Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 1352 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to permit a state or county employee to take seven days of paid leave per year to serve as a bone marrow donor and thirty days of paid leave to serve as an organ donor.

Your Committee finds that the number of individuals in need of organ and bone marrow transplants far exceed the number of organs available for transplant and the number of willing living organ and bone marrow donors. In spite of ongoing medical and technological advances and breakthroughs, more needs to be done to increase the supply of organ donors. To this end, in 1999 Congress acted to facilitate the donation of organs by enacting the Organ Donor Leave Act, which permits a federal employee to take thirty days of paid leave, annually, in order to serve as an organ donor. Your Committee believes that public employees in Hawaii should also be provided with adequate leave time in order to serve in this capacity.

Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity and style.

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. 1352, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1352, S.D. 1.