STAND

STAND. COM. REP. NO.1070

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2003

RE: H.B. No. 473

H.D. 2

S.D. 1

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing and Science, Arts, and Technology, to which was referred H.B. No. 473, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to maintain a web site containing information about its decisions, open dockets, and upcoming meetings, and to require applications to the PUC to be submitted electronically or on a compact disc.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the PUC, Consumer Advocate, Verizon Hawaii, Life of the Land, Na Leo Pohai, and Hawaii Renewable Energy Alliance. The Office of Information Practices (OIP) submitted comments on the measure.

Your Committees find that this measure enhances public access to and participation in government, as well as provides a cost effective and efficient means of informing and educating the public about PUC proceedings and activities.

Your Committees have amended this measure by replacing its contents with the language of a similar measure, S.B. No. 498, S.D. 2, and by inserting language proposed by OIP. As amended, this measure:

(1) Also requires the PUC to post a list of all pending deadlines on its web site;

(2) Deletes language relating to the submission of applications to the PUC via electronic mail;

(3) Clarifies that information not required to be disclosed pursuant to the Uniform Information Practices Act is exempt from the requirement of submission to the PUC in electronic format;

(4) Provides that the time period within which a PUC decision must be issued does not begin to run until a substantially completed application has been posted on the PUC's web site;

(5) Authorizes the hiring of personnel to implement and administer the web site;

(6) Makes an appropriation from the Public Utilities Commission Special Fund to fund the activities of the PUC related to its web site; and

(7) Takes effect on July 1, 2003, rather than upon its approval.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing and Science, Arts, and Technology that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 473, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 473, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing and Science, Arts, and Technology,

____________________________ DAVID Y. IGE, Chair		____________________________ RON MENOR, Chair