STAND. COM. REP. NO. 89

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 6
                                     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. 6 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE
     OF DRUGS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill, as received by your Committee on
Transportation, is to amend Section 291-7: "Driving Under the
Influence of Drugs," Hawaii Revised Statutes, by redefining the
term "drug" to include any chemical substance that impairs a
person's ability to safely operate a vehicle.

     Your Committee finds that this amendment improves traffic
safety, as people who drive while under the influence of drugs,
regardless of whether or not they are prescribed substances, pose
a threat to the safety of others around them.  Oftentimes,
prescribed drugs can affect one's physical and mental
capabilities; thus, warning labels are placed upon prescription
bottles.  Should people choose to ignore these labels and drive
while under the effects of drugs, the probability of traffic
accidents occurring will increase.

     This bill proposes to include under the term "drug" any
chemical substance, natural or synthetic, that impairs a person's
mental faculties and ability to drive safely.  The fact that the
drug is medically prescribed or is sold over-the-counter does not
constitute as a defense against a charge under this section.


 
 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 89
                                 Page 2

 
     Testimonies in strong support of this bill were heard from
the State Department of Transportation, the Department of the
Prosecuting Attorney from the City and County of Honolulu, the
Maui Police Department, the Honolulu Police Department, the
Governor's Highway Safety Council, and Mothers Against Drunk
Driving.

     Your Committee has amended this bill by striking "into the
human body, can impair" which appears in line 12 on page 1 and
replacing it with "impairs."  It further amended this bill by
adding the phrase "which impairs that person's normal mental
faculties or ability to care for the person and guard against
casualty," into (b) of section 1.

     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. 6,
as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in
the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 6, H.D. 1, and be referred
to the Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs.

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



                                   ______________________________
                                   KENNETH T. HIRAKI, Chair