STAND. COM. REP. NO.555

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2001

RE: H.B. No. 524

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. 524 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO COMPUTER CRIME,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to expand the scope of prohibited activity and create a range of offenses, from misdemeanor to class B felony, for computer crimes.

The Department of the Attorney General (AG), the Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of Honolulu (Prosecuting Attorney), and the Honolulu Police Department (HPD) supported the intent of this bill. Comments were also submitted by the Office of the Public Defender.

During the Regular Session of 2000, your Committee reported Senate Bill No. 2352, House Draft 1 (House Standing Committee Report No. 1295-00), which proposed to modernize Hawaii's computer crimes statutes. This measure passed Third Reading in the House, but failed to receive conference approval.

Shortly before the convening of the 2001 Legislature, your Committee worked with AG staff to craft a bill based on the previous House position that would address concerns raised by the AG and the HPD. The work product of these efforts was drafted into a bill that was introduced this year -- House Bill No. 767.

During the public hearing on House Bill No. 524, the AG, the Prosecuting Attorney, and the HPD testified that while they supported the intent of this administration bill, they preferred the approached outlined in House Bill No. 767.

In light of this, your Committee has amended this bill by deleting its substance and inserting the provisions of House Bill No. 767. The amended bill, inter alia, would:

(1) Create the following new offenses:

(A) Computer fraud in the first degree – a class B felony;

(B) Computer fraud in the second degree – a class C felony;

(C) Computer damage in the first degree – a class C felony;

(D) Use of a computer in the commission of a separate crime – an offense one class or grade greater than the offense facilitated;

(E) Unauthorized computer access in the first degree – a class B felony; and

(F) Unauthorized computer access in the third degree – a misdemeanor;

(2) Clarify the offense of extortion to include persons who threaten by word or conduct to cause damage to a computer, computer system, or computer network;

(3) Allow for the forfeiture of property used in compute crimes;

(4) Clarify that jurisdiction and statute of limitations on computer crimes committed for prosecution purposes; and

 

(5) Establish a temporary commission on computer crime laws to review the implementation of this bill and determine whether it allows the comprehensive prosecution of computer crimes without inhibiting legitimate computer activities.

Lastly, various technical, nonsubstantive amendments were made for the purpose of clarity, style, and conformity to the standard drafting conventions utilized by the Legislature.

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. 524, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 524, H.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

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

____________________________

ERIC G. HAMAKAWA, Chair