STAND. COM. REP. NO.415

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2001

RE: H.B. No. 161

H.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 161 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD CHECKS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of the bill is to:

1. Implement certain recommendations by a Legislative Reference Bureau study for access and use of criminal history record information to conduct criminal history record checks for noncriminal justice employment and licensing screening; and

2. Create a working group to make recommendations on policy issues raised by the study.

Your Committee received testimony in favor of the measure from the Department of the Attorney General, the Department of Human Services, the Executive Office on Aging, and the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools. Your Committee received testimony in opposition of the measure from the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission. The Legislative Reference Bureau submitted comments on the measure.

Your Committee finds that much discussion still remains before a consensus will be achieved on the revision of the term nonconviction data. Your Committee further finds that the widely supported proposal for a work group indicates the need to come to terms fully with the problems involved before making hasty amendments to the statutes that may later be regretted.

Your Committee amended the bill by:

1. Deleting statutory amendments that refer to "nonconviction data"; and

2. Making technical and nonsubstantive changes for the sake of clarity and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 161, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 161, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

ERIC G. HAMAKAWA, Chair