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 S.B. No. 2246, S.D. 1, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to authorize the issuance of general obligation bonds to be appropriated as a grant-in-aid to Hawaii Island Veterans Memorial, Inc., to plan, build, and operate a combined veterans center and veterans home in the County of Hawaii.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Office of Veterans Services and a large number of concerned veterans and individuals.

Your Committee finds that the proposed veterans center would help to provide veterans in Hawaii County more efficient and better access to the benefits they have earned.

However, your Committee notes that there are three areas of concern that may be addressed by your Committee on Finance, as new information becomes available. First, there is a grant-in-aid request on the same subject that has been submitted and that may be a more appropriate vehicle to advance this issue. Second, it may be more fiscally prudent to fund only the first phase of the project at this time. Third, the status of the land transfer of this project is currently uncertain at this time; therefore, this measure may require further amendments on this particular issue.

Upon further review, your Committee has amended this measure by:

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 is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2246, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2246, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.