Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 2183 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to allow applicants for police officer positions to be non-residents of Hawaii at the time of their application.

Your Committee finds that state residency requirements deter prospective police officer applicants at a time when the State suffers from serious shortages in public safety positions.

During your Committee's discussion of this measure, the senator representing the sixth senatorial district stated that the residency requirement severely limits the pool of police officer applicants and consequently makes it very difficult to fill police officer positions on Maui.

Your Committee believes that removing the residency requirement for police officer applicants is prudent and will enable police departments to select qualified police officers from a larger pool of applicants.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2183 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Tourism and Intergovernmental Affairs.