Exempts court proceedings under the Child Protective Act from court fees.

A BILL FOR AN ACT

SECTION 1. Section 571-83, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§571-83 Court and witness fees. In proceedings under section 571-11(1) [and], (2), or (9), no court fees shall be charged against, and no witness fees shall be allowed to, any party to a petition. No officer of the State or of any political subdivision thereof shall be entitled to receive any fee for the service of process or for attendance in court in any such proceedings except as otherwise provided in this chapter. All other persons acting under orders of the court may be paid for service of process and attendance or service as witnesses, the fees provided by law to be paid from the proper appropriation when the allowances are certified to by the judge."

SECTION 2. Section 607-5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) The fees prescribed by the schedule in this section shall be paid to the clerk of the circuit court as costs of court by the person instituting the action or proceeding, or offering the paper for filing, or causing the document to be issued or the services to be performed in the circuit court; provided that nothing in the schedule shall apply to cases of adults charged with commission of a crime, or to proceedings under section 571-11(1) [or], (2), or (9), or to proceedings under chapter 333F or 334, or to small estates (including decedents' estates and protection of property of minors and persons under disability) when the amount payable is fixed by another statute; and provided further that the fees prescribed by subsection (c)(32) shall be deposited by the clerk of the circuit court into the judiciary computer system special fund pursuant to section 601-3.7.

For the purpose of this section, "judgment" includes a decree and any order from which an appeal lies.

In the application of this schedule, each case assigned a new number or filed under the number previously assigned to a probate, trust, guardianship, or conservatorship, shall carry a fee for the institution or transfer of the action or proceeding as prescribed by part I, and in addition the fees prescribed by part II unless otherwise provided."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.