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HR 185

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO CONVENE A WORKING GROUP TO ADDRESS THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF AUDITOR'S REPORT NO. 26-08 REGARDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF HAWAII'S FARM-TO-SCHOOL AND LOCAL FOOD PROCUREMENT INITIATIVES.

2026 Regular Session Introduced by Terez Amato and 11 co-sponsors

Hawaii requests Education Department form working group to address farm-to-school audit findings and improve local food procurement in schools.

The committee on EDN recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 6 Ayes: Representative(s) Woodson, La Chica, Amato, Evslin, Kapela, Olds; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 4 Excused: Representative(s) Garrett, Kila, Muraoka, Souza.
#departmentofeducation #farm-to-school #localfoodprocurement #workinggroup
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Bill Summary · HR 185

Legislative bill overview

HR 185 requests that Hawaii's Department of Education establish a working group to examine findings and recommendations from Auditor's Report No. 26-08, which evaluated the state's farm-to-school and local food procurement programs. The bill directs the DOE to assess implementation gaps and develop an action plan based on the audit's identified issues.

Why is this important

Farm-to-school programs connect local agricultural producers with school cafeterias, supporting both student nutrition and Hawaii's farming economy. An audit finding significant enough to warrant legislative attention suggests implementation problems that may be preventing the program from achieving its intended benefits for students, farmers, or food security.

Potential points of contention

  • Scope and authority: The bill requests rather than mandates action, leaving implementation discretion with DOE; some may view this as insufficiently binding
  • Resource allocation: Establishing a new working group requires staff time and potentially funding, raising questions about cost-effectiveness versus direct program improvements
  • Audit findings not detailed: The bill references findings without publicly summarizing them, making it unclear whether the response mechanism is proportional to identified problems

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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