Comprising 10 bills and two resolutions, the measures reflect the bipartisan efforts of six interim House working groups that collaborated with subject experts and various agencies and engaged in extensive discussions relating to the Lahaina wildfire.
The groups include Wildfire Prevention, Shelter, Schools, Jobs and Business, Environmental Remediation, and Food, Water, and Other Supplies. Each group was assigned to produce a preliminary report by Nov. 1, 2023 and deliver a final report by Dec. 15, 2023.
“I think that’s a huge consideration that needs to be in place before we open, so everybody knows what to do. I think that’s one of the problems the one road in and one road out for our schools is systemic in the poor planning decisions which amplified the tragedy of the fires,” said Elizabeth Bowen, a teacher at Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena Intermediate School.
House Interim Schools Working Group Co-Chairs Justin H. Woodson and Jenna Takenouchi and members of the House Interim Schools Working Group in coordination with the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education will organize a public meeting on Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023, to discuss the status of education for Maui students impacted by the Lahaina wildfire.