STAND. COM. REP. NO. 857

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 913
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No.
913 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ELECTIONS BY MAIL,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to establish a provision
allowing elections by mail for any federal, state, or county
election held other than on the date of a regularly scheduled
primary or general election.

     Your Committee finds that the possibility of holding an
election other than on the date of a regularly scheduled primary
or general election would provide a logistical quandry for the
Office of Elections.  Although section 11-174.5, Hawaii Revised
Statutes, provides that the Office of Elections has one hundred
twenty days to conduct a special election, logistical and
personnel requirements associated with polling place elections
would still exist.  Your Committee further finds that this
measure would significantly reduce the logistical and personnel
requirements and would reduce the costs associated with
conducting such an election.  

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the
Office of Elections, the Commission on Persons with Disabilities,
the Hawaii State Coordinating Council on Deafness, Common Cause
Hawaii, Aloha State Association of the Deaf, the County Council
of Maui, and a private citizen.


 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 857
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     Upon further consideration, your Committee has amended this
measure by:

     (1)  Deleting the provision that required the county clerks
          to adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91, Hawaii Revised
          Statutes; and

     (2)  Making technical non-substantive changes for the
          purposes of clarity and style.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your
Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No.
913, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading
in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 913, S.D. 1.

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



                                   ______________________________
                                   AVERY B. CHUMBLEY, Co-Chair



                                   ______________________________
                                   MATTHEW M. MATSUNAGA, Co-Chair

 
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