REPORT TITLE:
Fees


DESCRIPTION:
Amends various fees charged by state agencies for governmental
services.  Allows towing companies to collect $15 for clean-up if
there is an agreement with the county. (SB425 HD1)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        425
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           S.D. 3
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO FEES.


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

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that as the State
 
 2 struggles with a prolonged fiscal crisis never before experienced
 
 3 in its history, government must utilize all the resources at its
 
 4 disposal to ensure that governmental services continue to be
 
 5 provided.  To this end, the legislature believes that fees
 
 6 charged by state agencies must be closely scrutinized to
 
 7 ascertain whether the fee imposed accurately reflects the cost of
 
 8 providing the services.  The proper aligning of fees charged by
 
 9 state agencies with moneys expended to provide them will have the
 
10 resultant benefit of freeing up state resources for other areas
 
11 in need of revenue.  In addition, the legislature finds that
 
12 towing companies should be able to collect fees for the cost of
 
13 clean-up.
 
14      The purpose of this Act is to increase fees charged by state
 
15 agencies to more accurately reflect the cost of providing
 
16 governmental services, and to allow towing companies to collect
 
17 fees for the cost of clean-up.
 

 
 
 
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 1      SECTION 2.  Section 302A-408, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended to read as follows:
 
 3      "[[]§302A-408[]]  After-school and weekend programs.  The
 
 4 department and the appropriate county agencies may establish and
 
 5 regulate programs of after-school and weekend community-school
 
 6 activities for children, including but not limited to day-care
 
 7 programs, arts and crafts, hula, ukulele, and other educational
 
 8 or recreational projects, wherever feasible, at public school and
 
 9 public park facilities.  In addition to any appropriation of
 
10 public funds, [reasonable] fees [established by the agencies
 
11 operating the programs may be collected from children enrolled,
 
12 in the furtherance of particular programs.] of $           per
 
13 child shall be charged for each child enrolled; provided that the
 
14 department by rule adopted under chapter 91 may reduce the fee
 
15 due to a child's family's economic circumstances or for more than
 
16 one child per family enrolled in the program.  The appropriate
 
17 agencies may obtain from time to time the services of persons in
 
18 a voluntary or unpaid capacity, exempt from chapters 76 and 77,
 
19 as may be necessary for carrying out the purposes of this
 
20 section, and may regulate their duties, powers, and
 
21 responsibilities when not otherwise provided by law.  Any person
 
22 whose services have been so accepted, while engaged in the
 
23 performance of duty under this section, shall be deemed a state
 

 
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 1 employee or an employee of a political subdivision, as the case
 
 2 may be, in determining the liability of the State or the
 
 3 political subdivision for the negligent acts of these persons."
 
 4      SECTION 3.  Section 302A-435, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 5 amended to read as follows:
 
 6      "[[]§302A-435[]]  Financing adult and community education
 
 7 program.  The financial support for this program shall be [in
 
 8 part] one-half from fees collected from students enrolled[,] and
 
 9 [in part] one-half from public funds appropriated for this
 
10 purpose.  Fees shall be set in accordance with the
 
11 recommendations of the advisory council, and may be collected
 
12 from students regularly enrolled; provided that:
 
13      (1)  Adults registered with the department of labor and
 
14           industrial relations and unemployed shall be granted
 
15           free enrollment in such courses as will tend to assist
 
16           these persons in securing employment;
 
17      (2)  Adults certified by the department of human services as
 
18           indigent may be enrolled on a nonfee basis in classes
 
19           that will tend to assist these persons in becoming
 
20           self-sustaining;
 
21      (3)  Discharged veterans who are entitled to federal
 
22           educational assistance shall be enrolled upon
 
23           authorization of the Department of Veterans Affairs and
 
24           fees shall be charged against federal funds in
 
25           accordance with Department of Veterans Affairs contract
 
26           regulations; and
 
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 1      (4)  Administrative and supervisory costs, costs of
 
 2           instruction, and all other necessary expenses not
 
 3           covered by fees and other authorized charges shall be
 
 4           paid for out of funds appropriated for this purpose."
 
 5      SECTION 4.  Section 291C-165.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 6 amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
 
 7      "(b)  The towing company shall determine the name of the
 
 8 lien holder and the registered owner of the vehicle from the
 
 9 department of transportation or the county department of finance.
 
10 The lien holder and the registered owner shall be notified by the
 
11 towing company in writing at the address on record with the
 
12 department of transportation or with the county department of
 
13 finance by registered or certified mail of the location of the
 
14 vehicle, together with a description of the vehicle, within a
 
15 reasonable period not to exceed twenty days following the tow.
 
16 The notice shall state:
 
17      (1)  The maximum towing charges and fees allowed by law;
 
18      (2)  The telephone number of the county finance department
 
19           that arranged for or authorized the tow; and
 
20      (3)  That if the vehicle is not recovered within thirty days
 
21           after the mailing of the notice, the vehicle shall be
 
22           deemed abandoned and will be sold or disposed of as
 
23           junk.
 

 
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 1 When the vehicle is recovered after the tow by the registered
 
 2 owner or lien holder, the party recovering the vehicle shall pay
 
 3 the tow and storage charges which shall not exceed the charges as
 
 4 provided by section 290-11(b) or the rates agreed upon with the
 
 5 respective counties, whichever is lower, except that tow
 
 6 operators may charge additional reasonable amounts for
 
 7 [excavating] recovering vehicles from off-road locations[;] and
 
 8 up to $15 for road clean-up if, pursuant to an agreement with the
 
 9 respective counties, the towing company is required to clean and
 
10 clear the roadway and, in cases of spills or leaks, provide,
 
11 apply, and remove absorbent material and the services are
 
12 actually performed; provided that if the notice required by this
 
13 section was not sent within twenty days after the tow, neither
 
14 the registered owner nor the lien holder shall be required to pay
 
15 the tow and storage charges.  No notice shall be sent to a legal
 
16 or registered owner or any person with any unrecorded interest in
 
17 the vehicle whose name or address cannot be determined.  A person
 
18 who has been charged in excess of the charges permitted under
 
19 this section may sue for damages sustained, and, if the judgment
 
20 is for the plaintiff, the court shall award the plaintiff a sum
 
21 not to exceed the amount of these damages and reasonable
 

 
 
 
 
 
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 1 attorney's fees together with the cost of the suit.  No charges
 
 2 other than those explicitly authorized by this section may be
 
 3 assessed by the tow operator upon the owner of the towed vehicle
 
 4 relating to a tow performed pursuant to this section.  The
 
 5 provisions of this section shall apply to all tows specified in
 
 6 subsection (a) where a person other than the vehicle's owner or
 
 7 driver requests a tow, irrespective of whether the owner or
 
 8 driver of the vehicle subsequently consents or agrees to the tow
 
 9 of the vehicle."
 
10      SECTION 5.  Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, where a
 
11 fee has been set by statute, the affected department may change
 
12 such fee by administrative rule.
 
13      SECTION 6.  The Hawaii Revised Statutes are amended to
 
14 conform to the purpose of this Act.
 
15      SECTION 7.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
16 New statutory material is underscored.
 
17      SECTION 8.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 1999.