Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 62 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this concurrent resolution is to request the Department of Public Safety, with the assistance of the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center, to compare the recidivism rates of inmates transferred to mainland correctional facilities with similarly situated inmates who remained incarcerated in Hawaii.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Public Safety.

Your Committee finds that the transfer of inmates to mainland correctional facilities has never been studied to see if it has any merits or demerits on topics beyond the obvious reduction in overcrowding. Over the years, various facilities have been contracted with, and in the future the results of this study will be useful to compare the various proposals. Furthermore, once the effect (if any) on recidivism is known, it may be possible to improve State facilities by comparing and contrasting them with mainland facilities.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 62 and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Finance.