Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 2070 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to establish a new public funding mechanism for campaign spending available to candidates for the state House of Representatives. This public funding mechanism is triggered when the Campaign Spending Commission determines that sufficient funds in the Hawaii Election Fund are available to support at least two candidates per district. In general, candidates are eligible for public funding if they collect qualifying contributions of $3 from one and one-half percent of the registered voters in their district and agree to run their political campaign exclusively with public funds and limit expenditures to permitted activities. Publicly funded candidates receive public funds in accordance with a formula based on 150 percent of the voluntary spending limits established in existing statute. However, publicly funded candidates may also receive "equalizing" funds if a privately funded opponent spends more than 50 percent or more than the public funds allotted to the publicly funded candidate.

Hawaii Clean Elections Coalition, Planned Parenthood of Hawaii, The First Unitarian Church, Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women, Advocates for Consumer Rights, Parents and Children Together, Mayor of the County of Hawaii, Hawaii Coalition for Good Government, Green Party of Hawaii, The League of Women Voters of Hawaii, Life of the Land, The Interfaith Alliance Hawaii and numerous concerned citizens testified in favor of the bill. The Campaign Spending Commission opposed the bill.

Your Committee finds that it is necessary to restore voter confidence in our political system, which has been damaged by the revelations that numerous individuals and businesses violated the campaign contribution laws. In recent years, political campaigns have become costly for candidates to deliver their message to potential voters. As the cost of running for public office increases, so also does the need to raise funds to meet these expenses.

Public funding is an effective counter measure to the escalating costs of campaigning as well as the perception that candidates are forced to rely on private funding sources that may expect a return on their investment in a candidate. Widespread use of public funding programs will permit more candidates to run for office, provide the voters with choices on election day, and eliminate the perception that a candidate is influenced by the special interest groups that contributed to the candidate.

Your Committee is concerned about the section of the bill relating to "equalizing funds." The calculation of equalizing funds may burden the Campaign Spending Commission's limited staff resources. Further, your Committee is concerned about the ability to make a timely decision to equalize funds due to the reporting deadlines. Your Committee recommends that the discussion continue on this bill, and that, if necessary the Campaign Spending Commission be required to make recommendations on implementation of a method for equalizing funding.

Your Committee has amended the bill by:

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. 2070, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2070, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.