Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 131 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to make an appropriation for the Child Support Enforcement Agency (Agency).

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Attorney General and two private citizens.

The Agency is responsible for an administrative process to expedite the establishment and enforcement of child support obligations. The legislature finds that the Agency needs to increase its staff to adequately handle its tremendous caseload. Agency workers handle an average of five hundred cases per worker, which is above the national average of three hundred. The supernormal caseload means that processing child support collections and payments could get delayed, resulting in unnecessary and undue hardship to child support recipients and their families.

This measure appropriates funds to hire additional customer service personnel and a supervisor. Your Committee is concerned about the continuous return of the Agency to the legislature every session for more funding. Verbal testimony by the Agency indicated that it is still in a state of transition after installment of its computer system. The Agency testified that the funds appropriated under this measure will be applied toward establishing a new "dedicated customer service" unit to handle inquiries from the public, such as phone calls. Your Committee believes that this measure would serve to reduce complaints about the Agency's service.

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. 131 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.