REPORT TITLE:
Substance abuse council


DESCRIPTION:
Establishes a substance abuse policy council within the office of
the governor to develop statewide policy regarding education,
prevention, and treatment programs.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                     A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO SUBSTANCE ABUSE.



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

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that substance abuse
 
 2 touches our community in many different ways.  The high social
 
 3 and financial costs of substance abuse related problems such as
 
 4 domestic violence, motor vehicle accidents caused by driving
 
 5 under the influence, prostitution, property crime, and rising
 
 6 health care costs stemming from drug-exposed infants and
 
 7 children.  The legislature further finds there exists no
 
 8 effective statewide drug control policy or interagency
 
 9 collaborative effort.  The individual efforts of the several
 
10 state agencies to address substance abuse are fragmented and are
 
11 not sufficiently addressing this growing social disease.  The
 
12 legislature further notes that many other states provide for the
 
13 distribution of federal and other funds in support of substance
 
14 abuse programs through the governor's office in order to track
 
15 and coordinate funding efforts.
 
16      In order to address this growing problem and fragmentation
 
17 of the State's efforts, the legislature believes that there is an
 
18 urgent need to establish a substance abuse policy council to
 
19 develop statewide integrated substance abuse treatment and
 
20 prevention policy.  The legislature further agrees that the
 

 
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 1 office of the governor is the most appropriate placement of this
 
 2 policy council, in light of the seriousness of this problem and
 
 3 the need for coordination of programs, services, and funding.
 
 4      Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to establish a
 
 5 substance abuse policy council within the office of the governor
 
 6 to develop statewide policy regarding education, prevention and
 
 7 treatment programs.
 
 8      SECTION 2.  Chapter 27, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended
 
 9 by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read
 
10 as follows:
 
11           "PART  .  SUBSTANCE ABUSE POLICY AND PROGRAMS
 
12      §27-    Definitions.   As used in this part:
 
13      "Substance" means alcohol, any drug on schedules I through
 
14 IV of chapter 329, or any substance which includes in its
 
15 composition volatile organic solvents.
 
16      "Substance abuse" means the misuse of a substance or the use
 
17 of a substance to an extent deemed deleterious or detrimental to
 
18 the user, to others, or to society.
 
19      §27-  Substance abuse policy council.(a) There is
 
20 established within the office of the governor, a substance abuse
 
21 policy council for the purposes of developing statewide policy
 
22 and funding sources for the implementation of substance abuse
 

 
 
 
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 1 education, intervention, and treatment programs and services.
 
 2 The policy council shall be composed of the governor or the
 
 3 governor's designee, the attorney general or the attorney
 
 4 general's designee, the superintendent of education or the
 
 5 superintendent's designee, the director of health or the
 
 6 director's designee, the director of human services or the
 
 7 director's designee, the chief justice or the chief justice's
 
 8 designee, the director of public safety or the director's
 
 9 designee, the director of the office of youth services or the
 
10 director's designee, a prosecuting attorney or their designee, a
 
11 mayor or their designee, a member of the state council on mental
 
12 health, and four members to be selected pursuant to section 26-
 
13 34, including representatives of pharmacological, medical,
 
14 business and community affairs, and youth services.
 
15      (b) The policy council shall:
 
16      (1)  Develop and continually update, as necessary, a
 
17           comprehensive statewide master plan for the
 
18           development, implementation, and funding of a continuum
 
19           of substance abuse education, intervention, and
 
20           treatment programs under a statewide integrated policy;
 
21      (2)  Work cooperatively to develop a statewide management
 
22           information system to assist in monitoring and
 
23           evaluating the continuum of programs and services;
 

 
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 1      (3)  Make every effort to secure grant funds for research
 
 2           and development, training, and public education in the
 
 3           area of substance abuse prevention and treatment;
 
 4      (4)  Network with public and private agencies that come into
 
 5           contact with substance abusers to keep abreast of
 
 6           issues that impact upon, and increase community
 
 7           awareness regarding, statewide substance abuse policy,
 
 8           programs, and services;
 
 9      (5)  Share information and pool resources to carry out
 
10           responsibilities under this part; and
 
11      (6)  Coordinate funding requests for substance abuse
 
12           education, intervention, and treatment programs and
 
13           services to deter competition for resources that might
 
14           result in an imbalance in program development that is
 
15           detrimental to the master plan treatment concept.
 
16      §27-    Personnel.  The governor may hire such necessary
 
17 personnel to carry out the purposes of this part, without regards
 
18 to chapters 76 and 77.
 
19      §27- Annual report.  The governor shall submit an annual
 
20 report to the legislature detailing the progress of the substance
 
21 abuse policy council in the development and implementation of the
 
22 statewide master plan, including funding amounts sought and
 
23 received from  sources other than the State, and amounts
 

 
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 1 distributed to implement the purposes of this part.   The report
 
 2 shall be submitted twenty days prior to the convening  of each
 
 3 regular session of the legislature.
 
 4      §27-    Substance abuse policy council special fund.(a)
 
 5 There is created in the treasury of the State, the substance
 
 6 abuse policy council special fund, into which shall be deposited
 
 7 a portion of all revenues collected by the department pursuant to
 
 8 chapter 244D.  The special fund shall be used solely to support
 
 9 the operations of the substance abuse policy council and any
 
10 programs and services so designated by legislative appropriation.
 
11      (b) The department of accounting and general services, with
 
12 the assistance of the council, shall submit an annual financial
 
13 statement to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to
 
14 the convening of each regular session."
 
15      SECTION 3.  Section 244D-17, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
16 amended to read as follows:
 
17      "[[]§244D-17[]]  Disposition of revenues.  All moneys
 
18 collected pursuant to this chapter shall be paid into the state
 
19 treasury as state realizations[, to be kept and accounted for as
 
20 provided by law.] ; provided that the legislature may appropriate
 
21 a portion of such revenues to support the operations of the
 
22 substance abuse policy council established pursuant to section
 
23 27-   ."
 

 
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 1      SECTION 4. Sections 329-2 through 329-4, Hawaii Revised
 
 2 Statutes, are repealed.
 
 3      ["§329-2 Hawaii advisory commission on drug abuse and
 
 4 controlled substances; number; appointment.(a)  There shall be
 
 5 established a state advisory commission on drug abuse and
 
 6 controlled substances consisting of not more than fifteen nor
 
 7 less than nine members appointed by the governor, as provided in
 
 8 section 26-34.  The members shall be selected on the basis of
 
 9 their ability to contribute to the solution of problems arising
 
10 from the abuse of controlled substances, and to the extent
 
11 possible, shall represent the pharmacological, medical, community
 
12 and business affairs, youth action, educational, legal defense,
 
13 enforcement, and corrections segments of the community.  One of
 
14 the appointed members shall be a member of the state council on
 
15 mental health established by section 334-10, and shall be
 
16 knowledgeable about the community and the relationships between
 
17 mental health, mental illness, and substance abuse.  The
 
18 commission shall elect a chairperson from among its members.  The
 
19 members shall serve without compensation, but shall be paid their
 
20 necessary expenses in attending meetings of the commission.  The
 
21 commission shall be a part of the department of health for
 
22 administrative purposes; provided that the department of health
 
23 shall appoint an ex-officio non-voting representative to the
 

 
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 1 commission who shall regularly attend meetings of both this
 
 2 commission and the state council on mental health, and make
 
 3 regular reports to both bodies."]
 
 4      ["[§329-3]  Annual report.  The commission shall prepare and
 
 5 present to the governor in the month of January in each year a
 
 6 report respecting its actions during the preceding fiscal year,
 
 7 together with its recommendations respecting legislation, copies
 
 8 of which reports shall be furnished by the governor to the
 
 9 legislature."]
 
10      ["§329-4 Duties of the commission.  The commission shall:
 
11      (1)  Act in an advisory capacity to the department of public
 
12           safety relating to the scheduling of substances
 
13           provided in part II of this chapter, by recommending
 
14           the addition, deletion, or rescheduling of all
 
15           substances enumerated in part II of this chapter.
 
16      (2)  Act in an advisory capacity to the department of public
 
17           safety relating to establishment and maintenance of the
 
18           classes of controlled substances, as provided in part
 
19           II of this chapter.
 
20      (3)  Assist the department of health in coordinating all
 
21           action programs of community agencies (state, county,
 
22           military, or private) specifically focused on the
 
23           problem of drug abuse.
 

 
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 1      (4)  Assist the department of health in carrying out
 
 2           educational programs designed to prevent and deter
 
 3           abuse of controlled substances.
 
 4      (5)  Encourage research on abuse of controlled substances.
 
 5           In connection with such research, and in furtherance of
 
 6           the enforcement of this chapter, it may, with the
 
 7           approval of the director of health:
 
 8           (A)  Establish methods to assess accurately the effects
 
 9                of controlled substances and to identify and
 
10                characterize controlled substances with potential
 
11                for abuse;
 
12           (B)  Make studies and undertake programs of research
 
13                to:
 
14                (i)  Develop new or improved approaches,
 
15                     techniques, systems, equipment, and devices
 
16                     to strengthen the enforcement of this
 
17                     chapter;
 
18               (ii)  Determine patterns of abuse of controlled
 
19                     substances and the social effects thereof;
 
20                     and
 
21              (iii)  Improve methods for preventing, predicting,
 
22                     understanding, and dealing with the abuse of
 
23                     controlled substances.
 

 
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 1      (6)  Create public awareness and understanding of the
 
 2           problems of drug abuse.
 
 3      (7)  Sit in an advisory capacity to the governor and other
 
 4           state departments as may be appropriate on matters
 
 5           relating to the commission's work.
 
 6      (8)  Act in an advisory capacity to the director of health
 
 7           in substance abuse matters under chapter 321, part XVI.
 
 8           For the purposes of this paragraph, "substance" shall
 
 9           include alcohol in addition to any drug on schedules I
 
10           through IV of this chapter and any substance which
 
11           includes in its composition volatile organic
 
12           solvents."]
 
13      SECTION 5.  Chapter 321, part XVI, Hawaii Revised Statutes,
 
14 is repealed.
 
15      SECTION 6.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
16 New statutory material is underscored.
 
17      SECTION 7.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
 
18 
 
19                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________