Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 1374 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to appropriate funds for six public safety positions at the Hawaii State Hospital.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Public Safety. Your Committee received testimony in support of the intent of this measure from the Department of Health.

Your Committee finds that the current staffing level of security officers at the Hawaii State Hospital is inadequate. As a result, whenever an incident arises the security officer on duty is often taken away from his or her post for as long as it takes to deal with the situation. Your Committee notes that the grounds of State Hospital are very large and includes many buildings, all of which are under the jurisdiction of an inadequate amount of officers.

Your Committee has learned that two more security officer positions have been recently filled, therefore, this bill has been amended by reducing the number of requested security officer positions to four.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1374, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1374, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.