Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 664, S.D. 1, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to support the provision of long-term care resources for veterans, in the form of a United States Department of Veterans Affairs state home.

Specifically, this bill authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds for fiscal year 2003-2004 and appropriates the same amount for fiscal year 2004-2005, for the development of a Veterans Affairs long-term care facility on the Hilo Medical Center campus.

Your Committee finds that the long-term care facility is in great demand by our maturing veteran population and the facility described in this measure would meet this demand by providing services to our honorable United States veterans statewide.

For the purpose of promoting further discussion, your Committee has amended this bill by changing the appropriated amount in section 2 to a blank amount.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 664, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 664, S.D. 2.