Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Human Services and Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 2071 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to appropriate $100,000 to hire two outreach workers to assist with finding adequate shelter and services to prevent homelessness.

The Hawaii Commission on the Status of Women, Volunteer Legal Services Hawaii, Partners In Care, Hawaii Catholic Conference, Affordable Housing and Homeless Alliance, Hawaii Women's Coalition, and several concerned individuals testified in support of this measure. The Special Assistant to the Governor for Housing and the Housing and Community Development Corporation of Hawaii supported the intent of this measure.

Your Committee finds that there is a need to expand outreach services for the homeless. Existing agencies have limited resources, but an increasing demand for services. The number of homeless in Hawaii is expected to increase even more as families who lost jobs as a result of the economic downturn exhaust their resources and unemployment benefits. It generally takes individuals six to nine months from the point of crisis to become homeless.

Your Committee has amended this bill by:

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Human Services and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2071, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2071, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.