STAND. COM. REP. NO.  555

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 451
                                     H.D. 1




Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred H.B.
No. 451 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE METROPOLITAN PLANNING
     ORGANIZATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to extend the term of the
Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Policy Committee
Chairperson.

     Your Committee finds that the current term (one year) for
the chairperson is too short of a time for continuity in
effectively carrying out assigned responsibilities.  Metropolitan
Planning Organizations in other states utilize longer terms for
their chairpersons, and they have achieved great success.

     This bill proposes to change the frequency of the election
for the MPO Policy Committee Chairperson from annually to every
two years.

     Testimony in support of this bill was received from the
current Chair of the Oahu Metropolitan Planning Organization
Policy Committee.  The Executive Director of the Oahu
Metropolitan Planning Organization submitted comments.

     Your Committee has amended this bill by including amendments
to section 279E-7, Hawaii Revised Statutes, which pertains to the
functions of the Oahu Metropolitan Planning Organization and by
changing the effective date to 2001.

 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 555
                                 Page 2

 
     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Transportation that is attached to this report, your
Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No.
451, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second
Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 451, H.D. 1, and
be referred to the Committee on Finance.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Transportation,



                                   ______________________________
                                   KENNETH T. HIRAKI, Chair