Bill Text: HI HR199 | 2024 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Urging The Department Of Education To Contract With A Qualified Nonprofit Organization To Establish An Aquatic Safety Education Program For Elementary School Students.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 14-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-03-14 - Referred to EDN, referral sheet 22 [HR199 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2024-HR199-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	199
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

Urging the Department of Education to contract with a qualified nonprofit organization to establish an aquatic safety education program For elementary school students.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, aquatic injuries and deaths by drowning in the State are tragic but preventable, especially among children; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Department of Health has found that drowning was the leading cause of injury-related mortality for Hawaii's children between 2014 and 2018, accounting for more deaths of children than motor vehicle and pedestrian accidents combined; and

 

     WHEREAS, although visitors made up a slight majority of the total fatal drownings that occurred in the State between 2014 and 2018, an alarmingly large proportion of child drownings--ninety-six percent--were among resident children; and

 

     WHEREAS, during the same period, there was an annual average of seventy non-fatal child drowning incidents attended by emergency medical services; and

 

     WHEREAS, although individuals who experience non-fatal drowning incidents escape with their lives, some are left with severe brain damage and may face long-term disabilities, including memory problems, learning disabilities, or permanent losses of basic functions, a disorder often referred to as a persistent vegetative state; and

 

     WHEREAS, given the potential for death or severe long-term injuries, the State should prioritize the prevention of fatal and non-fatal drownings; and

 

     WHEREAS, many drowning deaths could be prevented through deliberate government action; and

 

     WHEREAS, the International Life Saving Federation's Position Statement for Swimming and Safety Education recommends that everyone have access to training in water safety, personal survival, and water rescue; and

 

     WHEREAS, ideally, this training should commence at a young age and be available regardless of ability and background; and

 

     WHEREAS, in addition, the International Life Saving Federation recommends that knowledge and understanding of water environments and their associated hazards should be taught to everyone at the earliest possible age; and

 

     WHEREAS, despite these recommendations, many of Hawaii's youth do not have the opportunity to receive aquatic safety instruction with less than ten percent of public and public charter elementary schools integrating aquatic safety education into their physical education curriculums; and

 

     WHEREAS, outside of schools, municipal aquatic safety programs lack the resources to meet public demand, and obtaining private lessons is often cost-prohibitive for many local families, leaving many children inadequately prepared for water-related emergencies; and

 

     WHEREAS, an assessment of Hawaii students conducted by the Hawaii Aquatics Academy during the 2018-2019 school year found that only thirty-one percent of participating students could swim for twenty-five yards, only twelve percent could float for thirty seconds, and only thirteen percent could tread water for sixty seconds; and

 

     WHEREAS, all children should be provided equal access to standards-based aquatic safety education programs, and to achieve this, aquatic safety education should be integrated into the health and physical education curriculums of public schools; and

 

     WHEREAS, providing proper training in water safety, personal survival, and water rescue will help to ensure that the State's youth, especially those from low- and moderate-income communities, know how to avoid and recover from hazardous aquatic situations; and

 

     WHEREAS, proper training in water safety, personal survival, and water rescue would also be consistent with the Department of Health's Hawaii Injury Prevention Plan 2018-2023, which aims to decrease the incidence of drownings in the State; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, that the Department of Education is urged to contract with a qualified nonprofit organization to establish an aquatic safety education program for elementary school students; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Superintendent and Chairperson of the Board of Education.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

Report Title:

DOE; Swimming; Aquatic Safety Education Program; Elementary School Students