Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing, to which was recommitted S.B. No. 331, S.D. 1, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to eliminate administrative procedures for the eviction of public housing tenants in serious or repeated violation of their rental agreements, and to require that these tenants be evicted through the judicial process.

The Housing and Community Development Corporation of Hawaii (HCDCH) testified in support of this measure. The Women's Legislative Coalition and three individuals testified in opposition to the measure. The Judiciary submitted comments on the measure.

Your Committee finds that the process involved in evicting tenants from public housing is often slow and protracted, and can take as long as eighteen months from the time the tenant receives the eviction notice to the conclusion of a judicial appeal. This protracted process hurts not only the State, which incurs revenue losses when tenants involved in eviction procedures stop paying rent, but also the more than fourteen thousand families on the waiting list for public housing.

This measure addresses the problems inherent in the administrative eviction process by eliminating the termination hearing and administrative appeal procedures, and requiring the HCDCH to evict tenants through summary possession procedures in court. Grievance procedures for less serious rental violations are not affected by this measure.

Your Committee recognizes the need for more efficient and timely procedures for the eviction of public housing tenants who commit serious violations of their rental agreement. However, your Committee also notes that eviction from housing has serious consequences, especially for public housing tenants who risk losing their rights to rental subsidies, and who are at greater risk of homelessness than private housing tenants who are evicted.

Given the serious consequences of homelessness, your Committee is concerned that public housing tenants continue to have meaningful opportunities to defend themselves against an eviction. However, if termination hearings and administrative appeals are eliminated, and public housing tenants are required to defend themselves in court, these opportunities may be unavailable. Tenants may not be able to adequately defend themselves in a judicial proceeding without legal counsel and would not likely be able to afford legal representation. Further, the appellate process would be more difficult for tenants because, rather than appealing a decision from the eviction board to circuit court, an appeal from district court would have to be made to the State Supreme Court.

Your Committee is also concerned about this measure's impact on the judicial system. Testimony was received from the Judiciary that additional per diem judges and support staff would be needed to handle the additional caseload consisting of public housing eviction cases. However, no commitment has been made by either the executive or judicial branch to fund these additional costs.

Your Committee further finds that it may be preferable to streamline the administrative eviction process than to abolish it and require the parties to go to court. Since the parties affected by this measure have expressed a willingness to dialogue and explore ways in which the process might be improved, your Committee has inserted an effective date of July 1, 2050, into this measure to facilitate these discussions.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 331, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Judiciary in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 331, S.D. 2.