RELATING TO CLIMATE EDUCATION.

Budget Education

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor: PERRUSO, AMATO, GRANDINETTI, IWAMOTO, MARTEN, POEPOE, SOUZA
Last action: 2025-12-08
Official status: Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The exact amount of funding and start date are not specified in the provided official material.

Climate Education Program

This bill requires the Department of Education to establish a climate literacy certificate program that teaches high school students about climate change through academic coursework and hands-on learning.

What This Bill Does

Requires the Department of Education to create a new program called the Climate Literacy Certificate Program.
The program will teach high school students about climate change using approved courses and experiential learning projects.
Students must complete at least two approved courses and an experiential learning project to earn a certificate.
The department needs to report on the program's progress to the board and legislature.

Who It Names or Affects

High school students who want to learn more about climate change.
Teachers and schools that will offer new classes and projects for the program.
The Department of Education, which must create and manage the program.

Terms To Know

Climate Literacy Certificate Program: A special education program where students learn about climate change through courses and hands-on activities.
Experiential Learning Project: A project that gives students real-world experience to understand climate change better.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify the exact amount of funding for the program.
It is unclear when exactly the program will start and who will teach the courses.

Bill History

2025-12-08 D
Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.
2025-01-21 H
Referred to EDN, FIN, referral sheet 1
2025-01-16 H
Introduced and Pass First Reading.
2025-01-13 H
Prefiled.

Official Summary Text

RELATING TO CLIMATE EDUCATION.
Education; Climate Change; Climate Literacy Certificate Program; Appropriation ($)
Requires the Department of Education to establish a climate literacy certificate program to provide students with an advanced understanding of climate change through academic coursework and hands-on learning.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HB99

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

99

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to climate education
.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

����
SECTION 1.
�
The legislature finds that in response to the
growing threat of climate change, the State has set standards and launched
initiatives to expand reliance on sustainable and efficient energy, including
setting a statewide benchmark of generating one hundred per cent of the State's
electricity through renewable resources by 2045 and establishing a goal for
statewide greenhouse gas emissions to be at least fifty per cent below 2005
levels by 2030.

����
The legislature further finds that

climate change education is necessary to ensure that the next generation are
climate leaders.
�
In 2024, Colorado
enacted a law to award a seal of climate literacy diploma endorsement to
students who complete certain courses and an experiential learning project.

����
The
purpose of this Act is to require the department of education to establish a
climate literacy certificate program to provide students with an advanced
understanding of climate change through academic coursework and hands-on
learning.

����
SECTION 2.
�
Chapter 302A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as
follows:

����
"
�302A-
�
Climate
literacy certificate program.
�
(a)
�
The
department shall establish a climate literacy certificate program to prepare
high school students in addressing the economic and social impacts of climate
change.

����
(b)
�

The department shall:

����
(1)
�
Establish
program requirements and approved courses that include the completion of:

���������
(A)
�
At
least two approved courses with climate literacy standards; and

���������
(B)
�
An
experiential learning project;

����
(2)
�
Issue a
certificate of completion to every student upon satisfactory completion of the
program; and

����
(3)
�
Submit to the
board and the legislature a report on the approved courses and data on the
issuance of program certificates.

����
(c)
�
The department may adopt rules pursuant to
chapter 91 for the purposes of this section.
"

����
SECTION
3.
�
There is appropriated out of the
general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of
$ or so much
thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2025-2026 and the same sum or so
much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2026-2027 for the
establishment of the climate literacy certificate program.

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The sums

appropriated shall be expended by the
department of education for the purposes of this Act.

����
SECTION
4.
�
New statutory material is
underscored.

����
SECTION 5.
�
This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2025.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

Education;
Climate Change; Climate Literacy Certificate Program; Appropriation

Description:

Requires
the Department of Education to establish a climate literacy certificate program
to provide students with an advanced understanding of climate change through
academic coursework and hands-on learning.

The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.