilo.
NEED FOR DIVERSIFICATION
Clearly there is a need to diversify Hawaii's economy and reduce
the dependence on tourism and big agriculture. Over the past decade,
there have been successful efforts by the University, state government,
and private industry to promote economic diversity and expand into a
wide range of areas including diversified agriculture, technology,
aquaculture, biotech, medicine, and education.
The Rural Development Project reinforces this effort to diversify
and provides a comprehensive program to address workforce training and
economic development needs in rural Hawaii. The program utilizes
existing University and Community College faculty, programs, labs,
equipment and other infrastructure to deliver services identified to
increase employment and enhance the economic vitality of rural Hawaii
communities.
COMMUNITY COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY COMPONENT
The Community College component is designed to take a local
approach to address workforce and economic development needs on each of
Hawaii's Neighbor Islands. Each island has a community advisory
committee that works closely with the island project director. This
component addresses the following identified needs: Economic
diversification, leadership development, small business support and
development, diversified agriculture training, computer literacy and
specialty training, just-in-time training and workforce shortage skills
identification and training, and teacher and nurse shortage training
programs. Additionally, several community colleges are considering
moving in the direction of offering bachelor's degrees to support a
high tech-based economic diversification fueled by State and County
priorities.
OAHU RURAL DEVELOPMENT
Violence, drugs, gangs, vandalism, and other forms of crime are
facets of deeper underlying problems within rural Oahu communities.
Economics, the breakdown of families, and other community issues
contribute to these problems. The Oahu Rural Development Project
focuses its efforts on providing leadership development and
occupational skills training for low-income and socially
disenfranchised youth and adults. This program is community-based,
culturally sensitive, and designed to facilitate the reintegration of
these youths and adults into mainstream society.
PACIFIC MISSILE RANGE FACILITY TARGETED TRAINING
Information Technology offers some of the greatest opportunities in
Hawaii. Without the need for transportation costs, Hawaii is well
situated to establish design and software development companies and
teams due to the great broadband connections and the high quality
workforce (Source: HighTechHawaii). The Pacific Missile Range Facility
at Barking Sands on Kauai and its sub-contractors employ over 650
individuals involved in high-tech. There is a need to provide specialty
high-tech training to match employer needs on Kauai with locally
trained employees. This training will improve retention rates for
existing employees and alleviate the need for PMRF and its contractors
to recruit from the mainland.
COMMUNITY WORKER CASE MANAGER TRAINING
Community Health Centers and Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems
depend heavily on community outreach workers and case managers. Such
workers play a large and irreplaceable role in helping medically
underserved people overcome cultural, linguistic, bureaucratic and
economic barriers to health care. Because they usually understand and
come from the community served, they are often more effective than
other more expensive health care professionals--such as physicians,
nurses, social workers and public health specialists--in educating
clients, making effective referrals, ensuring ``compliance'', and
identifying contingent issues (such as domestic violence or drug use)
that affect health. Community workers are also highly cost-effective,
with salaries substantially lower than masters--or doctorate--level
providers.
Yet most training for community workers is ad hoc and piece meal.
Unlike health professions, this complex and challenging work has little
in the way of structured curricula or training programs that can help
agencies prepare individuals to be community case managers.
Considerable case management expertise does reside in the health
centers, but mostly through an informal network of mentors and in-
service training. The demanding nature of community case management
certainly warrants a more systematic and conscious approach to
training.
In addition, Hawaii Community Health Centers and Native Hawaiian
Health Care Systems anticipate a significant increase in the demand for
community case managers over the next few years. Oral health, elderly
care, mental health, and chronic disease management are all areas
slated for significant expansion, by federal and state governments, and
all four areas will require community-based case management to ensure
appropriate and cost-effective care.
MAUNA KEA SCIENCE RESERVE SPECIALTY TRAINING
Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii is home to the most powerful
collection of astronomical observatories on the surface of the earth.
The summit offers an exceptional platform for astronomy. In the past
three decades the Mauna Kea Science Reserve has evolved into the
world's premier astronomy complex. Mauna Kea's observatories are known
worldwide for their advanced technologies, excellent viewing
environment, and the discoveries that have been made with these
facilities. The development of this complex has not come without its
costs. The roadway that was installed for the testing and construction
of the first telescopes has opened the mountain to all. Physical
development, foot and vehicular traffic, and the byproducts of man's
use of the mountain have all left temporary and permanent impacts on
the mountain.
The responsibility of managing an area as broad and as remote as
Mauna Kea must take into account the types of people who regularly
access its summit. Scientists, technicians and support staff attached
to the observatories; visitors (both local and tourists); hunters,
hikers, skiers and other recreational users; Hawaiian cultural
practitioners; media crews; and commercial tour operators are some of
the primary users of the mountain. There is a need to provide specialty
training to field ranger/guides who will be responsible for the safety
of users and visitors and see that the policies of the Science Reserve
are followed.
The large astronomy community on Mauna Kea requires significant
local support services. One of the key support industries is the metal
trades/machine shop sector. Custom parts, repairs, and other services
supplied by the metal trades are in demand. There are more than 138
businesses involved in the metal trades and machine shop industry on
the island of Hawaii. Often, these businesses have to recruit their
workforce from the mainland or other islands as there is no formal
training program offered on island. Hawaii Community College is now
offering formal training in the metal trades and machine shop sector.
Offering on-island training in the metal trades/machine shop sector
will allow Hawaii island residents to obtain employment in a workforce
shortage area.
NURSE AND HEALTH CARE WORKER TRAINING
This program targets current hospital staff, new nursing school
graduates, and residents in rural communities. It provides training for
individuals in multiple levels of the health care field focused on
placing individuals on a career ladder in health care. The programs
will lead to job advancement and retention, and to placement of new
nurse grads into entry-level positions. This program provides for
curriculum development that will be permanently established once
created. HHSC has agreed to continue the New Graduate Nurse Training
Program after the successful completion of the first pilot program. The
preceptor training will leave qualified preceptors in place to allow
continued training and mentoring beyond the life of this grant.
Since its inception, 334 nurses and health care workers have
participated in Hawaii Health Systems Corporation Nurse and Health Care
Worker Training Programs (HHSC) including Nurse Aid and New Nurse
Trainee Programs, Preceptorships, Specialty Nursing Programs and a
pilot project designed to assist employees who hold nursing degrees
from foreign universities to become licensed Registered Nurses in
Hawaii. By supporting our public hospitals, health care facilities and
their invaluable employees, all residents of the State of Hawaii
benefit from better health care and enhanced services.
RURAL TEACHER, PRINCIPAL/ADMINISTRATOR, AND EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANT
SHORTAGE
In order to increase the number and retention of certified
teachers, the state will need to strengthen its current system of
support for teacher candidates during their student teaching, broaden
their recruiting efforts, formalize preparation programs for the
difficult qualifying exams, and develop training for supporting
entities such as principals and educational assistants. The Department
of Labor and Senator Inouye recognize these areas of need for our
public school education at the state level and are allocating a portion
of the funds requested in this grant for the development of programs
for teacher preparation, principal training, and training for
educational assistants.
The Rural Teacher Training program will address the teacher
shortages in the state, by continuing the support for University of
Hawaii College of Education (COE) providing assistance to the most
rural communities, seeking both to develop and to retain local
teachers. The grant will fund distance education infrastructure and
curriculum development, more support for recruitment of local future
educators and preparation for PRAXIS testing.
The State of Hawaii Department of Education (DOE) employs
approximately 4,000 Educational Assistants (EAs). The Federal ``No
Child Left Behind'' (NCLB) act mandates that all EAs have at least an
AA or AS degree or a minimum of 48 credits of college level course work
completed by February, 2006. These funds will be used to assist the DOE
in their efforts to address this workforce need.
SCHOOL MAINTENANCE WORKFORCE SKILLS SHORTAGE
Currently, many of the public school facilities have fallen into
disrepair. Additional support to the school systems is needed in area
of maintenance and repair. At this point, custodial workers in the
system are qualified only to do light maintenance and repair work and
often do not have the certification required to deal with the more
problematic carpentry, plumbing, and electrical jobs that occur. Rather
than continue to have schools contract out for this work, often at a
prohibitively high cost to the school, the skills of custodians can be
upgraded through credential programs in carpentry, plumbing,
electrical, and painting. The training will result in: decreased
maintenance costs, increased efficiency of facilities management, and
enhanced employability for the trained custodians.
CUSTODIAN SKILLS TRAINING
This program will upgrade the skills of custodians currently
working in Hawaii's Public Schools so that they may enhance their
employability credentials with both the school district and with the
construction industry. The training provided will also facilitate the
completion of a substantial backlog of repairs and maintenance required
at facilities throughout the statewide school system. This specialized
training program will be coordinated with the trade unions, the
community colleges, and the Department of Education and will focus on
carpentry, electrical, plumbing, and painting.
FIRE FIGHTER AND EMERGENCY/FIRST RESPONSE TRAINING
This program will provide both higher-level skills training for
incumbent and entry level training for rural community residents. The
program will work with the Hawaii State Fire Council to implement a
Fire Fighter Specialty Training program for incumbent firefighters in
the state of Hawaii, saving the departments the cost of sending their
personnel to the mainland for this specialized training. A Wild Fire
Training component will provide entry level training to rural community
residents for fighting land wild fires both in Hawaii, and on the
mainland during fire season. In addition to these skills, residents
will have the opportunity to receive entry level emergency/first
response training that will prepare participants in basic fire
fighting, traffic control, emergency medical techniques, lifeguard,
crime scene, and disaster preparedness.
These state-based projects focus on efforts to train individuals in
specialty areas to prepare Hawaii's workforce for current and
anticipated job openings and to increase the number of individuals with
specialized skills needed by the community. These projects seek to
sustain our employment and employee base in Hawaii, removing the need
for importing workers from the mainland while at the same time
benefiting our community welfare.
HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT DRUG LAB TRAINING
One of the unique needs that relates to workforce development is
the request for drug lab equipment. Hawaii County has a backlog of
cases assigned to its crime lab averaging six months. An article
published in West Hawaii Today dated August 22, 2001, claims, and ``The
backlog of cases slows the process for charging criminals, giving
criminals opportunity to commit more crimes.'' There are also no
forensic science programs available on the island. This program will
purchase much needed equipment that will enable the lab to process
cases on a timely basis. Without this equipment, the deterioration of
the criminal justice system on the island will further deteriorate.
Unless substances recovered within a few days of the perpetrators'
arrests are properly and accurately identified, the alleged violators
must be released creating a revolving door and an exacerbation of the
drug challenge on the island.
The equipment and the lab personnel will also be utilized to
introduce students to law enforcement and forensics. In summary,
increased and enhanced resources will reduce lab-testing time,
resulting in quicker charging decisions and opportunity for swift
prosecution, offender treatment or punishment, reducing recidivism. The
quality of life in the community should improve with the overall
reduction in not only drug crimes, but also the reducing the number of
crimes of violence and property crimes usually driven by drugs. This
liaison between Hawaii Community College and the Hawaii County Police
Department should increase the number of students choosing law
enforcement as a career and help address a chronic shortage of local
applicants for job openings available to Hawaii County law enforcement
agencies.
LONG-TERM CARE (LTC) WORKER TRAINING
Life expectancy statistics have inched higher in the past decades:
people are living longer. As the baby booms age the numbers of people
who needing care in their later years is rising. The increase in the
number of assisted living facilities around the nation and an increase
nation-wide of in-home health care needs has prompted certification and
specialized training in elder care and long-term care as well as a
growing demand for more workers.
The RDP will provide support for workforce training targeted
specifically towards the needs of the Long Term Care industry. Maui
Community College will work closely with the state hospital system and
the Hawaii Long Term Care Association to provide entry-level training
for Certified Nurse Aides specializing in LTC. Training for Care Home
Operators will also be supported, along with specialty training for
RNs.
MAUI ORAL HEALTH CENTER
The Maui Oral Health Center (MOHC) is a partner with the Maui
Dental Collaborative. Maui Community College's Nursing Program in
partnership with the County of Maui established the MOHC in response to
the critical need for oral health services and dental auxiliary care
providers. MOHC serves as the classroom and clinical site for the Maui
Community College Dental Assisting Program and provides affordable and
accessible oral/dental health care to the underserved, low-income and
uninsured families of Maui.
During 2003 the Maui Oral Health Center (MOHC) was able to expand
their dental staffing from 4 hours a week to 40 hours a week with the
addition of two part-time dentists and one part time dental hygienist.
The Dental Hygienist provides periodontal care for pregnant women
through a grant funded by March of Dimes. She also provides fluoride
treatments and sealants for children.
In response to the significant dental needs of adults that are not
covered by Medicaid, the Hawaii Department of Human Service Benefit,
Employment and Support Division implemented a demonstration project for
recipients. This project is designed to demonstrate that meeting Oral
Health needs of individuals will assist them in returning to school or
work. The project will begin early in 2004 and will provide $500/per
recipient for dental care not covered by Medicaid.
VIDEO STREAMING PROJECT
The video streaming project allows faculty to record and digitize
classroom instruction and activities for delivery over the Internet.
The MCC Nursing Program is delivering four courses via video streaming
technology during the Spring 2004 semester. NURS 253 Psychiatric/Mental
Health Nursing and NURS 253 Issues and Trends in Nursing II are part of
the Associates Degree Nursing Program. NURS 261, Advanced
Electrocardiogram Interpretation and PHRM 203, General Pharmacology are
elective courses. The Pharmacology course has 93 students enrolled from
Hilo, Kona, Kauai, Maui and Oahu. The Pharmacology course is required
for a number of health careers including: dental hygiene, bachelors in
nursing, radiology technician. All nursing faculty members are
utilizing WEBCT for on-line student participation and delivery of the
video stream via an Internet link. Faculty will be experimenting with
the format and will soon begin to include ``call in'' questions from
students who access the class via Internet from their homes.
ELDER CARE/PERSONAL CARE ATTENDANT TRAINING
The Elder Care/Personal Attendant Training was created to address a
shortage of elder care professionals on Maui. The Maui Community
College Center for Entrepreneurship facilitated the program and has
trained 55 participants.
APPLIED BUSINESS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM SUPPORT
This grant will enhance Maui Community College's capacity to
contribute to the economic diversification and development in Maui
County and throughout the State by continuing to support the
development of Maui Community College's first four-year degree, the
Applied Business and Information Technology (ABIT) Bachelor of Applied
Science Degree. ABIT will provide workforce training, targeting the
needs of the growing business and information technology industries
that are leading economic diversification in Maui County.
MCC administrators are also in the process of finalizing the
details on the ``Sustainable Technology'' partnership between Maui
Community College and Maui Electric Company to introduce renewable
technologies and related curricula and upgrade the electrical/power
infrastructure and install and demonstrate renewable energy
technologies. The upgrade is one of the steps administrators are taking
to streamline the University's expenses and reallocate these savings to
cover ABIT development costs. Other cost-saving measures developed
include moving the college to a paperless environment and improving the
distance learning delivery system to capture the largest audience
possible.
DISTANCE LEARNING SUPPORT
A vital component in the growth and development of an educated work
force throughout rural Hawaii is the ability to reach an audience of
students from all areas of the state--including the large remote
areas--by providing instruction through distance learning. While the
University system has implemented a distance-learning platform through
the Hawaii Interactive Television System (HITS), the delivery system
and services need to be improved and expanded upon to provide an
elevated level of value and service to distance learning students. This
is imperative as the University prepares to develop accessible
workforce training in new identified industries and established
professions such as teaching and nursing.
The RJTI grant will help the University develop and streamline the
current system in order to expand statewide enrollment. In identifying
future demands on the University, the new learning platform needs to
better utilize professors' time, provide trouble-free, uninterrupted
service, be user-friendly for all, and increase the perceived
educational value in the eyes of the students. Administrators and
faculty will continue to search out and identify new effective, user-
friendly distance learning delivery systems--such as streaming video on
the internet that would reduce University expenses and help move the
system to sustainability. It is these new approaches that will provide
a flexible teaching format for future students facing educational
barriers such as full-time jobs, living in rural area far from the
colleges, or family responsibilities--barriers that keep students from
the traditional campus-restricted environment.
JUST IN TIME NEEDS
RJTI staff will work closely with the local Workforce Investment
Boards and Workforce Development Division (WDD) One-Stop Centers on
each of the islands. As job-training needs are identified, RJTI staff
will work to meet these needs. One of the steps to diversifying
Hawaii's economy is actively identifying emerging employment trends and
opportunities and training a workforce to fill the jobs. One area of
continuing support by RJTI is the state fire fighting community's
training and workforce needs. When potential future employers look at
Hawaii to build a business, they need the necessary skilled workforce
to make the investment viable. The funds from RJTI will allow the
University system the flexibility to assist these potential employers
with their needs by developing specialized training courses. While
identifying potential employers, RJTI will consider providing
assistance in circumstances where needs match the objectives of this
grant.
While assisting new employers is critical to diversifying the
economy, it is also important to work with established growing
businesses in Hawaii on developing current and future workforce needs.
By working in collaboration with local businesses, State leaders, and
University facility, a community effort will be established that will
develop a desired business environment and adaptable workforce in
Hawaii that will attract mainland or international companies.
BIOTECHNOLOGY
One of the economically divergent industries making a comeback in
Hawaii is the agricultural industry. And one of the biggest debates in
many communities is the issue of biotechnology. With continuing
education, a growing segment of society is accepting the genetic
alteration of crops, but the education and research needs to continue.
Most of Hawaii's food is imported. The need for self-sufficiency is
more important today than ever because some of the factors that affect
the tourism industry (terrorism, political unrest, labor strikes,
weather, etc.) can affect the arrival of outside supplies to Hawaii.
Biotechnology will become an important segment of Hawaii's
agricultural industry and a trained workforce is needed to continue the
research as well as implement new changes in production.
RDP will develop a program to train and assimilate biotech workers
into the agricultural industry to meet the growing demand. It will also
partner with other state and county organizations to positively
influence the specialized research needed to move the biotechnology
products into mainstream produce production. The effect will be a
diversified and enhanced industry better equipped to meet the demands
of an isolated populace.
TRADES WORKFORCE
The carpentry and other trades continue to grow in Hawaii. Demand
for carpentry laborers, finish carpenters, and other construction
workers continue to rise as the demand for updated infrastructure and
housing increases throughout the State.
The Department of Defense recently announced a military housing
privatization initiative in Hawaii that will allocate two billion
dollars to renovate seventeen thousand aging military homes on Oahu
over the next fourteen years. An undertaking of this size will require
an extensive carpentry and construction-related workforce. In addition
to the carpentry jobs, the housing project will need to be maintained
and managed over the long-term which will lead to other local work in
the trades as well as jobs in landscaping, repairs and maintenance.
Funds from RJTI will focus on this employment opportunity by
adapting training programs that will help local carpentry industry
employees to qualify for these jobs. Since there will be a large exodus
of workers from the outer islands to relocate and work on the Oahu
project, these island communities will experience the depletion of
their construction labor force. This construction worker shortage will
need to be addressed. RJTI will identify each islands carpenter and
other trades-related labor needs and design training programs to fill
the demand and keep local men and women employed.
GUARDIAN AD LITEM PROGRAM
Each year in the State of Hawaii, the Judiciary courts appoint
Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) representatives for children in over 3,000
cases involving charges of abuse and neglect. In recognition of the
importance of providing quality based representation of children within
the budgetary limitations of the state, the 2002 Legislature requested
a study of the practices that exist in Hawaii and on the mainland in
respect to GAL ``to determine if a more effective and less costly model
can be identified''.
The extensive review of systems resulted in five recommendations,
one of which was that a pilot project that encourages flexibility in
the use of resources. The Legal Aid Society of Hawaii (LASH) has been
providing GAL services under contract to certain courts for the last
six years. LASH proposes a model that includes flexibility in the
staffing, training, recruitment, and coordination of all GALs and those
working with them including staff and lawyers. An 18 month timeframe is
estimated for the development and implementation of this proposed
project which would result in more experienced and willing providers
working in a cost-effective framework as recommended by the Legislative
report.
TECH MENTORING
For the last 25 years, the high technology industry has been
considered the best solution to the quest for a diversified economy.
This is the only industry (other than tourist items) that produces a
product light enough and easy enough to be shipped out of the state and
still be profitable. While many of the high tech component
manufacturing has moved to the mainland for a number of reasons, the
training of a high tech workforce that can provide the quality needed
without importing people from out-of-state is a goal recognized as
essential by everyone. This would reduce the ``brain drain'' of
Hawaii's young people moving to the mainland by providing higher
salaried jobs for them here, provide products requiring almost no
shipping costs (software, video, films) that would put us in parity
with most of the world, and better meet the needs of Hawaii's
businesses for quality Information Technology workers.
The training will mentor youth with business professionals
resulting in a connection between classroom learning and real-world
projects. Partners for this program include non-profits with education
missions in high technology and non-profits working with displaced
youth such as Goodwill Industries. This mentoring will improve student
retention and guide them into high tech courses, reach out of school
youth resulting in GED completion and high tech vocational training,
and result in a better trained workforce able to meet the needs of
Hawaii's businesses and the IT industry.
OAHU ANTI-ICE HPD JUNIOR OFFICER TRAINING
For years, two factors have been actively creating a social and
criminal peril to the people in communities on Oahu. The first is the
drain of police officers from the Honolulu Police Department (HPD) by
police departments on the mainland, mostly from the western coastal
states. These departments actively recruit trained police officers from
Oahu using higher pay, more benefits, and a lower cost of living as
incentives. This has prevented HPD from maintaining full staffing and
adequately protecting society. The second factor is the steady rise in
the use of the drug ``ice'' in many communities. Now Oahu has a very
serious ice epidemic without the sufficient police resources to fight
it.
The Anti-ice HPD Junior Officer Training program will work to
attract high school and post-high school young adults to careers with
HPD. The greater emphasis would be to include high school students in
community training and community watch programs to help the police
monitor the actions of ice and other criminals. This would help to
interest the students in a career in police force or to continue their
education with that career as a goal. For post high school youth it
would provide them with exposure to the police resources and on-the-job
experience as a way to encourage them to enter a career in public
safety.
The effects of this training would be an increased police force
and, at the same time, the safety of the public will be increased.
criteria for assessing the viability of rdp/rjti proposals
Real Long-Term or Compelling Community Need
Health care and public education are viewed as both long-term and
compelling needs. The initiatives in these areas seek more lasting
impact than the period of resource might suggest. Such examples as
supporting the creation of nursing preceptorship curricula to address
the current and impending nursing shortage and to be implemented by the
public hospitals in future and addressing existing and projected
teacher shortages in rural communities through ``bootstrap'' software
to allow residents to meet teacher preparation admission criteria
through perpetually licensed online software and mentor assistance
present longer term approaches to endemic problems.
Jobs, Training and Work Experience
Some of the projects will identify training, work experience and
jobs in rural communities that may be relatively small in number but
essential to the communities' economic and often resident health.
Especially on the islands of Lanai and Molokai, whose populations are
particularly small, such services as preparing nurses for dialysis
treatment permit residents to obtain relief at home without the expense
and risk of a regular flight schedule to Honolulu. Such training
creates community capacity to prepare future trained personnel from
within the organization and community. While such job creation may be
especially costly in small communities, the presence of such critical
infrastructure elevates the possibilities for workers with such
afflictions to access employment opportunities.
Effectiveness of Short- and Long-Term Strategies
Proposals are additionally evaluated for the feasibility of the
solutions for continuing services and programs beyond the life of the
RDP grant. Short-term training projects must demonstrate the immediate
job availability. Regarding longer-term proposals, the cooperating
employer or agency must commit to perpetuating proposed project
outcomes through identifying a future funding source or some other
answer to continuing the service or program. Such commitments might
also include an employer's willingness to match the RDP investment to
assure the continuation of services.
COST-EFFECTIVE--REASONABLE PERSON TEST
At stake in the rural communities of Hawaii are the interacting
factors of: (1) small economies, markets, and workforce; (2)
susceptibility of these economies to national, regional and
international disruptions; (3) concern for the environment; (4)
preservation of the Hawaiian Culture; (5) desire to stimulate economic
development and upward mobility; (6) search for some level of social
equity to sustain a sense of an island community whose disparities do
not result in growing alienation between local residents and new
immigrants. Among these factors, the cost relationship to the outcomes
must consider all of these criteria to reinforce the sustainability of
the proposed initiative.
Contribution to Sustainable Economic Development and Diversification
Although economic developments may not be reliably predicted,
marketing trends; business, social, technological, and scientific
directions will be analyzed to judge the future viability of each
project. The extent of each project's ability to diversify rural
Hawaii's economy will also be an important focus.
Sustainability of Initiative
Details of the proposal's sustainability will be presented and
reviewed wherever appropriate. In some cases such as training for a
specific number of positions, the sustainability requirement may not be
applied. However, opportunities to explore some matching employer
contribution for future training will be undertaken. In most cases, a
reasonable approach of between five to ten years to continuing RDP-
initiated services and programs will be sought. Details of the source
and strategy for perpetuating such initiatives will vary with each
project.
UH, State, Federal Rules and Regulations Compliance
All RDP projects must meet all of the project-related regulations
governing the grant as well as UH and state requirements.
Just-in-Time Education & Training.--The project will continue to
expand ``just-in-time'' education and training designs that identify
and prepare under-employed and unemployed residents for projected
vacancies due to retirements and turnover in cooperation with existing
private and public sector employers.
Employment Opportunities.--The project will continue to work
towards identifying and addressing employment and training
opportunities with other businesses, entrepreneurial enterprises and
government employers.
Capacity Building.--The project will continue to explore and
address needs for capacity and infrastructure building in Hawaii's
rural communities.
WIB.--The project will continue to develop and maintain
relationships with the Workforce Investment Boards on each island.
Partnerships.--RDP will continue to develop and maintain employment
and training initiatives with other partners and resources that can be
used in conjunction with the Department of Labor grant funds and
continue to apply these resources to a comprehensive array of services
to all residents in need of employment and youth in need of workforce
awareness preparation and training.
Enhancing UH System Economic Development Capacity
One of the primary objectives of the RDP & RJTI grants is to
enhance the University of Hawaii System and specifically, UH rural
community colleges' capacity to provide education, training, workforce
development services, and economic development support to the rural
communities in the state of Hawaii. Towards this end, all programs
implemented must support this objective. Although sub-contractors may
be utilized as partners and support for programs when necessary, they
will only be used to provide services that are not available and/or not
considered practical to be offered by the UH System.
HAWAII ISLAND NEEDS AND PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
The Big Island Rural Development Project (RDP) is challenged by the
needs of Hawai'i County's diverse rural communities. Hilo and Kona
serve as main ports of call and as a result are more enhanced in terms
of economic activity as compared to other major regions on the island.
The demise of sugar plantations, once a consistent contributor to the
island's economy has mired economic opportunities in the Hilo-Hamakua,
Puna, and Ka'u regions. Hundreds of residents in these areas faced
drastic lifestyle changes, which also affected a variety of prosperous
businesses that served both the industry and its employees. The effects
of these closures still linger.
The RDP has begun to identify and support ways to diversify the
island's economy to create job opportunities and to assist with
preparing the workforce for anticipated job openings. Through the
expertise of the Hawai'i Island Community Advisory Committee, other
community-based leaders and their respective agencies and
organizations, they have helped to address and support strategies to
carry out these goals. Some emerging industries identified include
astronomy, forestry, agriculture, biotechnology, environmental science,
computer technology, tourism, entrepreneurial development, education
and health and safety. RDP has looked at ways to assist with
entrepreneurial development and to train or retrain residents to
qualify for jobs and new careers.
Support of community leadership training and community-capacity
building would assist organizations with addressing economic
development from a community-based perspective. Opportunities will be
provided through programs such as: Community Connection, Family
Leadership Circle, State Rural Health Conference, and the Emergency
Response Academy.
In the Puna district, the Backyard Awa Project and Backyard Noni
Project provides opportunities for families to utilize their land to
begin a small business in one of the most desolate areas of the Big
Island. In the Hilo and Puna districts, a Farmer Training (Hydroponic
Vegetable) Program will also support utilization of available land to
begin small agricultural businesses. Island-wide, the Pork and Beef
Utilization Project will enhance the agricultural industry through
training for value added product development by utilizing secondary
parts. Other island-wide projects address the shortages in the nursing
and education industries through credited workforce training and
retention programs.
Partnerships and leveraging of resources with community entities
and the Workforce Development Division have been developed to provide
workforce training. Computer basics and advanced classes have been
conducted in these areas to address computer literacy needs as well as
job specific skills training. Other similar efforts have been
identified to continue addressing economic and workforce training on
the island. To provide entrepreneurial opportunities to residents in
the Hilo-Hamakua district, the continued partnership with Hawai'i
County Economic Opportunity Council Honoka'a Ohana Incubator Kitchen
has increased its capacity by making available more enhanced equipment
to encourage more diverse usage of the facility. We will continue to
build upon this model and assist other incubator kitchens through
dissemination of information and sharing of resources.
LANAI NEEDS AND PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
The Lanai RDP was instituted to empower the residents of the Island
of Lanai with the support they need to succeed in today's economy. They
have a proven to be very effective in this capacity as is evidenced by
the success of the Community Computer Training Facility and Lanai
Online web page. New programs will be used to enhance the usability of
these existing facilities and to take advantage of the career
opportunities offered by the Lanai Company, the largest employer on the
island. The summer Teen Advantage Program has allowed high-school
students to gain valuable work experience that leads to unsubsidized
employment.
New programs will focus on the following:
--Culinary arts
--Specialty computer lab training
--Development of a digital media production center
--Trades training
--Online e-commerce market place.
The goal of all projects is to provide the rural community of Lanai
with the skills and resources to enter the workforce, retain
employment, or to succeed in an independent business.
KAUAI NEEDS AND PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
The Kaua'i Rural Development Project (RDP) is a community driven
partnership between the U.S. Department of Labor and Kaua'i Community
College. The RDP is supported by various government agencies, service
organizations, and businesses on the Island, through its Community
Advisory Committee.
The purpose of the RDP is to develop a long-term sustainable
community based project on Kaua'i that: (1) provides timely and
effective employment training and business support to meet the
constantly changing economic conditions, (2) facilitates economic
sustainability, (3) encourages life long learning, and (4) improves the
quality of life for island residents.
Using The FARM as its operational base, the RDP will continue to
train and facilitate life long practical learning for the residents of
Kaua'i. The FARM is a comprehensive training and business support
complex situated on a 40-acre parcel of land adjacent to Kaua'i
Community College. The complex features demonstration fields and
classroom facilities that utilize hands-on training to teach students
``real life'' experiences and methodology. The Digital Media Center is
also housed at The FARM. The DMC provides training in the digital media
field to include such applications such as Adobe Photoshop,
Illustrator, and Microsoft Publisher. It is envisioned that once
completed, The FARM will operate self sufficiently beyond the life of
the grant.
To promote life long practical learning and to help strengthen and
diversify the employment/economic base of Kaua'i, the Kaua'i RDP plans
to concentrate its efforts in the following categories:
Distance Delivered Learning.--To address the critical need for
``home grown'' teachers, RDP will provide an avenue for residents to
earn their college degrees and teaching certificates. Through the
purchase of video conferencing equipment, residents can access college
level teaching courses without the need to relocate. RDP plans to
collaborate with Kauai Community College and other institutions to
develop a teacher education curriculum and the means needed to deliver
the curriculum.
RN & LPN Preceptorship.--With the alarming decline of qualified
nurses occurring throughout Hawai'i and Kaua'i, RDP will partner with
other organizations to provide clinical preceptorship, specialty in-
service education, and job enhancement skills to recent KCC nursing
graduates. Through the preceptorship program, graduates will gain
proficiency and confidence to smoothly transition into employment
opportunities in the health field.
Small Business Training & Support.--The failure of new start-up
businesses and the bankruptcy of existing businesses will have a
negative impact on economic growth and employment stability on Kaua'i.
The RDP proposes to initiate a series of classes, workshops, seminars,
and counseling services to help alleviate problems and mistakes small
businesses commonly make. The RDP, through its Digital Media Center,
will also provide assistance to businesses in the area of marketing
that may include advertising, web page design, and flyer/brochure
development.
Incumbent/Dislocated Worker Training.--Unemployed or dislocated
residents are finding that they need to develop new skills to re-enter
into the workforce. With the constantly changing environment and
workplace, even people employed are finding it necessary to acquire
additional skills in order to retain their jobs or to advance in terms
of responsibility and wages. The RDP will provide training to assist
these individuals to enhance their skills or employment opportunities.
Agriculture/Agro-Forestry/Aquaculture Training.--To strengthen the
economic base of Kaua'i, it is essential there is a diversity of
industries successfully supporting the economy. With the recent
catastrophe at the World Trade Center and a possible protracted
recession, Kaua'i can ill afford to depend on the sugar and tourism
industry. Kaua'i needs to develop new industries to enable it to
sustain itself through hard times. RDP proposes to provide training
that enhances employment and business opportunities in the areas of
agriculture, agro-forestry, and aquaculture. Emphasis will be placed on
field practices, regulatory compliance and safety issues. The FARM will
be utilized as a ``demonstration working model'' where actual
agricultural doctrines are practiced. It will develop demonstration
fields that will promote and educate the community about potential
crops, various production techniques, and prospects for agricultural
and aquacultural diversification.
Community Builder Program.--RDP in partnership with the Council for
Native Hawaiian Advancement is proposing a pilot program that provides
capacity building and technical assistance to the community of Anahola.
The hands-on approach enhances leadership, strengthens the
organizations, and empowers them to increase their impact on the
community by the creation of new employment opportunities.
MAUI NEEDS AND HIGHLIGHTS
Maui supports a wide spectrum of workforce opportunities from rural
backyard agriculture in East Maui to high technology at the Maui High
Performance Computing Center. (Research and Statistics Office,
Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, State of Hawaii) Though
available, many unemployed individuals are unable to take advantage of
these opportunities due to lack of training. Two hurdles that often
impede underemployed and unemployed from obtaining the training they
need are: (1) lack of economic means and (2) inability to attend
training classes because of time or location constraints.
The challenges that Maui RDP faces are to bring affordable
educational resources and skill-training opportunities to individuals
in order to provide a trained or trainable workforce and to create
entrepreneurs who might start small businesses. These training
opportunities must meet the economic and workforce needs of the Island
in order to result in sustainable successful employment of the trainees
and participants. Specific areas that have been identified by county
members and CAC are outlined below.
MAUI MEDICAL WORKFORCE NEEDS
According to projections from DLIR, Home Health Aide is one of the
top two fastest growing occupations in Maui County. This in part due to
the expected increase in elder population (HHIC, http://www.hhic.org/
healthtrends/index.asp) and to the nationally recognized shortage in
long-term caregivers (AHCA newsletter, 2000.) As of the end of 1999, 92
percent of long-term care beds in Maui were occupied, further
indicating the growth of the population in need of health care workers
who are qualified for this specialty (Maui County Data Book.)
In a recent survey of the immediate and projected health care
employment needs, several Maui based Health Care Agencies clearly
stated their support of the development of a broad set of training
programs in elder care
In response to this request, MCC's Visitor Industry Training and
Economic Development Center (VITEC) and Nurse Training Program have
proposed the development of a Health Care curriculum that would use a
combination of both credit and non-credit courses to train and certify
qualified and highly capable health care workers for our elder
community.
MAUI EDUCATION WORKFORCE NEEDS
Maui County suffers from a critical shortage of certified teachers.
According to the most recent DOE Annual Vacancy Report for Maui County,
173 teaching positions were vacant (main vacancy areas: Math, Science,
Special Education, Hawaiian Immersion, Home Economics, Industrial Arts,
Librarians, Counselors).
The shortage can be attributed in part to:
(a) Low retention of qualified teachers.--(The DOE has been unable
to fill these teaching vacancies, often resorting to recruiting
teachers from the Mainland. These recruits tend not remain in Maui
County since they are not from the communities they teach in and have
difficulty with acculturation. The statewide retention rate for newly
hired teachers is only 45 percent by the end of the second year of
employment), and
(b) Lack of adequate training and certification programs on the
Island of Maui.--(As an alternative approach to solving the shortage,
the Maui County DOE has hired several ``substitute'' and temporary
teachers who are uncertified and will require training leading towards
their certification if they are to remain in their current positions.)
Current solutions to these problems being used across the country
include; progressive mentoring programs for first year teachers,
increased effort to train more Educational Assistants (EAs), provision
of Alternative Certification programs for teachers with bachelors
degrees, and the development of Career Ladder curricula for teacher
education. A thoughtful combination of these strategies applied to the
specific educational needs on Maui can be used to increase the
population of qualified and CERTIFIED teachers in our public schools.
MAUI SMALL BUSINESS NEEDS
In 1996, businesses with fewer than 500 employees accounted for
55.9 percent of the states non-farm private sector employment. A 1997
report from Maui County Data book (2000) sets over 50 percent of Maui
farms as individual or family run (sole proprietorship.)
Many small businesses have reported difficulties after their first
year of operation due to a need for ongoing training in basic business
practices (such as budgets, marketing, accounting, tax regulations
etc.) and for introduction to new strategies in production and
management.
Several agencies are addressing immediate practical needs of the
small business entrepreneur through the proposed development of
resource centers for retail startups and small business incubators.
These include a retail business resource center to help in the
revitalization of Wailuku (county seat), a small business incubator
through the MCC Center for Entrepreneurship, and a ``virtual
incubator'' for developing tech industries on Maui. Preliminary
estimates put the number of participants in these incubator programs
between 100-400 for the first year. RDP will provide training and other
support services for this program.
MAUI WORKFORCE NEEDS
Incumbent Worker Training
One of the main areas of focus stated in Hawaii's Workforce
Investment Act Plan is the training of incumbent workers (http://
dlir.state.hi.us/wia/chapter_2_vision.htm). Training of this sector of
our workforce serves three valuable purposes in our community: (1) to
increase job retention rates, (2) to promote professional advancement,
and (3) to increase in the availability of entry-level positions to
under- and unemployed individuals.
Maui businesses in previous workforce development focus groups have
specifically indicated that they need training programs that they can
easily adapt to their on-going operations. Ideally, these training
programs would be comprehensive but brief, modularized but
developmental, and could be taught in-house by their own management
once given adequate instruction and guidance. Once implemented, these
training programs can be applied to incumbent workers for advancement
and to entering new employees in order to insure a continued high
standard of service for the business.
Entry Level Training
The Workforce Development Department (WDD) of Maui has stated that
they have received a significant level of requests for entry-level
training from retail, restaurant, and selected service industries on
Maui.
Specifically, they have received several requests from employers
for employees with a commercial driver's licenses. In the past, WDD
would send clients to a CDL course offered at Leeward Community College
but the expense of the course and transportation now inhibits this
option. WDD has requested the development of a CDL course in Maui and
will be able to fund participants when the course is offered.
Though retail and restaurant training programs are available
through VITEC's RITE and RISE programs there still is a need to develop
support programs for newly placed employees in these industries. These
efforts could easily be combined with the Incumbent training
initiatives mentioned in item I of this section.
Technology Workforce
According to the WDD for Maui County there will be a 50 percent
increase in the number of jobs for software engineers, just one of the
many tech related skills that are becoming more and more in demand on
Maui. More high tech jobs are on the way to Maui through the Defense
Department interests and through the new University of Hawaii
management of the Maui High Performance Computing Center.
These incoming interests need to be able to tap into the large
number of skilled workers on island and the many others that wish to
return to Maui from the Mainland. (Many individuals have left the state
to pursue technical careers simply because they do not feel they can
have such a career in Hawaii.) Identification of these populations
would encourage investors in high tech fields to come to Maui, creating
the opportunities that would draw and retain this highly skilled group
of workers. In addition, the identification of the technology
businesses and workers on Maui would allow RDP to use its unique
affiliation with the University of Hawaii and MCC to help students find
on the job training through intern opportunities offered experts in
technology.
MOLOKAI NEEDS AND PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
Molokai RDP's focus is to capitalize on community assets as the
cornerstone of economic development.
MOLOKAI AND THE TRADES
Molokai has 1 licensed masonry contractor, 8-10 licensed
carpenters, 1 licensed plumber, and 2 licensed electricians. Typically,
off-island contractors receive the major construction contracts on
Molokai due to a lack of capacity on-island. Most construction type
laborers on-island are non-union and significantly less skilled than
their off-island counterparts. The stark contrast between non-union and
union workers exists in pay scale, benefits, and job opportunities.
Non-union workers make between $15-20/hour without benefits. Union
workers earn an estimated $30/hour plus hourly vacation pay, annuity,
and medical, dental, and chiropractor benefits which total cumulatively
to $55-65/hour. Union jobs are unavailable to the largely inadequately
skilled pool of Molokai construction workers who do not possess
journeyman status or an apprentice card. Additionally, for those who
are eligible, the high union dues coupled with the small amount of
construction contracts on Molokai pose a disincentive for resident
construction laborers to pay union dues.
In order for Molokai laborers to be competitive in the construction
industry, they need to increase their work skills. RDP partnership with
existing Molokai licensed contractors to conduct on-the-job training
along with formal instruction at the community college would qualify
committed individuals to apprenticeship programs with the union. This
in turn will allow Molokai trainees greater access through the union to
steady construction work on and off-island.
With prospective employment in major military construction projects
on Oahu, it is our hope that individuals from rural communities like
Molokai may also access jobs generated from this effort. With the hours
earned and experience gained, Molokai individuals may eventually
qualify to become licensed contractors, thereby enhancing the island's
own capacity to compete successfully for Molokai construction
contracts.
MOLOKAI ONGOING CHALLENGES
RDP's objective is to determine what gap areas exist in the
workforce that require added skills and training to residents. However,
the unique challenge faced in very small rural areas like Molokai is
that building capacity requires not only increasing job skills but
helping to fuel the economy in creative ways that neither exceed that
community's carrying capacity nor degrade natural and cultural
resources, the social framework, and other special characteristics.
Jobs are scarce on Molokai, therefore RDP needs greater flexibility in
exploring and assisting not only in work training initiatives but also
in job creation and economic stimulation. While RDP is charged to
invest in projects that commit to sustainability, it often is called to
play a more active role in assisting projects to achieve
sustainability.
OPPORTUNITIES & SUCCESSES
Molokai Commercial Kitchen
Current RDP projects, like the Lanikeha Commercial Kitchen, show
potential clients taking their finished products to the next level. The
Lanikeha Commercial Kitchen has two (2) regular users: Chong's Poi Shop
which distributes fresh poi to local stores on a weekly basis and
Moki's Munchies which processes weekly steamed muffins also marketed in
the local stores. Other users are at the test batch and marketing
stage: L&R Farms developing a sweet potato chip product and F&G yam
farmers creating a special yam chip. Other users like a local deli
operation working on bottling its delicious house salad dressing and a
homemaker creating fresh coconut candy strips are in the early product
development stage.
Molokai Slaughterhouse
In collaboration with the state and county governmental agencies,
RDP is providing equipment, training and personnel funds to bring on-
line the new Molokai Slaughterhouse facility. While other, older
slaughterhouses in the state are phasing out due to non-compliance with
new regulations, the opening of this state-of-the-art facility poses a
tremendous economic boon for Molokai and an opportunity for other
islands to get their animals processed. A tentative commitment has been
made to ship animals from Maui for processing at Molokai's
slaughterhouse. Inquiries have also been made by Big Island
slaughterhouse personnel to process some animals on Molokai. Ranchers
and homestead farmers on-island now have a venue to process their
animals. There is approximately 3,500 to 4,000 head of cattle on the
island. An estimated 150 Molokai families raise livestock largely for
home consumption; with the advent of the slaughterhouse, there are now
opportunities for these small-scale farmers to expand into commercial
livestock production. The grocery stores need not import meat from off-
island as they will now have access to meats reared and processed right
on Molokai. The monies generated will benefit the community directly.
The Molokai Livestock Cooperative in conjunction with RDP is soliciting
applicants for a manager position. The interviewing and hiring process
will take place shortly.
Molokai Business Assistance Center
The Molokai RDP supported the establishment of a ``without walls''
Business Incubator & Counseling Center (BICC) which served a clientele
of over 100 residents at various stages of entrepreneurship
development. The program was completed in July 2003 and RDP and its
Community Advisory Council (CAC), comprised entirely of voluntary
leadership in the community, has dedicated many planning hours to
revamping and improving services provided to Molokai's existing and new
entrepreneurs.
RDP is in the process of hiring a Business Assistance Coordinator
as a kick-start to the program. This position is critical to assisting
clients in the formation, success and longevity of their businesses. It
is designed to link clients to appropriate business resources located
on and off island, connect individuals to online business expertise and
entities that provide start-up capital. Various partners like the
Molokai Chamber of Commerce, the US Small Business Administration,
Hawaii Small Business Development Center, MEO Business Development
Corporation, the Molokai Enterprise Community, Molokai Community
Service Council, the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center, the Maui
Community College--Molokai Education Center, and other entities in the
private, public, and non-profit sector are also involved in this
effort. Sustainability is anticipated with the advent of a permanent
county Economic Development Specialist position on Molokai.
There is a critical need for small business development is
certainly promising and compatible particularly in a rural setting
Small businesses tend to have greater longevity than corporations in
that their size allows for greater innovation and adaptability to
changing economic conditions.
A kind of innovative and creative spirit is prevalent on Molokai, a
place where the resident population prides itself on its ability to
perpetuate a lifestyle grounded in tradition and where ``Mom and Pop''
operations constitute the norm rather than the exception. Consistently,
one of the highlights every weekend in downtown Kaunakakai is a
Farmer's Market showcasing local, Molokai homegrown produce, food
treats, handcrafts, and art pieces. Given access to the right resources
and services, these vendors and other like-minded individuals have the
potential to grow businesses that could market successfully to a much
wider consumer base. The Lanikeha Community Kitchen for which RDP and a
number of partners co-sponsor is working with residents on test
batching and marketing analysis of value-added food products. The
Molokai state-of-the-art slaughterhouse has been recently completed. As
animals are processed through that facility, opportunities for value-
added meat products and cross-pollination with other enterprises like
the commercial kitchen will arise. The Molokai Enterprise Community's
strategic plan identifies several economic projects that point to small
business development on island.
HEALTH
Molokai Dialysis Training
RDP covered costs associated with training 3 hemodialysis
technicians. All 3 remain employed at the Dialysis Center located in
Kaunakakai, central Molokai. The Dialysis Center has expanded its
operations to 6 days a week in order to accommodate the rise in patient
numbers. This patient increase also calls for another job position for
a part-time Registered Nurse to cover the extra shifts. With the
collaboration of several partners (Saint Francis, Na Pu'uwai, DOH, OHA)
and commitments made by Senator Inouye and other federal and state
legislators, RDP is helping to support the expansion of dialysis
services to remote Kalaupapa Peninsula, the home of Hansen Disease
patients. RDP will again cover initial and expanded training costs for
hemodialysis technicians.
The planned infrastructural improvements and expanded services at
the Molokai General Hospital and the establishment of a community
health center for the un-insured and and under-insured will pose new
job opportunities for which RDP could play a vital role in workforce
training.
The hospital's anticipated phase out of long-term care will
necessitate a response from the private sector. The training of Long-
Term Home Care Operators is envisioned.
Molokai Teacher Preparation
RDP provides PRAXIS Test Preparation workshops to help current
teachers retain their jobs given new, more stringent National and State
education standards. To date, 9 participants have passed the
examination.
Archaeological Inventory & Cultural Monitoring
An Archaeological Inventory & Cultural Monitoring training program
for 15 individuals is planned. Formal instruction along with field
reconnaissance work, site identification, and mapping of an entire
ahupua'a will be conducted. This training is seen as the first step to
developing a positive track record and encouraging other landowners to
participate in further surveys which will bring the community closer to
its goal of completing an island-wide inventory. Trainees will also
enhance their employability in this area. Some projects planned for
Molokai include a request by Molokai Properties, Ltd. (formerly Molokai
Ranch) for identification of archaeological features on their lands in
order to develop a land management plan; the development of a cultural
resources management plan by Pu'u O Hoku Ranch, Ltd. And Halawa Valley
Land Trust for properties in Halawa Valley; a rock art inventory
project by Volcano Art Center; and an upcoming reconnaissance survey to
be conducted in Halawa by the National Park Service. It is anticipated
that out of the 15 trainees, 8-10 will become certified for
archaeological inventory survey and cultural monitoring positions.
Senator Inouye. I thank you very much, Dr. Sakamoto.
STATEMENT OF RAMSEY R. PEDERSEN, CHANCELLOR, HONOLULU
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Senator Inouye. Now may I call upon Chancellor Pedersen.
Mr. Pedersen. Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, thank you for
the opportunity to testify before you today. My testimony is
written and I would like to make that part of the record.
Senator Inouye. Without objection.
Mr. Pedersen. And speak directly to a couple of major
issues. The Governor actually took a lot of my testimony and
already said it, so I will defer to her on those issues.
But we are the home of construction training for the island
of Oahu. We are the apprenticeship training coordinating group.
We work with all of the unions involved and with the American
building contractors, the non-union apprenticeship program, and
we work with them quite closely in terms of trying to judge and
figure out where to go on these issues.
A couple of things are quite clear. Number one, the
expansion is going to require more training. That training is
going to have to be also put where the possible employees, the
new employees, are going to come from. The research that we
have shows that the unemployment rates on the Leeward side and
the Central and North Shore of Oahu dictate that the new people
coming into the industry will come from those areas but also
from what we hope will be high school alignments that the
Governor alluded to that we're working with the Department of
Education.
Given that, Honolulu Community College, which is pretty
well maxed out in terms of its space and availability to train,
is recommending that we work with the industry to create
another major training center in west Oahu, that we look at
expanding the ability to take services out to where the
population is that needs the training. And one of the greatest
under-utilized resources in the State right now is Ko'olauloa,
and we are very interested in terms of being out there.
The Carpenters Union is going to be developing another
training center at Ko'olauloa. We have a 71-bed facility that
we have not been able to open that we took on for aviation use.
And since 9/11 curtailed the aviation development, we're
looking towards opening that up for neighbor island apprentices
to be able to have a place to live in this extremely expensive
housing market in terms of dealing with those kinds of issues.
In terms of working with the Department of Education, we
are contracting the Center for Occupational Research and
Development, or CORD as they're known, and their President Dan
Hull, who wrote the book Keppra and wrote the relationship in
terms of how community colleges and high schools should align
themselves to create coordinated cohesive contextual training
program.
Dan and his group will be coming out here in 2 weeks to
work with us, and the Department of Education, and Department
of Labor, the unions, and others in terms of a development of a
four-course sequence which fits into the curriculum guidelines,
and the new high school graduation requirements of the
Department of Education are going to be implemented.
I'm sorry that Patricia Hamamoto isn't here right now
because that's the person who is spearheading that in her
organization with us and they're partnering with us on this.
The idea is that we can expand the incoming pool of
qualified people. Kids today are gamers. They are not builders.
And we have lost a lot of the ability, as one of my
apprenticeship coordinators told me, of a father and son to go
into their shop and build something together. Given that change
in technology and change in terms of innovations, bringing
students back into the processes of tooling, of understanding
technology, of looking at basic fluids, dynamics, how the
sciences operate in relationship to this would be addressed in
this high school curriculum that we will also make available to
the entire State. This will give us standardized contextual
curriculum to all high schools willing to want to embrace it.
PREPARED STATEMENT
We, at Honolulu Community College and our colleagues on the
neighbor islands, will be proposing to also make that
available, upon space available, to the students whose schools
do not have this. We'll be able to create a much larger pool, a
much larger population of individuals that will be trained and
able to take these jobs that are going to come up.
So we're looking forward to working on these projects and
we please ask for your support in the future and we're very
excited that this opportunity has come about. Thank you very
much.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Ramsey R. Pedersen
Members of the Committee, mahalo for the opportunity to testify
before you relating to increasing Hawai'i's trades program to meet the
demand brought about by the privatization of military family housing.
CONSTRUCTION TRAINING ISSUES
Honolulu Community College coordinates all construction
apprenticeship training for the island of Oahu, and has certificate and
associate degree programs in Applied Trades, Carpentry Technology,
Architecture, Engineering, & Computer Assisted Design, Electrical
Installation and Maintenance Technology, Occupational and Environmental
Safety Management, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Technology, Sheet
Metal and Plastics Technology, and Welding Technology.
Enrollment in apprenticeship hit a low of 1.042 in Fall, 1997. This
was the result of a prolonged static construction market. Fall 2003
enrollment was 2,163. Enrollment in all construction technology degree
and certificate programs was 601 majors in Fall, 2003.
There is an unprecedented surge of energy in the construction
industry. 2004 total value is estimated at $4 billion--the first such
year since 1988. This has led to the rise in apprenticeship training,
and does not include future expansion necessary for the military
construction and remodeling projects. It is anticipated that a total of
close to 10,000 jobs will need new employees in the industry over the
next eight years due to expansion and attrition.
The training process takes five to six years to complete the
related training in apprenticeship and the required hours of work
experience under the supervision of journeyworkers. A surge in hiring
is anticipated as military projects come on line during the next 16-18
months, but the trades are caught in a ``chicken or the egg''
situation. They are not able to indenture apprentices without work
experience opportunities, but may not have enough workers in the
pipeline to meet the demand.
Large trade unions such as the Carpenters Union are gambling on the
work being there. They plan to have an intake of an additional 400
apprentices by Fall, 2004. Smaller unions have to take a wait and see
approach due to limited training opportunities and the required ratio
between journeyworkers and apprentices, usually 3 to 1.
It is anticipated that not all of the work subcontracted by Actus
Lend Lease and Flour/Hunt will go to union contractors. The American
Building Contractors, the nonunion apprenticeship program, is also
anticipating a rise in work and employment. Some workers who have left
the state will be recruited through a return to Hawai'i program, while
other mainland workers will be relocated for the duration of the work.
Honolulu Community College and its sister institutions on the
Neighbor Island with apprenticeship programs are capable of expanding
training with additional personnel, supplies, equipment, and
facilities. Honolulu CC is running almost at the capacity of the
existing facilities without changing to a double night shift that would
keep apprentices in class in the second shift until 10:30 p.m. That
produces a significant hardship on individuals with early work
schedules at the job sites.
Adult workforce demographics, recruitment experience, and
unemployment patterns indicate the following:
--The majority of new apprentices to be hired from the adult
population will come from the Leeward, Central, and North Shore
areas of Oahu where unemployment is the highest.
--A significant number of the unemployed population are on public
assistance.
--Commuting to a training site at Honolulu CC may produce a severe
hardship on trainees.
--A large percentage (up to 50 percent) of applicants are rejected by
the unions due to an inability to pass the entry math screening
tests where administered.
department of education--community college partnerships
The Hawaii State Department of Education and the community colleges
are working to create a true career construction pathway through the
Career and Technical Education system. New proposed graduation
requirements will require students to choose two credits (four semester
courses) in any of three different areas--Fine Arts, Career and
Technical Education, or World Languages.
We believe the design and developed of a competency-based,
contextually rooted, interdisciplinary construction technology
curriculum will appeal to many students. A standardized curriculum with
clear learning outcomes will lead to a direct articulation into the
community college construction technology programs, direct employment
into apprenticeship, or a career choice to attend a baccalaureate
institution with a related major (business, architecture, engineering,
human resources, etc.).
To attain the goal, the Department of Education and Honolulu
Community College will:
--Contract the Center for Occupation Development and Research (CORD)
to create a four-course curriculum for a construction academy
to be offered at high schools as a transformation from the
existing uncoordinated construction technology courses.
--Hold training sessions this summer in the utilization of the
curriculum with high school and college construction faculty.
--Implement the academy curriculum at high schools and colleges with
the capacity and trained staff.
We belief the construction academy will focus students on the
opportunities available for future employment, the career preparation
and academic competencies necessary for employment, and to develop the
interest and skills necessary to succeed as productive employees in the
industry.
NECESSARY ACTIONS TO EXPAND THE QUALIFIED LABOR POOL
--Coordinate proposed activities with efforts of the Hawai'i
Congressional Delegation, State Department of Labor and
Industrial Relations, the Oahu Workforce Council, contractor
associations and labor unions, primary federal contractors, and
the Department of Education, and the Department of Human
Services.
--Create math refresher preparation workshops to assist
apprenticeship applicants in meeting basic skills requirements.
--Develop a program to provide job readiness skills to individuals in
need of more significant remediation in an intensive 70-120
hour workshop environment.
--Develop the infrastructure capacity to support expanded training,
including additional capacity for apprenticeship and
journeyworker training, and community college associate degree
programs throughout the state.
--Support the design, development, and implementation of high school
construction career academies offered at the high schools or on
college campuses.
--Create a construction career center in West Oahu to expand training
capacity in all of the activities mentioned above.
These necessary actions will require investment, coordination, and
cooperation of all parties. The investment would easily be recouped
from the additional taxes paid in expanded excise and income taxes from
the industry's growth. Collaboration and teamwork are the keys to
maximizing opportunity for Hawai'i's people.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Chancellor. I want to
commend both of you for the work that you're doing.
Dr. Sakamoto, I think Maui County is most fortunate to have
you because your community college has taken a leadership role
in higher education. In fact, you were the first one before
Honolulu. And the innovative programs you have established on
Lana'i and Moloka'i are very exciting. I can tell you that some
of my colleagues are looking upon some of your projects as
models. The Lana'i project is now being discussed in the
Department of Labor, for example.
Dr. Sakamoto. Thank you very much, Senator. We're very
grateful for your continuing support and it's made tremendous
difference to our county community and to our college. We're
very grateful.
Senator Inouye. Mr. Pedersen, with your facilities and your
staff, do you think we can meet the challenge which is thrust
upon us to providing qualified workers for all of the
construction work that we anticipate shortly.
Mr. Pedersen. I think we have the curriculum. I think we
need an expansion of both staff and facilities to be able to
deliver those services to wherever the population is at.
It is very difficult for a Leeward population to get into
downtown Honolulu at this point for training and education, and
so that's why we're looking at setting up some sort of a
satellite operation.
Senator Inouye. Do you have any cost figures?
Mr. Pedersen. Not at this point. We're still in the
discussion stages in terms of availability of land, whether or
not possibly some of the properties that were turned over for
development by the Navy might be available. There are a number
of things that have to go forward before we can do this.
Senator Inouye. Well, we'll have to work together on this.
Mr. Pedersen. Yes, sir.
Senator Inouye. Because of the nature of the programs that
we have, I think we can bring about a partnership between your
activity and the Federal Government.
Mr. Pedersen. We look forward to that, sir.
Senator Inouye. And I think we can do something about that.
Mr. Pedersen. Okay.
Senator Inouye. Senator Akaka.
Senator Akaka. Dr. Sakamoto and Mr. Pedersen, I want to
commend you for what you're doing to address the double whammy
we're expecting. And the double whammy is the baby boomers
retiring and the new projects that are coming out to Hawaii,
and we need to develop a huge workforce. And I want to commend
you for what you're doing, working together and with the
community as well to bring that about.
Again, I want to add my part in telling you that I stand
ready to work with you to make all of this happen. Thank you
very much.
Dr. Sakamoto. Thank you, Senator.
Mr. Pedersen. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. Now may I call upon the representative of
the General Contractors Association, Mr. Lance Inouye;
representing the Building Industry Association, Mr. Randy Lau;
and representing the United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners
(Local 745), Mr. Ron Taketa; representing the Painters,
Decorators, Paperhangers & Allied Traders (Local 1791), Mr.
Lynn Kinney.
STATEMENT OF LANCE INOUYE, PAST PRESIDENT, GENERAL
CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION OF HAWAII
Senator Inouye. Gentlemen, welcome. And may I call upon Mr.
Inouye.
Mr. Inouye. Thank you, Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, and
members of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on
Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related
Agencies.
My name is Lance Inouye. I'm president of a small general
building contractor here in Hawaii and I'm past president of
the General Contractors Association of Hawaii, GCA.
I'm here to represent the General Contractors Labor
Association, GCLA, at the request of Mr. James Ramirez, its
Chair, and currently first vice-president of the GCA. Mr.
Ramirez, unfortunately, was called up to Alaska on an emergency
and sends his apologies that he could not be here personally.
If it would please this subcommittee, I would like to read
his prepared testimony. On behalf of the GCLA and various
construction industry organizations, I would like to thank you
for giving us the opportunity to express our views relative to
our ability to meet the construction labor demands of the
revitalized Hawaii economy.
These are exciting times for the Hawaii construction
industry and we are even seeing the return of the other State
bird, the tower crane. We have faced the economic doldrums in
the mid 1990s when the economy struggled, and our market
dropped from a peak of $4 billion to under $3 billion, and our
workforce reduced from 34,000 to the present 26,000.
Today, fortunately, we are faced with simultaneous and
rapid growth in both private and public sectors, particularly
the military work in the Federal front, thanks to you and Mr.
Abercrombie.
I have four topics that I will be addressing in my
testimony by way of a question format:
1. What labor lessons did we learn from the previous
construction boom in the mid to late 1980s and early 1990s that
can apply to our situation today?
2. What data is needed to determine the extent of the
upcoming labor shortage?
3. What occupational skills is the construction industry
lacking?
4. What type of support are we requesting from the
government?
The first question is: What labor lessons did we learn from
the earlier construction boom in Hawaii?
What we learned was the following: The construction
industry ramped up to peak of a $4 billion market. There were
ongoing major private projects with the development fuel coming
in from the Japanese investors. Major State projects were also
in full swing. There were approximately 34,000 people in the
construction workforce.
However, even with this boom, the major contractors did not
import labor from the mainland. The 34,000 workforce came from
the local labor pool. The real issue was the syndrome of,
quote, ``scraping the bottom of the barrel,'' unquote, in which
there were bodies but skills were lacking. It was clear that
more training would have been definitely helped as evidenced by
quality issues experienced on some of the projects.
The second question is the crux of the labor issue: What
data is needed to determine the extent of the upcoming labor
shortage?
In the past year there have been several government and
private organizations addressing the issue of labor shortage,
with the last one being the Hawaii Jobs Summit spearheaded by
Honorary Summit Chair Mr. Abercrombie. Various local experts
presented their views and a myriad of statistical information
shared with attendees. The next step is to crystalize this
information into a usable and practical way. From our
standpoint, the Summit appears to be the best forum to do this.
One key point that needs to be pointed out is that the
Summit must ensure that the data is accurate and timely. Also,
in projecting the labor requirements, the following three key
points must be considered:
1. The commitment by the military privatization contractors
to use the local construction companies is probably the most
important consideration. We are encouraged that these firms
have stated that it is their intent to subcontract 75 to 85
percent of the work to local companies.
2. Our latest information shows that three privatization
projects are ramping up at different times. This means that the
labor demand should be a gradual build up. The concern about
being overwhelmed should be less of an issue.
3. Of primary importance is the projected timeline for the
start and duration of the privatization projects. We have
preliminary information on the anticipated start dates of
construction but they need to be firmed up so that a workforce
loading schedule of the various trades can be prepared.
Obviously, the better the timeline information, the more
accurate the manpower projections will be.
The next question is: What types of occupational skills
needs to be upgraded to accommodate the privatized housing
programs?
In housing work, about 12 different skills or trades are
involved; carpenters, laborers, masons, operators, iron
workers, roofers, glaziers, painters, carpet and vinyl
flooring, drywall, plumbers, and electricians.
The GCLA, in conjunction with Pacific Resources
Partnership, will be performing surveys of the existing
manpower availability of the various trades and their ability
to meet the upcoming labor demand.
At the present time, the concern about a labor shortage is
not across all construction trades and some trades are better
prepared to meet this demand.
Most recently, our industry has experienced a shortage of
masons, which are the cement finishers and block layers. Many
of the structures in Hawaii have concrete frames and thousands
of housing slabs will require this cement finishing skill. This
is one trade that needs a larger workforce and retraining of
existing journeymen.
With respect to new skills, more training for metal stud
wall and roof framing needs to be done. Housing construction in
the past has been wood framing, and new military housing will
incorporate metal framing which requires different skills.
In the past few months, the GCLA, through the Carpenters
Apprentices and Training fund, has been working with the
Carpenters Union on developing a training facility for this
purpose. The details of this venture will be covered by Mr. Ron
Taketa, business manager and financial secretary for the
carpenters.
Although funding is a problem, there are ongoing
discussions about shared funding of this program jointly
between the Trust Fund and the Carpenters Union. This is an
example of the cooperation between the contractors and one of
the primary unions and discussions will be held with other
labor organizations.
My final topic is the question: What kind of support do we
need from the government in construction related training?
From the GCLA's standpoint, we are encouraging the various
labor organizations to implement immediate steps, as well as
taking a long-range approach, in meeting the labor demand
requirements. We are encouraging these labor organizations to
do the following:
1. Upgrade the skills of existing journeymen.
2. Establishing programs for encouraging younger retirees
to return to the work force during this period of high labor
demand.
3. Continuing the apprenticeship programs with the
community colleges.
4. Stepping up the recruiting effort.
All of the above pursuits can happen but it will take
dollars to implement them.
For the labor organizations to implement the various
construction related training and recruiting programs, funding
assistance from the government is needed. The amount of the
funding and which organizations would qualify for this
assistance need to be based on established guidelines, which
would be developed in conjunction with the Hawaii Jobs Summit.
We are further requesting that our congressional
representatives and State officials strongly encourage Actus
Lend Lease, the Hawaii Military Communities LLC, and the Fluor
Hawaii LLC to give the local contractors the opportunity to
participate in the upcoming 10-year construction program as
well as the 50-year privatization program. All the additional
training will only matter if you're able to get the work.
Again, thank you for allowing me to give the viewpoints of
the GCLA and other construction organizations. Please be
assured that with your help we can and will be ready to meet
the upcoming labor challenges.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Mr. Inouye.
STATEMENT OF RANDY LAU, PAST PRESIDENT, BUILDING
INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION
Senator Inouye. Mr. Lau.
Mr. Lau. Good morning, Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka.
Welcome home. Distinguished members of the subcommittee--I can
speak loud. My name is Randy Lau, past president of the
Building Industry Association of Hawaii. We represent 465
companies and 23,000 employees that go with them. Our primary
niche is in training on employer training, management and
project management.
The BIA is a leader in training and advocacy for Hawaii's
building industry and strongly supports increasing local trades
programs to meet the demand for construction labor stimulated
by multi-million dollar housing projects now underway.
As a result of the government's A79 initiatives, which we
are thankful for, relating to the privatization of military
housing, Hawaii's building industry is anticipating a sharp
increase in the demand for labor in all construction trades,
including management.
In a study conducted for 2004, Hawaii Jobs Summit, by
Professor Sang-Hyop Lee of the University of Hawaii Manoa. Dr.
Lee projects a cumulative increase of 7,425 workers over the
next 5 years. This increase will coincide with already strong
demand spurred by record sales in private housing and by
continued growth in commercial projects starts due to favorable
interest rates.
Hawaii's labor training needs are unique in that the State
is isolated geographically and therefore not readily accessible
to large mobile labor pools in the contiguous 48 States.
In addition, when out-of-state labor is imported for a
relatively short-term, growth of the workforce is not
accompanied by an equivalent reduction in local unemployment,
leaving a burden on State support programs. This is made worse
because imported workers tend to remain in Hawaii unemployed
after their initial jobs are over.
There also exist an underlying long-term phenomenon that I
had the opportunity to discuss at a national meeting with the
National Association of Home Builders Education Arm that Mr.
Pedersen referred to as ``gamers.'' This affects our entire
country whereby children are receiving less vocational training
and have reduced interest in construction as a profession. This
decline in vocational industrial pursuits may be related to a
generational movement toward technology related interest
``gamers'' and service sector employment, but there is a risk
of imbalance if it is allowed to persist.
Our Nation's construction industry not only designs and
produces the structures our society requires to function in, it
also requires well paid and rewarding career opportunity and
serves as a poke and driver of our economy.
The Building Industry Association of Hawaii believes this
decline in critical skills can be mitigated with Federal
assistance for training and job placement programs and a
stronger marketing of such programs, even at the elementary
level. So we may be even looking at this phenomenon affecting
us on a long-term basis.
In addition, increases in the Federal sector work are
requiring more small businesses to be trained in how to do
business with the government in terms of procurement, labor
management, software compatibility, and electronic work flow.
Additional training is needed in the higher level skills to
improve the service and capability of Hawaii's small business
on government contracts.
In conclusion, the BIA believes that increase in demand for
Hawaii construction laborers, trades people, and managers can
be accommodated locally. However, this will require a
comprehensive increase in training and instruction that is
applicable to both public and private sector projects a
concerted effort to repatriate skilled workers who have left
the State during sluggish periods and a renewed marketing
effort focusing on our youth.
The BIA respectfully requests your support in increasing
Hawaii's trades program. Thank you for the opportunity to
express our concerns and we advocate a positive solution.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much, Mr. Lau.
STATEMENT OF RON TAKETA, UNITED BROTHERHOOD OF
CARPENTERS AND JOINERS, LOCAL 745
Senator Inouye. Mr. Taketa.
Mr. Taketa. Aloha, Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, and staff
and members of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee here this
morning.
My name is Ron Taketa and I'm the financial secretary and
business representative for the Hawaii Carpenters Union. It's
an honor and privilege to come before you today on behalf of
the 19,000 union tradesmen and women of the construction
industry in Hawaii.
Most of the leaders of the building trade unions are in the
audience with us today. We welcome your assistance and
partnership to build a properly trained, qualified and expanded
workforce to meet the demand for more skilled workers, to
develop and maintain privatized military housing and living
facilities in Hawaii over the next half century.
Last month, Hawaii's Jobs Summit with Mr. Abercrombie
estimated that the privatized housing contracts being awarded
in Hawaii will require more than 7,500 new skilled construction
workers on top of the present labor pool in the marketplace.
Needless to say, expanding our membership by 40 percent
over the next 5 to 10 years is going to put a tremendous strain
on our resources. And we have always been, the unionized
industry, the most reliable and productive sources of skilled
workers for the industry.
In fact, finding and training new members is so important
to the unionized industry that both management and labor unions
together have been administering joint trust funds for training
programs for over 40 years.
Because we are all quite aware of what's coming up with the
military, each and every construction union has already started
or developed contingencies to increase their ranks, to compete
for and fulfill the requirements of military housing projects.
As previous speakers have already mentioned, the Hawaii
Carpenters Union has optioned a site at Barbers Point to create
a free-standing training center of our own to supplement our
certified apprentice programs at the community colleges where
we now have more than 1,200 apprentices currently enrolled.
The Laborers International Union already has a similar
free-standing facility with about 100 laborer apprentices at
the state-of-the-art training center in Pearl City.
The Operating Engineers Union has a spacious 30-acre site
on Oahu's north shore in Kahuku.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers trains
over 200 apprentices at its own facility in Kalihi with an
annual graduation rate of 92 percent.
On Oahu's central plain at Waipio, the two Iron Worker
Locals maintain their own training center where they have
graduated more than 200 apprentices over the past 5 years with
an additional 200 currently enrolled in their certified
program.
My colleague here on the panel, Lynn Kinney of the Painters
Union, has already increased his apprenticeship ranks by a
third to accommodate the new military housing projects.
The Hawaii Masons Union now has almost a quarter of its
membership in apprenticeship training.
The Drywall Tapers and Finishers Union has increased its
training program to about 180 apprentices out of a total of
more than 400 members.
The Plumbers and Fitters Union has an outstanding 97
percent retention rate for its training program, which now has
more than 300 apprentices involved.
As you can see by these examples, the stepped-up enrollment
and instruction in anticipation of military housing contracts
have been costly and time consuming to unions but we look upon
them as investments in the futures of our members. We paid the
price to develop these programs, gone the extra mile to make
them statewide through the community college system, and
complied with rigorous State certified standards and criteria
to ensure the best instruction and results.
The unions have far and away consistently demonstrated that
they have the most productive training programs in the State.
In reality, there are no others that have this stability, the
infrastructure and the potential to meet the increased demands
of the military contractors. We, as unions, realize we have a
responsibility to anticipate the job market and I believe we've
done all we have so far with a sincere effort to keep the jobs
generated by the upcoming projects right here at home in
Hawaii.
We put forth to help our economy for everyone's benefit and
we want to do our part to improve the quality of life for
military families who put their life on the line for all of us.
PREPARED STATEMENT
On a final note, I want to say personally that the
construction trade unions have stepped up to the plate in every
way without any corresponding commitment from the designated
awardees of the military contracts that they will favor us with
an agreement or any other arrangement that assures the most
qualified construction workers in the State participate in the
upcoming work.
We feel our record speaks to the commitment and investment
we have in our members and in our contractors and to the future
we seek of fairness and opportunity for coming generations of
men and women in construction.
Thank you for your attention and your concern.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Ronald Taketa
Aloha to Senator Daniel Inouye, members and staff of the Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee here this morning. It is an honor and
privilege to come before you on behalf of the 19,000 union tradesmen
and women of the construction industry in Hawaii.
We welcome your assistance and partnership to build a properly
trained, qualified and expanded workforce to meet the demand for more
skilled workers to develop and maintain privatized military housing and
living facilities in Hawaii over the next half-century.
I also choose to speak for the untold thousands of young men and
women who may yet enter our profession because of the career choices
and many new opportunities our unionized construction industry has
labored long and hard to attain, and that we may finally be able to
offer them.
Last month, Hawaii's Job Summit with Congressman Neil Abercrombie
estimated that the privatized housing contracts being awarded by the
Army, Navy and Air Force in Hawaii will require more than 7,500 new
skilled construction workers on top of the present labor pool in the
marketplace.
Needless to say, expanding our members by forty percent over the
next 5 to 10 years is going to put a tremendous strain on the resources
of the local construction unions, who have always been the most
reliable and productive sources of new workers for the industry.
It is the local trade unions who recruit most, train better, and
place new carpenters, roofers, painters, operators, masons and members
of a dozen other building trades in public and private-sector
construction projects. And we've done this in the numbers and quality
and pay scales that meet the real-world conditions of Hawaii's building
contractors.
In fact, finding and training new members is so important to the
unionized industry, that both management and labor unions together have
been administering joint trust funds for apprenticeship and journey
training programs for over 40 years.
Because we are all quite aware of what's coming with the military,
each and every construction union has already started, or developed
contingencies, to increase their ranks to compete for and fulfill the
requirements of Hawaii's military contracts.
The Hawaii Carpenters Union has already optioned a site at Barbers
Point to create a free-standing, training center of our own to
supplement our certified apprenticeship programs at the community
colleges, and to increase our capacity to train more carpenters.
With more state-approved instructors in the pipeline, we also plan,
in greater numbers at our training center, to upgrade our older
members' skills in the particular carpentry specialties and
technologies, such as metal framing, that we expect our signatory
contractors will require for the upcoming military housing projects.
Right now, we have more than 1,300 apprentices in our training program.
The Laborers International Union already has a similar free-
standing training facility. About 100 laborer apprentices feed into the
field for on-the-job training from this state-of-the-art training
center in Pearl City.
The Operating Engineers Union has a spacious 30-acre site on Oahu's
north shore at Kahuku. This training area enables their apprentices and
journey operators to learn and practice driving of heavy construction
equipment on private property that features the typical conditions of
the job site.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers trains over 200
apprentices at it's own union hall in Kalihi, with an annual graduation
rate of 92 percent. They have one of the most complete electricians
training labs of the modern era.
On Oahu's central plain at Waipio, the two Iron Worker Locals
maintain their own training center where their flexibility and years of
experience enables them to consistently meet changing industry demands
in an efficient and responsive manner.
My colleague here on the panel, Lynn Kinney of the Painters Union,
has already increased his ranks by a third with about a hundred
apprentices readily available to union painting contractors seeking
work at new military housing projects.
The Hawaii Masons Union now has almost a quarter of its membership
in apprenticeship training.
The Drywall Tapers and Finishers Union has increased its training
program to about 180 apprentices out of a total membership of over 400.
The Plumbers and Fitters Union has an outstanding 97 percent
retention rate for its training program, which now has more than 300
apprentices.
The stepped-up enrollment and instruction in anticipation of
military housing contracts have been costly and time-consuming to
unions, but we look upon them as investments in the futures of our
members. The cost is great, but in today's circumstances, this
necessary investment is crucial to unionized construction, no matter
what the price!
So, we've paid the price to develop these training programs. Gone
the extra mile to make them statewide through the community colleges.
And complied with rigorous state-certified standards and criteria to
ensure the best instruction and results.
In a typical year, the 17 construction unions in Hawaii have a
total of about 2,500 apprentices enrolled in our apprenticeship
programs. We could have the capacity to enroll more than 5,000
apprentices if all resources are put into play. Given the 3 to 4 year
period it takes to graduate as journey trade men and women, we must
optimize our capacity immediately!
The unions have far and away the most productive training programs
in the state, and in reality there are no others that have the
stability, the infrastructure and the potential to meet the increased
demands of the military contractors.
We as unions realize we have a responsibility to anticipate the job
market, and I believe we've done all we have so far in a sincere effort
to keep the jobs generated by the new military housing at home. We've
put forth to help our economy for everyone's benefit, and we want to do
our part to improve the quality of life for military families who put
their lives on the line for all of us.
I want to say personally that the construction trade unions have
stepped up to the plate without any commitment or understanding from
the designated awardees of the privatized military housing contracts
that they will favor us with an agreement, or any other arrangement,
that assures the most qualified construction workers in the state of
participating in the coming windfall.
We feel our record speaks to the commitment and investment we have
in our members, and to the future we seek of fairness and opportunity
for coming generations of men and women in construction.
Thank you for your kind attention and interest in our concerns.
Senator Inouye. I thank you very much, Mr. Taketa.
STATEMENT OF LYNN KINNEY, PAINTERS, DECORATORS,
PAPERHANGERS AND ALLIED TRADERS, LOCAL 1791
Senator Inouye. Now may I call on Mr. Kinney.
Mr. Kinney. Aloha. Thank you, Mr. Chair, Senator Akaka, and
members of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee for granting
me the opportunity to testify in support of a Federal
Government-labor partnership expanding programs for Hawaii's
construction trade unions.
My name is Lynn Kinney. I am the Business Manager/
Secretary-Treasurer of District Council 50 of the International
Union of Painters and Allied Trades, but I am speaking today on
behalf of the members of the 17 building and construction trade
unions that are the backbone of residential construction in the
State.
Our members are very concerned that the new construction
workers needed to build more than $3 billion in military homes
may go to trades people from out of State. This may happen if
contractors and subcontractors are unable or unwilling to hire
Hawaii construction workers of significant numbers and
training.
Given past experience, they will look to the mainland for
workers who agree to move to Hawaii temporarily to work and
then return to their home State after the projects are
completed. Given the duration, scope and value of the
prioritization contracts awarded by the Army, Navy and Air
Force the consequences of thousands of nonresident workers
taking these jobs would severely impair our standard of living
and Hawaii's economic vitality.
To address this challenge, Hawaii trade unions have begun
an aggressive coordinated campaign to improve and expand
training programs in anticipation of this expansion in new
construction.
As mentioned by brother Ron Taketa of the Hawaii
Carpenters, unions and signatory contractors have invested
their own trust funds in a number of new training facilities.
The trade unions have enrolled hundreds of new apprentices into
our ranks and we have hundreds more who have been wait listed
for entry into our certified program. We have worked closely
with the University of Hawaii Community College to make
apprenticeship training as relevant and up-to-date as possible
so graduates are competitive in the labor market place.
Any assistance from Washington to help train our qualified
residents for military housing projects and increase the pool
of workers available to contractors will be welcomed by the
trade unions in Hawaii.
We would like to respectfully point out, Mr. Chair, that
while many of us have already heavily invested resources in the
recruitment and training of new members, we've also done so
absolutely with no assistance of--no assurances of jobs at the
end of this lengthy process.
We envision a separate entity to receive and consider all
grants, applications with perhaps recommendations to an
appropriate Federal agency for distribution. The compensation
of this body should be reflective of the unions, employers,
military, and educators involved.
We strongly recommend that the State certified programs,
with records of graduation success and longevity in the
community, be with one qualified to apply for any grants.
With time of the essence to meet these project building
timetables, this proposed Federal program should not be used
for startup in need or seed money of low output training and
schools with little impact on the marketplace.
The colleges have become steadfast partners with the
construction unions. We have been the primary source for
training new recruits for the industry. We believe that the
community colleges deserve a fair share of grants targeted to
expand vocational training and workforce development
initiatives for our entire construction industry.
We've also proposed that grants be made on a matching
basis. A qualified program should be able to claim office
overhead, salaries, facility rental or upkeep, materials, and
other expenses associated with the expanded curriculum as the
matching share.
Awards should be granted for instructional costs, such as
teachers and classroom activities. Construction of new
facilities or improvements to existing training facilities or
offices should be disqualified.
The number of enrollees in our program should determine the
size of the program's grant. The more trainees, the more
training funds are needed. This, coupled with incremental
payments contingent on progress reports of graduation rates
over the course of the grant programs, will help us to ensure
the responsible spending of tax dollars.
Mr. Chair, Hawaii's trade unions are grateful that area
standard wages will apply to all projects in the military's
privatized housing programs in Hawaii. Preference for small
businesses and local hires also have been promised. Ultimately,
though, we have only our own workforce development, superior
training and vigilance of our congressional delegation to
ensure that fairness and honor prevail in the marketplace.
PREPARED STATEMENT
The members of the Hawaii Building and Construction Trades
Council join me in extending our gratitude to you for inviting
us to testify before the subcommittee on issues of critical
importance to our members. We look forward to being of any
assistance to establish a partnership between the Federal
Government and our industry to train and employ the next
generation of workers, building union quality homes for
military families and help to bolster our island economy.
Thank you for the time and it's an honor just to be able to
speak with you.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Lynn Kinney
Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the Senate Appropriations
Subcommittee, for granting me the opportunity to testify in support of
a federal government-labor partnership to expand training programs for
Hawaii's construction trades.
I am the Business Manager/Secretary Treasurer of District Council
50, of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, but I am
speaking today on behalf of the members of the state's 17 building and
construction trade unions that are the backbone of residential
construction in the state.
Our members are very concerned that the new construction workers
needed to build more than $3 billion in military homes may go to
tradespeople from out-of-state. This may happen if contractors and
subcontractors are unable or unwilling to hire Hawaii construction
workers of sufficient numbers and training. Given past experience, they
will look to the mainland for workers who agree to move to Hawaii
temporarily to work and then return to their home states after the
projects are completed.
Given the duration, scope, and value of the privatization contracts
awarded by the Army, Navy, and Air Force, the consequences of thousands
of non-resident workers taking these jobs would severely impair our
standard of living and Hawaii's economic vitality. To address this
challenge, Hawaii's trade unions have begun an aggressive, coordinated
campaign to improve and expand training programs in anticipation of
this expansion in new construction.
As mentioned by Brother Ron Taketa of the Hawaii Carpenters, unions
and signatory contractors have invested their own trust funds in a
number of new training facilities. The trade unions have enrolled
hundreds of new apprentices into our ranks. And we have hundreds more
who have been waitlisted for entry into our certified programs. We have
worked closely with the University of Hawaii's Community Colleges to
make apprenticeship training as relevant and up-to-date as possible so
graduates are competitive in the labor marketplace.
Mr. Chairman, the promise of a federal program with funding to
ensure that ``the repair and reconstruction of military homes are
undertaken by a qualified Hawaii workforce'' is very exciting and
gratifying to us. Any assistance from Washington to help train and
qualify our residents for military housing projects and increase the
pool of workers available to contractors would be welcomed by trade
unions in Hawaii. We would like to respectfully point out, Mr.
Chairman, that while many of us have already heavily invested resources
in the recruitment and training of new members, we have done so with
absolutely no assurance of jobs at the end of this lengthy process.
Permit me to offer the Building Trade Council's thoughts on the
criteria for such a federal program that we feel would most benefit
Hawaii residents seeking careers in construction; utilize the training
infrastructure already in place; and enhance the fairness, quality, and
efficiency such a program would offer.
We envision a separate entity to receive and consider all grant
applications, with perhaps recommendations to an appropriate federal
agency for disbursement. The composition of this body should be
reflective of the unions, employers, military, and educators involved.
We strongly recommend that state-certified training programs with a
record of graduation success and longevity in the community be the only
ones qualified to apply for any grants. With time of the essence to
meet projected building timetables, this proposed federal program
should not be used for start-ups in need of seed money or low-output
training schools with little impact on the marketplace.
The building trades departments of the state's Community Colleges
are the best source of qualified instructors, facilities, and
administrators with the knowledge and experience to support expanded
training curricula. The colleges have become steadfast partners with
construction unions, and have been the primary source for trained new
recruits for the industry. We believe the Community Colleges deserve a
fair share of grants targeted to expand vocational training and
workforce development initiatives for the entire construction industry.
We also propose that grants be made on a matching basis. A
qualified program should be able to claim office overhead and salaries,
facilities rental or upkeep, materials, and other expenses associated
with its expanded curriculum as the matching share.
Awards should be granted for instructional costs only, such as
teachers and classroom activities. Construction of new facilities or
improvements to existing training facilities or offices should be
disqualified.
The number of enrollees in a program should determine the size of
that program's grant. The more trainees, the more training funds are
needed. This, coupled with incremental payments contingent on progress
reports and graduation rates over the course of the grant program, will
help to ensure the responsible spending of tax dollars.
Mr. Chairman, Hawaii's trade unions are grateful that area standard
wages will apply to all projects in the military's privatized housing
programs in Hawaii. Preferences for small businesses and local hiring
have also been promised. Ultimately, though, we have only our own
workforce development, superior training, and vigilance of our
Congressional delegation to ensure that fairness and honor prevail in
the marketplace.
The members of the Hawaii Building Trades Council join me in
extending our gratitude to you for inviting us to testify before the
subcommittee on issues of critical importance to our members. We look
forward to being of any assistance in establishing a partnership
between the federal government and our industry to train and employ the
next generation of workers, build union-quality homes for military
families, and help to bolster our island economy.
Thank you.
Senator Inouye. I thank you very much, Mr. Kinney.
I'd like to thank all of you for having a positive approach
to the oncoming onslaught of jobs. With that gratitude, may I
assure you that your congressional delegation will do
everything possible, our utmost, in making certain that the
jobs go to the people of Hawaii. And we've done that in the
past and we'll continue to do that. After all, we didn't exert
ourselves in Congress to get projects and have others take
over. We want homegrown workers, homegrown talent, and we're
going to do that.
Mr. Lau, when you brought up gamers, it reminded me of my
days of youth when we were all required to take carpentry. That
was part of the curriculum. And the little girls had to go to
homemaking classes. That was required. But now I suppose
carpentry and homemaking is not that important, but I think the
Department of Education should maybe have courses such as that
available for our youngsters. Because, even to this day, I do
my own carpentry at home. It can be done.
I want to thank all of you for this positive attitude you
have. Working together with you, we'll meet the challenge. I'm
certain of that.
Senator Akaka.
Senator Akaka. I want to thank you, Mr. Chairman, for
having this hearing. And I want to thank our witnesses for
their tremendous effort to take care of this impending problem
that's good for Hawaii. But what is evident here is that a
model is being set up here with the community, with the
colleges, and the schools, all to meet this challenge that will
be facing us in about 7 to 10 years. So I want to commend all
of you for being part of this.
You heard our chairman of our delegation speak for us that
we will be there to help in this effort. So all together, let's
i mua and move forward. Thank you.
Senator Inouye. Thank you very much.
ADDITIONAL SUBMITTED STATEMENTS
Before we adjourn, I'd like to announce that we have
received much testimony and, without objection, the testimony
will be made part of the record. We have received testimony
from Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 293, Plumbers & Fitters
Local 675, Pacific Resource Partnership, Glaziers Architectural
amd Glass Metal Workers Local 1889, Carpet Linoleum & Soft Tile
Local Union 1926, Drywall Tapers & Finishers Local Union 1944,
Iron Workers Local 625 and Ironworkers Shopmen Local 803,
International Union of the Elevator Contractors Local 126.
We've received testimony from Representative Scott
Nishimoto, Ms. Lynn Watanabe representing America's Promise
Hawaii, and Colonel Edward Patrick of Joint Venture Education
Forum.
I'm pleased to announce that the record of this hearing
will be kept open for 2 additional weeks. If you want to submit
testimony during that period, please do so. If you have any
addendum or corrections to make, you have 2 weeks to do so.
[The statements follow:]
Prepared Statement of Glaziers Architectural and Glass Metal Workers
Local 1889, AFL-CIO
Mahalo Senator Inouye, Chairman, and the U.S. Senate Appropriations
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education for
giving me this opportunity to testify in behalf of the working men and
women of the state of Hawaii, as we deal for the upcoming privatization
of military family housing.
Senator Inouye, my name if Richard Tacgere and I am the Business
Representative for the Glaziers Architectural and Glass Metal Workers
Local 1889, AFL-CIO. I have been acting in this capacity for well over
twenty years and feel that my experience in our industry will allow me
to give you an accurate picture regarding our upcoming labor demands.
Mr. Chairman, while our Local Union is one of the smaller ones in
the Hawaii Building and Construction Trades, we are nonetheless gearing
up for what we believe will be one of the most demanding times in the
history of construction in the State of Hawaii. Our apprenticeship
program has recently initiated a new class of apprentices, one which
has the potential to increase our total membership by upwards of 50
percent. We believe that these numbers, when added to our current
membership as well as those members who had previously left our union
and are now returning, will be more than sufficient to meet the
anticipated demand for qualified trades people.
When our industry went through an almost decade long economic
slide, many of our members were forced to seek work elsewhere or in
other industries. Now that there appears to be a need for qualified
trades people, we are seeing an increase in the numbers of people
rejoining our union. Our training program has anticipated this influx
and we are ready, willing and able to offer these ex-members,
retraining programs which will get them up to speed and ready for work
on these federal military housing projects.
Our training programs, employers and the union is fully committed
to making ourselves ready for the upcoming labor demand. We have
committed resources in this area and we are equally excited in the
potential to have matching federal dollars earmarked for these efforts.
We would respectfully request that such matching federal moneys be made
available to all qualified programs, those which have established clear
benchmarks for success and graduation. Past practice and success should
play a large role in determining which programs should be entitled to
very valuable tax dollars.
Mr. Chairman, our relationship with the community college has been
extremely important in the success of our programs. We would ask that
this relationship be continued and even fostered by offering some of
these funds to be made available for community college requirements as
they relate to the construction industry.
Mahalo for giving us this opportunity to testify on this extremely
important subject.
______
Prepared Statement of the Hawaii Building and Construction Trades
Council
Honorable Senators: My name is Buzz Hong, and I currently serve as
the Executive Director to the Hawaii Building and Construction Trades
Council (HBCTC). The HBCTC includes unionized trade workers from
fourteen different crafts throughout the State of Hawaii. When
combined, the HBCTC totals more than 20,000 men and women in the
building and construction industry. The foregoing testimony is
submitted for your consideration in strong support of your efforts to
promote and improve the Hawaii trades training programs to meet the
demands brought about by numerous upcoming military and recently
privatized construction projects.
Given the recent news that the demand for a highly skilled
workforce in Hawaii is likely to catapult, Hawaii's trade unions and
their training programs are gearing up to meet said demand. The work of
this committee and its efforts to provide greater resources could not
have come at a better time. In order to meet these demands, funding
must be made available to those programs that have shown that they can
produce the needed workforce. The training programs of Hawaii's Trades
have also been the leaders in assuring that the skill of their members
and those in the trades are at the highest level. The programs have
already developed the needed curriculum and guidance to assure that
workers are ready to enter the construction industry. Union trained
workers are among the most productive and most desired by Hawaii's
construction industry. The increased funding you seek will go a long
way to enhancing these programs and building the needed capacity to
provide the skilled workforce that will be needed in the immediate
months and years to come.
The HBCTC also strongly supports our Community College system as a
means of promoting new and enhanced partnerships to meet the upcoming
demands. Unfortunately, given many budgetary constraints, resources to
keep current programs alive has been extremely limited. As such, the
HBCTC would strongly support your efforts to promote the growth of
partnerships between the unions' training programs and the Community
Colleges. The importance of the partnerships for this funding is
emphasized so that some assurance can be given that the purpose for
which this funding is being made available is in fact carried out. Said
partnerships will also provide safeguards to assure that a skilled
workforce will be available as the demands on the construction industry
increase.
Finally, I would like to ask for your support in the use of a
Project Labor Agreement (PLA) on many, if not all of the projects that
will soon be released. The use of a PLA has had a long history of
proving to be a key to projects being completed on time and within
budget. Moreover, because of the very nature of the relationship that
is created between a particular project and the trade unions on the
job, projects subject to a PLA have also consistently proven to be
completed at the highest quality. The efforts you make today to bring
about funding for training in the construction industry must be coupled
with your efforts to insist on the use of a PLA. In the end, it will be
those men and women who benefit from the increased capacity in training
that will be on the jobs and continue to benefit under the provisions
of a PLA.
Thank for your consideration and support of Hawaii's building and
construction industry.
______
Prepared Statement of the Laborers' Union, Local 368
Honorable Senators: Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to
present testimony in support of your efforts to provide funding to
Hawaii's Trades Training Programs. The Laborers' Union currently
represents over four thousand (4,000) men and women working in Hawaii's
building and construction industry. To meet the ever changing needs of
our industry, our Union has been providing classroom, simulated
exercises and on the job training for over thirty (30) years. To that
end, we are constantly evaluating the needs of our industry and our
signatory contractors so as to assure that we are ready and able to
provide the needed skilled workforce as changing demands grow.
As you may already know, organized labor has long since been a
pioneer in the area of best preparing and training the workforce needed
to meet the demands of construction innovation and growth. Given that,
it makes perfect sense that when a sudden demand for a skilled
workforce is expected, improvements and enhancements in union training
programs stand in the best position to provide the needed response. As
monies become available to carry out this objective, it should in fact
be training programs that have proven to be ready and capable to
provide the needed training that should be supported. Training programs
like ours have spent significant resources on infrastructure and
training materials to assure that our members are not only the highest
skilled workforce, but also the safest. Only through the combining of
these programs and new funding, will programs be allowed to move to the
next level of preparedness as demand grows for a skilled workforce.
Union training programs demonstrate their commitment every day by
continuing to provide much needed training incorporating technological
advances and changing worksite demands. As such, I strongly support
your efforts to make new resources available and strongly urge you to
recognize those programs that have proven their success, be the same
programs that be allowed to grow to meet your objective and the
community demands.
The Laborers' Union also supports the long standing relationships
that exist between many union training programs and the Community
Colleges. I believe that new and stronger partnerships should be
supported to help meet the needs of our industry. The Community
Colleges stand in the unique position to evaluate the industry from a
global perspective in which it is able to identify and promote training
among many crafts. Moreover, the Community Colleges also help to serve
as a clearing house for those types of skills that are universal to all
crafts. However, support in the form of funding to the Community
Colleges must come with a commitment and clearly defined objective.
Mandating of said partnerships will help to direct that the resources
will be utilized towards the underlying mission of this committee to
provide greater opportunity for training in the construction industry.
Thus, I would strongly support funding to our Community Colleges in an
effort to help enhance and create new partnerships for growth in
Hawaii's construction industry.
On a final note, I would strongly urge this committee to safeguard
the use of funding that may become available towards truly creating
greater training opportunity. Money that is provided through your
efforts should not be used as a means of building new facilities.
Rather, training programs that seek assistance from these limited
resources should already have access to classroom space or facilities
that are dedicated to this purpose. As demand grows, an appropriate use
of new monies would clearly be increasing use of instructors or
acquisition of needed materials or training tools. The Laborers are
proud of the commitment it has made in the recent construction of a
state of the art facility dedicated solely to the purpose of training.
Given that, like many other trade unions having made the same
commitment and investment to this industry, resources that now become
available should be used to enhance our preparedness, and not be used
to develop it from the ground up.
Thank you for your consideration and allowing me this time to
present these issues.
______
Prepared Statement of the Hawaii Operating Engineers J.A.C.
Honorable Senators: At the outset, I would like to take this
opportunity to thank the members of the committee for convening this
distinguished panel to address the Hawaii Trades Training Programs. The
Operating Engineers, Local 3 represents 3,000 trade workers in the
Hawaii Construction Industry. Because of the highly skilled nature of
our members, our commitment to training continues to be unwavering. Our
training program stands ready to meet the needs of the growing demand
of our industry as an increase in work opportunity comes on line. To
that end, the Operating Engineers strongly support the efforts of this
committee to provide funding that will help improve the construction
industry's position as a whole in preparing for an urgent demand of a
skilled workforce.
The first issue that I would ask this committee to consider is
where funding would best be put to work when made available. Given the
goal of this committee to provide funding to training programs best in
the position to meet the upcoming demand, the first criteria for
funding must be that training programs must already be well
established. Union training programs have a long history of providing
training to unskilled workers, and providing skills improvement as
technology changes. Given that the demands on our industry are going to
be sudden, the programs that will be able to respond to the needs are
those that already know how to evaluate said needs, and those that
already have the capacity to deliver meaningful training. In many ways,
our record on training speaks for itself. We have graduated a countless
number of journey workers though our program. More importantly, we work
closely with contractors and other trades to assure that the training
that we provide is relevant. Like many trade union training programs,
we already have the capacity, and more importantly, we already have the
skills needed and facilities to meet the demand. Additional funding
will assist all of us in better preparing to meet increasing demands by
elevating our program to manage the higher volume of those entering the
industry. We strongly support your efforts for additional funding to
programs that will best be able to carry out the objective of meeting
increased demands on training needs.
The second issue that I would ask this committee to consider is
promotion of our Community College system as a means of carrying out
this goal. The Community Colleges are uniquely able to provide training
to multiple industries. Furthermore, facilities are already in place
that could be used to address classrooms needed to provide additional
instruction on the curriculum already in place by our programs.
However, we would further submit that both the union training program
and the Community Colleges be mandated to engage in partnerships with a
view towards earmarking resources for its intended purpose. Said
partnership relationships will accomplish two goals. First, it will
safeguard the integrity of program dollars by narrowing the use of same
for the dedicated purpose of construction industry training. Second,
partnering arrangements will also serve to set goals, objectives and
benchmarks for those who will not only benefit from the arrangement,
but who will have a stake in the outcome. Thus, we would support the
use of the alliances that already exist in carrying the work of this
committee.
Finally, the Operating Engineers believe that this committee must
take under its wing the responsibility to assure that projects which
will flow from the Department of Defense in the State of Hawaii, be
released with a mandate for use of the Project Labor Agreement. If the
goal of this committee is ultimately to assure that the projects that
are coming to Hawaii can be completed smoothly, one component that must
be in place is some assurance that the project will be completed on
time and within budget. Should the ultimate procurement be released
with this mandate, there will no doubt be a disconnect between where
the benefit of training dollars will end up and the skilled workforce
that will be in position to perform the work on these projects. As in
the past, training, labor harmony, on time completion and quality work
are just a few of the hallmark issues addressed in Project Labor
Agreements mandated on large scale construction projects. Thus, we
strongly ask that this committee carefully look at this, and all the
issues discussed herein, as we move forward in commencing this journey
together.
Thank for your consideration and support of Hawaii's building and
construction industry.
______
Prepared Statement of the International Association of Heat & Frost
Insulators & Asbestos Workers Local 132, Hawaii
Thank you for the opportunity of letting me share this testimony
with this very important Senate subcommittee.
This is a very exciting time for our membership. After years of an
economic slowdown, I finally have good news for our members and their
families. Finally, the construction industry is back again.
For our union, it isn't just the projected upcoming military
housing work. We are just as excited about the high-rise condominiums
planned for central Honolulu and the redevelopment of Waikiki. This
will provide scores of work opportunities for our members that have not
been there for the past 10 years.
Because of this anticipated work, our union has been working with
our contractors to increase the number of apprentices going through our
certified training program. We remain committed to providing an
adequate supply of trained insulation mechanics with the competitive
skills necessary to meet the industry needs now and in the future.
Our program is structured for entry-level workers, as well as for
insulation workers already employed within the industry who wish to
upgrade their skills and to advance to journeyperson status. Our
apprenticeship program emphasizes on-the-job training and classroom
instruction, as well as the use of textbooks and other course materials
that give participants a thorough knowledge of the trade.
I will admit it has not been easy to attract new individuals into
our industry. Construction is hard work, and most jobsites are not what
one would expect. But what separates a union construction site from a
nonunion one are many factors: Overall safety, qualified workforce,
above-board training and fair wages and benefits. The fact is any union
jobsite trumps the nonunion in all of these instances.
Unlike our apprenticeship program, the nonunion Associated Builders
and Contractors (ABC) Hawaii is like a brittle shell without an inside.
As far as I know, since the ABC training program's inception here in
Hawaii years ago, not one insulation mechanic has graduated from the
program as a journeyperson. This is in direct contrast to the high
success rate of our union's apprenticeship program, where upon
completion, apprentices must take an examination to demonstrate their
mastery of the knowledge and skills they've been taught. Passage of
this test is necessary to obtain journeyperson status.
The other big advantage our union's training program has over
others such as the ABC is our partnership with the community college
system and our contractors. Our classes are monitored jointly by
management and labor to ensure that standards are met given the
technological needs of our industry. Many of our instructors have gone
through the apprenticeship program themselves, and are foremen or
superintendents out in the field. Our apprentices learn on the job--
there is opportunity for them to learn because our employers are true
partners in the program.
What is the proof of the success of our union's apprenticeship
program? All of the medium to large public and commercial construction
projects in recent memory have been worked on by members of Local 132.
It is an outstanding track record that I think everyone involved--from
contractors and members to the community college and the state and
federal labor departments--can be extremely proud of.
Our union has a proud legacy of providing experienced and highly
trained insulation mechanics to the state's construction industry. Our
members have paid their dues and have given back to the community with
their expertise and skills. All we are asking for is the continuation
of these standards so that we may meet the anticipated needs of the
work that is in front of us.
Through your assistance, through a criteria that takes into account
track record and commitment by each individual training program, we can
carry on with our mission in building a Hawaii that all of its
residents can be proud.
______
Prepared Statement of the Bricklayers & Ceramic Tile Setters Local 1
and Plasterers' & Cement Masons' Local 630
I am Nolan Moriwaki, Business Manager, speaking on behalf of 1,300
craftworkers in the Cement Finishing, Masonry, Plastering and Ceramic
Tile Setting Trades. We look forward to the much anticipated
construction work from the Federal, State and private sectors. We are
glad to hear that the large influx of funds to provide good housing for
our military families may bring with it financial support for the
training of needed craftworkers.
Steps must be taken to ensure that the job gets done, but also that
Hawaii's people receive the maximum benefit of both construction funds
and training funds. I will outline our efforts along these lines, but
would like to stress that anyone granted Federal training funds should
be held accountable for their effective use. We also stress that
training funds must not be used to throw Hawaii residents into a pool
of cheaper and cheaper labor, and in turn lower the standard of living
in our State.
Our training program is prepared for accountability, to undergo
compliance monitoring and be held to production standards when
utilizing Federal funds. Such a system should be devised and applied to
all training organizations. We are prepared to put our track record on
the line from the day in 1958 when our Apprenticeship program was
recognized by the State Department of Labor and Industrial Relations,
through it's years of development. We are proud of our thorough
curriculum ranging from basics to specialization and new technology for
Journeypersons, to supervision and productivity. We prepare workers for
national certification through the Association of the Wall and Ceilings
Industry and the American Concrete Institute. Our Apprentices have
always scored high in International competitions.
We have looked ahead and expended resources to gear up for the
increased demand for craftworkers, and any financial support will mesh
well for a faster, larger and most effective impact. We would expect to
provide matching funds and in-kind services that will leverage any
Federal monies that become available. The Hawaii Masons Training
Program operates its own training facility on Sand Island, and is
negotiating for another site. This has proven to be of great importance
was Community College funds and space have been stretched to their
limits.
In addition to providing upgrade training for our Journeypersons,
we currently have 301 Apprentices enrolled, and in the year 2003
elevated 120 participants through a pre-apprenticeship program. We have
actively recruited trainees, and have an additional waiting list of
440.
We not only train our Hawaii residents for skill and productivity,
but for a safe and long career in the construction industry. Every
training program should do that. However, working safely and enjoying a
decent standard of living depends most on terms and conditions on the
job. Collective Bargaining Agreements or Project Labor Agreements
covering the jobs for trained residents, would define the wages and
conditions they will receive for their skilled labor, and therefore
whether or not the training will make life better for our people.
In the case of work injuries and deaths, statistics show that such
agreements significantly reduce incidents on construction sites. As for
wages and Hawaii's standards, training funds should not, consistent
with the principles of the Davis-Bacon Act, serve to pull area
standards down. In Hawaii, training for jobs covered by a Collective
Bargaining Agreement or Project Labor Agreement is the clearest way to
assure that our tax dollars and union investments in training do not
work against us in the long run.
Please consider our testimony to devise an implementation plan to
maximize the benefits to Hawaii's people from craft training funds, and
from military and other Federal construction projects. Thank you for
this opportunity to submit testimony.
______
Prepared Statement of the International Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers, Local 1186, Hawaii
On behalf of the more than 1,100 construction electricians and 125
signatory contractors of IBEW Local 1186, I would like to thank the
committee for this opportunity to testify on this very important issue
of a qualified construction workforce to meet the demands of upcoming
federal and private work in the state of Hawaii.
Anticipating the positive need for a qualified workforce, Local
1186 also has increased its recruitment of apprentices and training
classes including for cable splicing and line personnel. Since taking
office a year-and-a-half ago, our administration and training program
has indentured more apprentices during that time than in the previous
10 years--directly due to the anticipated work outlook and a commitment
by our staff and signatory contractors to have the most qualified and
readily available workforce in the state. We are constantly recruiting
in all levels of the community--including at the schools--and our
membership's ethnic and gender diversity is a testament to the kind of
a program our management and labor trustees are running.
Local 1186 has historically been at the forefront when it comes to
apprenticeship and journeyperson upgrade training. Our training fund--
which is jointly administered by an equal number of contractor and
union trustees--has invested in an impressive amount of independent
facilities, classrooms and warehouse laboratory space for such classes
as house wiring and welding. We have never hesitated to put forth the
funding for what we believe is important and beneficial to both the
union's membership and the employers.
We also believe that any kind of minimum qualification to obtain
Federal funding for these kinds of training programs should contain
some similar form of ``investment'' on the applicant's part, whether
up-front funding or matching funding. Whatever funding is available
must not be thrown haphazard at a program that does not have a proven
track record or to be used to start a program as ``seed'' money. There
should also be some kind of compliance monitoring for whatever programs
receive this ``taxpayer'' funding.
Working so closely in a labor/management partnership with our
contractors has many advantages. In fact, it is not a stretch to say
that the training we offer is enhanced because of the input we receive
from our management trustees and the combination of our on-the-job
instruction and in-class schoolwork. For the record, the Joint
Apprenticeship and Training Committee (JATC) of the Hawaii Electricians
Training Fund requires indentured apprentices to take five years of
related instruction and 10,000 hours of on-the-job training. During the
term of their program--with an emphasis on safety, state licensing
standards and certification--the apprentices will take everything from
CPR/First Aid to Blood borne Pathogens and OSHA 500.
The continued effort to elevate the level of awareness in safety
and new technologies is supported in our journeyperson training as
well. The ever-evolving electrical industry constitutes a vigilant
effort when it comes to training. Programs such as fire alarm,
blueprint reading, conduit bending, house wiring, transformers, Cat 5
and fiber optics termination help to sharpen and hone the skill of the
licensed journeyperson electrician. As an established training program
that already offers such classes, our management/labor JATC would
welcome any assistance from the Federal government to help us with an
expanded need for additional equipment and basic instructional costs.
Here are more examples of classes created through the input and
partnership with our contractors: Specific courses such as Hazard Waste
Operation and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER), trenching and excavation,
fall protection, scaffold user safety, asbestos and lead awareness
training further the knowledge of an IBEW/ECAH (Electrical Contractors
Association of Hawaii)-trained electrician.
The electrical industry encompasses a unique position in everyone's
life, and it is often taken for granted until something causes a
disruption or failure. Because of the dangerous nature of electricity
and potential for fire, damage to property or injury or loss of life,
the National Electrical Codes (NEC) and the Telecommunications Wiring
Standards are the minimum guidelines that are used as a proper
application of this dangerous craft. But even that is not enough.
Proper training through curriculum of theory, practical experience
through on-the-job training and continuing education and safety helps
to raise awareness and minimize any potential catastrophe.
Our JATC is a complete training entity. It aggressively promotes
and trains our members with the knowledge of the NEC and serves to
provide the electrician with the updated information necessary to
install and construct properly the required work, as well as, providing
the public a safe and sound environment.
With the help of this very important committee, and by continuing
to work effectively with the state's community colleges and state and
federal labor agencies, we intend to maintain this proud legacy we call
IBEW Local 1186.
______
Prepared Statement of the Boilermakers, Iron Shipbuilders Union, Local
204
Members of the committee, I would like to thank you in advance for
this opportunity to submit this testimony on behalf of myself and the
members and contractors of Boilermakers, Iron Shipbuilders Union, Local
204, Hawaii.
This is truly an exciting time for our membership. Thanks in part
to Congress and its decision to privatize the construction and
maintenance of military housing in Hawaii, our trade industry is
anticipating a dramatic and promising need for thousands of skilled
workers in the next 10 years. In addition to the above, our contractors
are also anticipating the construction of several much-needed sewage
treatment facilities and energy cogeneration plants that will be built
on Oahu during this time.
To meet this demand for a local, qualified workforce, we have been
actively working with our major contractors to recruit new members into
our union and its training program. One in particular, Hawaiian
Dredging Construction Co., has been especially helpful in this regard.
We also have been working with our signatory contractors to upgrade our
classroom and hands-on instruction to keep up with the constantly
changing technology in our industry. We feel we have been very
successful in this regard, and our commitment to increase the number of
members coming into our program has occurred at unprecedented levels
for this particular local because our industry had been mired in a
slump for so long.
One of the reasons why we felt it was important to ramp up our
apprenticeship program is because of the positive feedback we
constantly receive from our contractors and their employers. They
understand that when they hire a union contractor to do the work, their
workers--our members--are highly trained and highly qualified. We've
been told they do the work effectively and in a lot less time as
compared to nonunion contractors.
This reality is contrasted by that of the nonunion ABC (Associated
Builders and Contractors), whose training program here in Hawaii is
documented as having an absolutely woeful graduation rate. From July
1995, the nonunion ABC trades as a whole in Hawaii had 208 total
registered apprentices with only 46 graduated (based on an October 2003
study conducted by the Building and Construction Trades Department of
the AFL-CIO).
For an association that constantly boasts that it graduates tens of
thousands of construction apprentices through ABC-registered programs,
this amount of 46 total graduates in the entire state of Hawaii over a
10-year period paints a pretty sorry picture about the state of ABC's
training program here.
And just where are these so-called 46 graduates? I would be willing
to bet that they are working for our unionized contractors after
attending much-needed journeyperson upgrade courses offered by union
training programs.
I've been in this business for more than 20 years now, and I
honestly believe that the ABC does not adequately fund or is committed
to their so-called apprenticeship program. They never have, and it is
my belief that they never will.
With that said, the members and contractors of Local 204 look
forward to continue working with Honolulu Community College, the state
Department of Labor, and Al Valles of the federal Bureau of
Apprenticeship & Training in furthering what has been a very successful
and necessary training partnership for our industry.
______
Prepared Statement of the Roofers, Waterproofers & Allied Workers
United Union of Roofers, Local 221
Honorable Subcommittee Members: I am pleased to submit this
testimony on behalf of the Roofers Union, Local 221 on the issue of
increasing trades programs to meet the anticipated demand for skilled
workers as a result of the military's residential privatization program
in Hawaii, and the prospect of federal funds being made available to
assist in the effort to enhance training programs to meet that need.
The Roofers Union has had a State Department of Labor certified
apprenticeship program in place for the past three decades, with more
than a hundred apprentices enrolled in the program at Honolulu
Community College at this time. While our Apprenticeship and Training
Trust Fund is fully funded, any assistance through federal grants will
surely enhance our ability to meet the anticipated increased demand for
skilled workers in the next five years.
Due to budget constraints, although the state subsidizes
apprenticeship instructor costs, any expense related to journeyperson
upgrading must now be borne totally by our Training Trust Fund. While
we are willing and prepared to fund these additional training expenses,
it will no doubt impact our existing resources.
Realizing the limited funding potential from federal dollars, we
suggest that any federal grants be restricted to state certified
programs where requests can be made by programs with a proven record of
successfully training and graduating skilled workers. With limited
resources, we do not feel that funding untried or speculative training
programs is a prudent way of managing federal dollars.
We also feel that grant amounts should depend on the willingness of
certified training programs to put forth additional matching funds to
build on already successful programs, and further, that these grants be
limited to subsidize instructor costs rather than paying for
facilities, material or equipment, which should be the sole
responsibility of the existing training programs.
Finally, so as not to waste training fund and federal resources, we
feel that Project Labor Agreements (PLA's) should be entered into by
the developers, contractors and worker organizations involved in these
privatized projects. This is the only way to insure that training and/
or grant money will be fully utilized for the upcoming work for which
it was intended.
Thank you for allowing our organization to submit testimony on the
critical issue of enhanced skills training as it relates to the
upcoming military residential projects.
______
Prepared Statement of the United Association of Plumbers and Fitters
Local 675
The plumbers and fitters apprentice program maintained by PAMCAH-UA
Local 675 Training Fund is the premier training program for apprentice
plumbers, AC-refrigeration, steam fitter and fire sprinkler fitters bar
none. We maintain virtually the only plumber, AC-refrigeration, steam
fitter and fire sprinkler fitter apprentice program approved by state
and federal labor agencies which consistently produces license and
certified graduating journeypersons year after year.
Our joint apprentice and training committee maintains the highest
curriculum standards and a training facility that is dedicated to
provide mechanical contractors throughout the state with a continuous
supply of apprentices learning the skills of the trade and who are drug
free. This apprentice program is needed to continue the propagation of
quality construction in Hawaii for all to enjoy and be proud of.
The plumbers and fitters apprentice program has relied upon the
State of Hawaii Community College system as a co-partner to aid in the
classroom experiences for our apprentices which provides essential
intellectual exposure to concepts that must be learned by our
apprentices. There is no question that the amount of information
absorbed by the apprentice in the classroom is directly related to the
dedication and ability of the teacher to communicate instructional
material to the apprentice.
In this area funding, should be provided to with the goal to
maintain quality instructional programs and to hire qualified
instructors. Qualified teachers will pass along important trade
concepts that apprentices must learn before they become journeypersons.
To efficiently use any monies that may be granted for use by bona
fide apprentice programs, we suggest that safeguards be built into
federal grants to allow apprenticeship programs such as the one
maintained by PAMCAH-UA LOCAL 675 Training, some input into how the
monies are to be spent as a partner with the Community College system
so as to maximize integration with the plumbers and fitters apprentice
program and other like programs. Agents appointed to run the Community
Colleges should not have exclusivity to the funds so as to permit the
funds to be used for activities other than for those activities that
have a direct benefit to qualified apprentice programs.
Monies should be spent for instructional purposes for the training
of apprentices and journeypersons to maintain and upgrade their skills,
through programs that have a proven record of success. Monies should
not be spent on the support of programs who have no, or an
insignificant, graduation track record.
PAMCAH-UA LOCAL 675 Training is aware of the future needs for
skilled labor on upcoming federal PLA projects to be constructed in
Hawaii. I know that the federal government is interested in the quality
of the skilled labor in Hawaii of which training is an integral part.
The investment into qualified apprentice programs is most certainly not
a waste of funds.
______
Prepared Statement of Scott Y. Nishimoto, State of Hawaii
Representative, District 21
Good Morning Chairman and Members of the Committee: My name is
Scott Nishimoto and I serve as State Representative for the 21st
District of Hawaii. I am in strong support of the Native Hawaiian
Education Act, and thank you for this opportunity to testify on its
behalf.
Through Senator Inouye's Joint Venture Education Forum, the State
and private funding, Hawaii 3R's benefits Hawaii's public school
facilities. This innovative grant program has awarded over $2.3 million
for 72 projects--completing $5.7 million worth of projects since August
2001, reducing the approximate $640 million repair and maintenance
backlog to about $450 million.
Through the commitment of Hawaii 3R's, two schools in my district,
Kaimuki High and Jefferson Elementary, received grant monies for much
needed repairs and maintenance. On Saturday, March 29, 2003, we painted
various buildings and replaced several termite-ridden windows, thus
beautifying Kaimuki High School's campus. On Saturday, July 19, 2003,
Jefferson Elementary's playcourt was resurfaced. These projects brought
together state agencies, businesses, community leaders, parents,
teachers and students to tackle one unified goal--improving the
school's facilities for our children. The collaborative efforts shown
by community members prove that we are willing and ready to roll up our
sleeves and tackle tough challenges. I am thankful for the hard work
Hawaii 3R's has done to ensure the future prosperity and success of
Jefferson Elementary and Kaimuki High and its students.
A lot has been done, but there is still a lot to do. The impact of
the federal dollars has been felt statewide and will continue to help
the schools that need it most. The Native Hawaiian Education Act, if
passed will appropriate $1 million for renovation and maintenance of
schools with 25 percent or more Native Hawaiian students. There are 122
schools that have the potential to receive grants from Hawaii 3R's.
Thank you for your unwavering support of public schools through
Hawaii 3R's. I hope that with your help, we can continue to strive to
provide our youth with the learning environment they so deserve.
______
Prepared Statement of the Pacific Resource Partnership
Aloha, Chair Senator Inouye and members of the Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee. My name is James C. Pacopac, Legislative
Liaison, representing the Pacific Resource Partnership, a Market
Recovery Program of the Hawaii Carpenters Union and its 250 signatory
Union Contractors.
As a Labor/Management organization we feel that your assistance and
partnership is essential in building a properly trained, qualified and
expanded workforce to meet the demand for more skilled workers to
develop and maintain the privatized military housing and living
facilities in Hawaii over the next 50 years.
Our joint labor/management trust funds for apprenticeship and
journeyman training program has been in operation for over 40 years and
with the anticipated needed expansion for more than 7,500 new skilled
construction workers over the next 5 to 10 years we have already
started and developed contingencies to meet the demand of the
privatized housing contracts.
The Hawaii Carpenters Union has already optioned a site at Barbers
Point to create a free-standing, training center of our own to
supplement our certified apprenticeship programs at the community
colleges, and to increase our capacity to train more carpenters. We
presently have over 1,300 apprentices in our program. With more state-
approved instructors, we can upgrade our older members' skills in the
particular carpentry specialties and technologies, such as metal
framing which our contractors will require for the upcoming military
housing projects.
We have realized our responsibility to anticipate the job market,
and will continually do our part in a sincere effort to keep these jobs
generated by the new military housing in Hawaii.
Our record has always spoken to the commitment and investment we
have in our union members, our union contractors, and to the efforts of
keeping jobs for the local workers. We thank you for any assistance
that you can give to the men and women in construction of Hawaii, and
look forward to a bright future. Aloha.
______
Prepared Statement of Americas Promise Hawaii
Honorable Chair and Members of the Committee: I have been involved
in Hawaii 3R's since its inception. I've seen how it is able to gather
community together around a school and get a job done. I believe
community involvement in public schools is an essential element to
their improvement and to the success and well being of our children.
When kids see other people, whether they are relatives, friends or
community members, caring about them enough to come and work on a
weekend to fix their school it makes an impression. By example they
learn to care about and participate in their own community.
Not only is Hawaii 3R's a terrific community partnering exercise
but it actually shows concrete success in the number of schools it has
improved. Jobs that would not have been addressed due to the huge
backlog of repair and maintenance in the DOE have been completed under
3R's and DAGS leadership because of volunteers, donations and state and
federal subsidies. As of February 1, 2004, 59 schools have completed
repair and maintenance jobs. Work that would have cost the State more
than $5.7 million was completed by 3R's for $2.3 million.
One of the reasons for the success of this effort is the
cooperation and good working relationship between the State Department
of Accounting and General Services and H3R's. A great amount of trust
and cohesive effort exists between the two groups to make sure the
schools get repaired and improved. It is an excellent example of public
and private partnerships working well together to benefit our citizens
and in this case it involves them as well.
Since many of the State's public school's enrollment includes over
25 percent Hawaiian children use of the Native Hawaiian Education Act
funds to support the repair and maintenance of public schools is an
effective way to reach Native Hawaiian children.
Not only are their learning environment's improved but their sense
of community and opportunities for community involvement are enhanced.
Thank you for your support of this effective community/State effort
to improve Hawaii's public schools for all children.
______
Prepared Statement of the Joint Venture Education Forum
As cochair of the Joint Venture Education Forum, I would like to
take this opportunity to provide you with information about a very
worthy enterprise being undertaken on behalf of the public schools here
in Hawaii. Hawaii 3R's is a winning combination of State and Federal
funds, community organizations, businesses, local contractors and the
``sweat equity'' of thousands of volunteers who give our schools new
coats of paint, new landscaping, and lots of minor repairs to
facilities that would otherwise be ignored in deference to ``higher''
priorities.
The Joint Venture Education Forum (JVEF) has been a willing and
eager supporter of this effort. We contributed $100K in fiscal year
2001, $600K in fiscal year 2002 and $1M for fiscal year 2003 and 2004.
Through the JVEF, we have also encouraged our 140+ military-school
partnerships to sponsor H3R's projects for their schools. In the most
spectacular example, nearly 200 volunteers (most from the military
community) showed up to spruce up Pearl Harbor Kai Elementary School on
August 10, 2002.
The JVEF enthusiastically backs H3R's because it has a proven track
record and gets our military involved with the local community.
Moreover, H3R's gives everyone a sense of pride in the schools that our
children attend. It is clearly ``the right thing to do.''
Thank you for this opportunity to present this testimony to you.
______
Prepared Statement of the Drywall Tapers and Finishers Local 1944, AFL-
CIO
I would like to thank Senator Inouye, Chairman, and the U.S. Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and
Education for giving me this opportunity to offer our insight as to
what organized labor in Hawaii is doing to meet the upcoming demand for
qualified trades people for the privatization of military family
housing.
Mr. Chairman, my name if Joseph Bazemore and I am the Business
Representative for the Drywall Tapers and Finishers Local Union 1944,
AFL-CIO. I have been acting in this capacity for well over twenty years
and feel that I am able to speak candidly and with a wealth of
knowledge regarding our labor situation.
It is our belief that we are well prepared for the upcoming labor
demand which is being brought on by the privatization of military
family housing. In anticipation of this demand, we have been in close
contact with our unionized contractors who have already performed
military family housing projects in the State of Hawaii. We have asked
them to provide their input into anticipated labor demands and we have
also participated in Congressman Abercrombie's recent labor summit.
Accordingly and with knowledge of past years fresh in our minds, we
have begun an aggressive campaign to not only bring new apprentices
into our training programs, but also to bring back Journeyworkers who
have previously left the industry due to slow economic times.
To deal with this influx of new apprentices as well as the
journeyperson retraining that will be required of all workers who have
previously left the program, our training funds have already
appropriated additional moneys for this endeavor. Mr. Chairman, we
greatly appreciate being given this opportunity to provide input as
well as the potential to have some of our training dollars be stretched
even further by the possibility of federal matching funds.
If such federal funding does come to fruition, it is our hope that
such dollars will be utilized to enhance current qualified training
programs. It is our belief that qualified training programs who have a
proven track record, could be granted matching funds for their efforts
at increasing their pool of qualified working men and women. We have
already shown our commitment to this effort by ramping up our training
programs and we would like to respectfully note that we have done so
with no guarantee of actually gaining a great majority of this
anticipated work.
Additionally, such matching funds should be solely earmarked for
``instructional costs'', such as instructor wages and materials needed
for training. These moneys should not go to any organization for the
purpose of acquiring or improving training facilities. We believe that
the current infrastructure of qualified training programs should be
utilized to its fullest and that all of the earmarked grants should go
to where its use will be maximized.
Thank you very much for giving us this opportunity to testify on
this extremely important subject.
______
Prepared Statement of the Carpet Linoleum and Soft Tile Local 1926,
AFL-CIO
Mahalo Senator Inouye, Chairman, and the U.S. Senate Appropriations
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education for
giving me this opportunity to testify in behalf of the working men and
women of the state of Hawaii, as we deal for the upcoming privatization
of military family housing.
Senator Inouye, my name if Malcolm Ahlo and I am the Business
Representative for the Carpet Linoleum and Soft Tile Local Union 1926,
AFL-CIO. I have been acting in this capacity for well over twenty-five
years and feel that I am able to give you an accurate assessment
regarding the anticipated labor demand due the privatization of
military family housing.
In anticipation of this demand, we have begun to aggressively
recruit new members into our training program. Our relationship with
the community college has spanned decades and we are proud of the
hundreds of Journeyworkers that our program has graduated over the
years. As you are aware, our training program is strictly regulated by
the State of Hawaii and our Apprenticeship and Training Program has a
proven track record of success.
Additionally and to deal with this influx of new apprentices,
journeyperson retraining will be required of all workers who have
previously left the program. Our training funds have already
appropriated additional moneys for this endeavor. Mr. Chairman, we
greatly appreciate being given this opportunity to provide input on
this exciting new program, as it is our hope to have some of our
training dollars be stretched even further by the possibility of
federal matching funds.
If such federal funding does come to fruition, it is our hope that
such dollars will be utilized to enhance current qualified training
programs. It is our belief that qualified training programs who have a
proven track record, could be granted matching funds for their efforts
at increasing their pool of qualified working men and women. We have
already shown our commitment to this effort by ramping up our training
programs and we would like to respectfully note that we have done so
with no guarantee of actually gaining a great majority of this
anticipated work.
Additionally, such matching funds should be solely earmarked for
``instructional costs,'' such as instructor wages and materials needed
for training. These moneys should not go to any organization for the
purpose of acquiring or improving training facilities. We believe that
the current infrastructure of qualified training programs should be
utilized to its fullest and that all of the earmarked grants should go
to where its use will be maximized.
Once again, Mr. Chairman, Mahalo for giving us this opportunity to
testify on this extremely important subject.
______
Prepared Statement of CRTC, Inc.
I am a retired general foreman from Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and
current President and Training Director of CRTC, Inc. a vocational
specialty school dedicated in the training of crane operators and
riggers in the field of maritime and construction industry.
Presently focusing on skill building and formal training of new
workers to meet current federal regulations, state laws, and OSHA/ANSI/
AMSE standards. To support the up coming events in both industries and
lost of experience through retirement.
It is well known that approx. 50 percent of the weight handling and
lifting maritime industry will be up for retirement by 2005. Also, the
shift in work to the private sector of all non-nuclear work that
require a highly specialize skill that need the training we provide. As
of may 2004 navy crane center will not do any more hands on training.
All training will have to be from outside sources, which we at CRTC are
qualified and approved for.
The construction industry should be in the same situation when it
comes to retirement lost of skills. Also, the state requires the crane
operators to have a certificate to operate. They must be trained and
certified through the NCCCO program that we provide.
This new certificate the operators is facing today is like the CDL
of old. Which means operators, many of them, still need to do it. Some
are using the two-year temporary certificate others are just playing
the odds till they get caught then they come to class. Some just feel
they won't pass and operate anyway and just don't care.
Cost of the training has always been an issue with the industry
even when we were with Honolulu Community College as a non-credit
course. Turning private as a vocational specialized school our
obligations impact the cost of the training and tuition. The law for
the crane operator's effects everyone like the CDL but no funds for the
student tuition has ever been allocated for crane training and
certification.
Riggers will be effective soon with the new 2003 national standards
from ANSI/AMSE showing qualifications defined. OSHA is reviewing it
with the possibility of a new regulation out by 2005. We at CRTC
already have the approved methods form the national standards and
instruction is on going with a class graduating by the end of March.
Our next class starts in April 18 but it's already full because of the
size of our facility.
Assistance in tuition for the students would help people that want
to take the course but can't afford it mostly people in programs that
need help. Also, if we can get some support for facility and equipment,
cost of the program can be reduced.
The fact that the UH system does not want to accept the liability
in doing this type of training is what kicked us out and moved us to
Campbell Industrial Park. We are the only non-union training and
certification company in Hawaii that offer training for current
operators and entry-level students that want to become crane operators
and riggers for construction and maritime/DOD navsea work. You need
hands on training to do the type of work we do. We work on war ships
that go into battle and everything around you while rigging or lifting
equipment in or out is crucial to the ship and cannot be damaged.
Repairs must be done effectively and error free ``0'' tolerance.
As for crane operation, all shipyards are gauged by their
performance in crane operations. The level of training necessary to
accomplish this is based on classroom and hands-on lessons and skill
building. Remember in Hawaii, the only place which makes real crane
operator from scratch is the Local 3 operator union and Pearl Harbor
Naval Shipyard. All of our trainers are all certified instructors by
the Navy and nationally accredited by national commission of crane
operators. Also our lead instructor is currently the examiner of all
DOD crane license for Pearl Harbor and all DOD organizations in Hawaii
and Guam.
The training is costly. I see more and more operators come from the
mainland, where there are a lot schools like CRTC, and take the jobs
away from the local people. This should not be happening. The last
three years before I retired from the shipyard we had more riggers and
crane operators working in Pearl from the mainland then pearl workers
because no one on the island has any qualifications. Only just
unemployment and welfare experience. Wait, I forgot there was McDonalds
and K-mart experience too, with a college degree in hand but no real
skill. I was embarrassed about my shipyard, and mad with the state and
the military talking about the quality of the gene pool and college
education. I hope you remember that couple of years ago it was all over
the news. This is an utmost opportunity where I hope you can make some
real changes and help the people of Hawaii this time.
Please give our people some support especially, the women, so they
to can get this male-type job with the high pay to raise their family.
I have three in my current class doing fine and will be certified soon
they are all single parents on payment plans with us that I felt needed
the chance and so accommodated room for them to learn. I wish I could
help more, and with your support, I know I can.
Thank you.
______
Prepared Statement of Iron Workers Local 625 and Iron Workers Shopmen
Local 803
Our union Locals are glad to see that others have joined our
ongoing concern for the training of skilled construction workers in
Hawaii. We have an established training facility at Waipio, Ohau, and
have graduated Apprentices and brought new technology to Journeyman
over years of consistent performance. Given the upcoming privatized
military housing and other Federal construction in Hawaii, Federal
Apprenticeship and Training funds would be a welcome supplement to our
efforts.
These funds would be applied wisely. One general criticism of
government training programs has been where training was funded, there
was no resulting employment. The other is where, in all sincerity,
government provides funds to programs that say what they intend to do,
but lack the resources and experience to finish the job.
To apply every Apprenticeship and Training dollar possible to
Hawaii residents, any program seeking funds should show its record of
performance, and adequate reserves to follow its commitment through to
completion.
As for seeing that Federal training dollars lead to actual
employment, Project Labor Agreements (``PLA''s) are a way to produce
measurable results. Training is connected to jobs. Otherwise, trainees
may not be in the industry, or not using the skills they were trained
for. Our investment can produce direct results with a PLA.
If the large privatized military housing consortiums would enter
into agreements, Apprenticeship and Training would be greatly enhanced.
Hawaii's people can come away with solid skills when the training and
the job site are coordinated. U.S. Senators can support the process by
bringing the parties together.
Senatorial monitoring would encourage serious discussions, getting
beyond cordial formalities. Where Congressional approval of privatized
military housing contracts is required, agreements with Hawaii's
leading construction Apprenticeship and Training organizations should
be a major consideration. We ask for this help.
Ironworkers Local 625 and 803, along with other Construction Trades
Unions, would also welcome the Federal Apprenticeship and Training
Funds especially if they were granted to the University of Hawaii
Community College Division and ear-marked specially for Apprenticeship
and Journeyman retraining programs.
Thank you for this opportunity to submit testimony to this
subcommittee. Iron Workers Locals 625 and 803 are prepared to partner
in a program that you see fit to initiate, putting forward our training
facility, matching funds, outreach to communities, and depth of
experience. We suggest that these be required of any participating
organization, and we ask your support for Project Labor Agreement so
that the productivity of Federal funding is measurable, rather
unknowable.
______
Prepared Statement of the John A. Burns School of Medicine, University
of Hawaii
My name is Bruce Anderson. I am the Environmental Health Program
Director at the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of
Hawaii. Prior to this, I had the privilege of serving as the Director
of the State of Hawaii Department of Health for four years and, before
that, as Deputy Director for Environmental Health for twelve years. The
Department of Health is one of the State's largest agencies providing
public health services to residents statewide with over 3,000 employees
and a budget of approximately $600 million.
On February 18, 2004, you heard U.H. President Evan Dobelle, Dr.
Carl Vogel and others testify to the importance of expanding the Cancer
Research Center of Hawaii to identify the causes of various cancers and
finding effective cures through clinical trials. I would like to take
this opportunity to expand on their testimony and describe the critical
role the Cancer Research Center has played in addressing emergent
community concerns associated with environmental health hazards in
Hawaii. These concerns have ranged from exposure to pesticides and
other potentially toxic substances in water to cancers (e.g., leukemia
and breast cancer) associated with non-ionizing radiation from
broadcasting towers. Information and data collected by the Cancer
Research Center has also been very useful in making decisions on how
limited prevention funds should be spent to reduce the risk of cancer
in Hawaii.
An example may best illustrate the way the Cancer Research Center
has helped to address community concerns. In the 1980's, traces of a
several pesticides used by the pineapple industry were found in public
drinking water supplies in Central Oahu. These included DBCP, EDB, and
TCP, which are all considered to be ``probable'' human carcinogens by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Although the wells were
closed immediately and treatment systems installed, residents who drank
the water have been concerned for years that they may be at increased
risk of cancer and other health conditions. After over twenty years,
these concerns recently surfaced in the form of a class action lawsuit
against landowners, pesticide manufacturers and others.
To address the concern that residents potentially exposed may be
experiencing an unusually high rates of various forms cancers, I
contacted Dr. Laurence Kolonel at the Cancer Research Center and asked
for help and advice. We decided that the best way to address the
concern was to determine whether cancer rates were higher in this area
than in other areas by using data in the Hawaii Tumor Registry, which
is maintained by the Cancer Research Center. After compiling the data
by area and adjusting for age and other factors that normally affect
cancer rates, Dr. Kolonel found that the cancer rates in potentially
exposed communities were in fact lower than other parts of the State.
This information was very reassuring to residents in the area, albeit
not what the plaintiff's attorneys wanted to hear. As these pesticides
have been found in hundreds of water wells in California and other
states, our findings had far reaching implications.
In addition to addressing community concerns, I found the
information from the Cancer Research Center was critical to making
well-informed decisions on allocating limited cancer prevention funds
when I was Director. Data from the Cancer Research Center has shown
that certain groups in Hawaii are at increased risk and identied risky
behaviors (e.g., teenage smoking). Some risks are higher in Hawaii than
in other parts of the world because of our location (e.g., skin cancer
from exposure to ultraviolet radiation). Further, certain ethnic groups
(e.g., Hawaiians) have been found to be at increased risk to various
cancers. These findings are based on research at the Cancer Research
Center and are critical in targeting prevention funds to be most
effective in preventing cancer.
In summary, there are many reasons why the Cancer Research Center
of Hawaii needs to be expanded other than to conduct research on the
causes of cancer and to find effective cures. Data and support from the
Cancer Research Center has and will continue to be vital and
increasingly important in addressing community health concerns and in
developing effective prevention programs and in making decisions with
regard to funding these programs.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify to your committee.
______
Prepared Statement of the Universitiy of Hawai'i at Manoa
Senator Inouye, Senator Akaka, distinguished members and staff of
the Senate Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education,
and Related Agencies.
My name is Peter Englert. I am the Chancellor of the University of
Hawai'i at Manoa. Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony
for federal support of our Cancer Research Center.
The University of Hawai'i at Manoa welcomes and supports a review
of our Cancer Center program and National Cancer Institute (NCI)
funding proposal by a distinguished panel appointed by the NCI
Director. We believe that an independent review of the case for federal
funding developed by UH Cancer Center Director Carl Vogel and his world
class team of cancer researchers, will find compelling evidence and
justification for institutional support of the Center by the federal
government. Furthermore, we suggest that a firm date for completion of
the panel's work and the subsequent submittal of recommendations by the
NCI Director to the Congress be established consonant with the federal
2005 budget approval timeframe.
______
Letter From Joseph Kane, Jr.
February 25, 2004.
Dear Senator Inouye: Mahalo Senator Inouye for taking time off your
busy schedule to hear my testimony. My letter is in regards to a
training facility I am attending at Campbell Industrial Park, Crane and
Rigging and Training Consulting, Inc.
My name is Joseph Kane Jr. I am a 29 year old, single father of 3
children. My son Ka'ainui is 9 years old, and my twin daughters Mahi'e
and Hilina'i are both 6 years of age. Presently I am employed by
Wedding Emporium, a struggling company trying to survive in the
Japanese wedding industry. I make $8.50 per hour. I am blessed to
receive rental assistance from the City and County of Honolulu, Section
8 program. This allows me to put a roof over my children's head and
ease some of my financial responsibilities. My children and I are
barely surviving if not for our faith in God!
While watching the morning news one day, I was blessed to catch a
segment of this training facility, CRTC, Inc. This organization offered
an individual, with no experience to start at an entry level position
and work his or her way up to certification status, within a year's
time. Praying on this information I called the company to inquire about
this opportunity. At this time I found out the tuition costs were
between $4 thousand to $9 thousand per student, depending on what
direction and certification one wanted to achieve. To train to be a
certified rigger would take a student 4 months at a cost of $4
thousand. To become a certified crane operator will take 10 months of
training at a minimal cost of $9 thousand.
It was at this time, I asked the CRTC, Inc. if there was a payment
plan available that I may qualify for, but financial assistance was not
available for me due to the costs of running the training program. I
thank the Lord that CRTC, Inc. offered me a type of tuition assistance,
by assisting the company with certain projects and obligations. In my
class I am the only student that did not pay the full tuition.
Presently I am in my second month of training to become a certified
shipboard rigger and I love my class. We cover math, angles, weight,
and above all safety. It is this stress on safety that makes the
difference between a rigger and a certified rigger. The riggers that
are currently in the construction and maritime industry receive on the
job training and are not necessarily certified. When working in a
hazardous environment it is crucial to be trained properly so as not to
kill yourself and the people around you! In Hawai'i certification can
only be obtained through CRTC, Inc. or on the job training from the
Local 3 union, which it is easier to win the lotto than get into their
apprentice program!
Senator Inouye is with this intent of safety for myself and others
that I ask you humbly to assist CRTC, Inc. with avenues of financial
assistance, so that they may continue to produce a certified workforce
for Hawai' i's future.
Mayo with much gratitude,
Joseph Kane, Jr.
______
Prepared Statement of Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 293
Members of the Subcommittee: The Hawaii construction industry
started its' decline in 1991. The industry has had sporadic moments
when it got busy but nothing long-term and large enough to sustain
employment. With the prospect of several Federal Funded projects and a
few private ventures on Oahu the construction industry can feel
optimistic for the first time in approximately 14 years. Over this time
we have lost members (citizens of Hawaii) to the mainland because there
has been no work for them. Even with this downturn in the construction
market Local 293 has maintained and will continue to maintain a very
successful and progressive Apprenticeship, Journey worker, and
Instructor Training programs. Local 293 is committed to these programs
as they provided for the State of Hawaii the most qualified and
productive Sheet Metal Workers. When graduated from our Apprenticeship
program our members are qualified to work anywhere in the United
States. The proven success of our program shows when we have
apprentices compete in work and classroom related contests on a
national basis. Our continued qualification into the finals of this
competition and the amount of first place and top three finishers is
more than almost any other Sheet Metal Local in the Country. The only
other Sheet Metal training program in Hawaii has produced zero
graduates in the last four years and may have never produced any
graduates from their program.
Our Training program has an excellent working relationship with the
Community College System. This Partnership we envoy has allowed us to
produce the highly skilled workers we have. If monies are made
available for training and advanced training of the work force it
should be used to enhance existing proven and successful programs. Not
for start up programs because when they finally get up and running and
are possibly able to produce a graduate the need for a large number of
new workers will be over. The increased workforce required in the State
of Hawaii is largely for the next five years. After this time the
amount of work will diminish. By funding the current successful
programs the Unions have the ability to look at man power needs now and
in the future and can control things so that there is not an excess of
workers causing a strain on the States economy, as for Unemployment,
Welfare, Etc.
The support of members of this committee for Project Labor
Agreements (PLA) is greatly appreciated. It is obvious that there is an
understanding of the value of such an agreement. PLA's have a proven
track record of producing quality projects, completed on time and
within budget. A Project Labor Agreement will not hinder any
contractors ability to perform the work required, and in fact has
measures included to eliminate work related issues. This type of
agreement will not only stabilize the projects in items related to
cost, but will maintain a respectable standard of living for Hawaii's
citizens and not produce a race to the bottom for wages which
undermines the ability of workers to provide a living for themselves
and their families.
All of our training programs stress the need for and provide
education for drug free and safe work and workers. We believe in the
need for this and do not have to invent new programs to provide drug
free and safe work.
These items mentioned above and many others are being dealt with
currently, by this and all of the other Labor Unions in Hawaii, as we
all understand the need to have people (citizens of Hawaii) ready to go
as the work materializes. We are moving forward on our own, even with
no real solid commitment, that Hawaii people and contractors will be
utilized. Statements that it is the developers intent to use Hawaii
firms and people does not guarantee it. We need and will be prepared to
provide qualified workers for the projected future demands.
I thank you for your consideration on these matters and for your
support of the Hawaii Construction Industry.
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
CONCLUSION OF HEARING
Senator Inouye. With that, thanks to all of you. We're
going to go back, and we have received our marching orders, and
the least we can do is try to deliver. We're pretty good in
delivering.
Thank you all very much for being here. That concludes our
hearing.
[Whereupon, at 12:20 p.m., Wednesday, February 18, 2004,
the hearing was concluded, and the subcommittee was recessed,
to reconvene subject to the call of the Chair.]