STAND

STAND. COM. REP. 2901

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: H.B. No. 2022

H.D. 2

S.D. 1

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Human Services, to which was referred H.B. No. 2022, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO GENERAL ASSISTANCE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to clarify eligibility requirements for individuals with disabilities who receive general assistance.

Testimony in support of the measure was submitted by the Department of Human Services (department), Legal Aid Society of Hawaii, and three individuals.

Your Committee finds that current law provides eligibility requirements for general assistance, which, among other things, requires a physical or mental disability. There are no provisions for consideration of both physical and mental disabilities. Thus, there are no provisions that would allow the department to review the effects of both a physical and mental disability of the applicant's ability to work. This measure would clarify the eligibility requirements for general assistance and provide applicants a more appropriate assessment of their ability to work.

Upon further consideration, your Committee has made the following amendments:

(1) Clarifying that initial denial notices are limited to "applicants" rather than "persons";

(2) Reducing the twenty day extension period to ten calendar days for the issuance of a denial notice;

(3) Deleting the unnecessary forty-five day penalty exemption;

(4) Requiring the department to report on the progress of this measure prior to each Regular Session, beginning in 2005 and ending 2007; and

(5) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2004, and sunsetting the Act on July 1, 2007.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2022, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2022, 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 Committee on Human Services,

		____________________________ SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair