Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.R. No. 13 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to express the Senate's strong support for the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women (Commission) by urging the Governor to allocate adequate funding to the Commission to enable it to carry out its mission and duties as mandated by law.

Testimony in support of this resolution was received from the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission, the University of Hawaii Women's Center, two members of the Domestic Violence Clearinghouse and Legal Hotline, the Hawaii State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the National Association of Social Workers, Planned Parenthood of Hawaii, the Sex Abuse Treatment Center, TJ Mahoney and Associates, Business and Professional Women/Hawaii, and the Community Alliance on Prisons. The Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women supported the resolution and requested an amendment.

Your Committee finds that the mission of the Commission is to ensure equality of women and girls in the State by acting as a catalyst for change through advocacy, education, collaboration, and program development. The Commission's work is largely based upon effective public/private partnerships and networking among a variety of diverse boards, coalitions, professional, and community groups and organizations. Some of the Commission's priority issues include pay equity, gender equity in sports, education, and in the workplace, long term care insurance and services, equity of services for women in prison, welfare reform, strengthening laws relating to violence against women and children, reproductive freedom, health care services and insurance, and moving women towards self-suffiency.

Your Committee notes that the Commission is the only statewide government and community resource dedicated to addressing the broad scope of issues impacting women and girls in Hawaii.

Your Committee amended the measure to emphasize the importance of continuing the Commission's work by changing the title to read: "URGING THE GOVERNOR TO ALLOCATE ADEQUATE FUNDING TO THE HAWAII STATE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN TO ENABLE IT TO CARRY OUT ITS MISSION AND DUTIES AS MANDATED BY LAW." Your Committee also made technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.R. No. 13, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.R. No. 13, S.D. 1.