Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 562 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of the bill is to remove the sunset provision of Act 1, Second Special Session 2001, which raised the age at which a person can consent to sexual contact from 14 to 16 years of age in most cases.

The Department of the Attorney General, Volunteer Legal Services of Hawaii, Hawaii Youth Services Network, the Roman Catholic Church in the State of Hawaii, Hawaii Family Forum, and a concerned individual testified in support of this bill. The Office of the Public Defender opposed the bill.

Your Committee finds that this measure will make permanent the provisions that raised the age of consent to 16 in most cases.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 562 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.