Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 2848 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to create new offenses related to the illegal compensation of public servants and to modify penalties of existing bribery statutes.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Department of the Attorney General, Hawaii State Ethics Commission, City and County of Honolulu Department of the Prosecuting Attorney, County of Maui Department of the Prosecuting Attorney, Honolulu Police Department, County of Hawaii Police Department, County of Kauai Police Department, County of Maui Police Department, and three individuals. Comments were also submitted by the Office of the Public Defender.

Your Committee finds that during the last several years, there have been several instances of public officials engaging in financial misconduct. This misconduct has resulted in the loss of public confidence in both public institutions and the people who work in them. Your Committee recognizes the importance of clear and strong laws against public corruption, particularly the buying of influence and power. Your Committee believes that this measure will provide law enforcement with the tools to fight public corruption.

Your Committee adopted the amendments suggested by the Department of the Attorney General to add an exception to bribery in the second degree. Specifically, bribery in the second degree shall not include "trivial benefits incidental to personal, professional, or business contacts and involving no substantial risk of undermining official impartiality."

Your Committee also amended this measure to make technical, nonsubstantive changes for the purposes of clarity, consistency, 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 is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2848, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2848, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.