STAND

STAND. COM. REP. NO. 315

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2005

RE: H.B. No. 440

H.D. 1

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Legislative Management, to which was referred H.B. No. 440 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE OMBUDSMAN,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to enable the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate complaints about Executive Branch programs and services regardless of whether they are delivered directly by a governmental agency or through a contract with a private agency. This bill:

(1) Expands the Ombudsman's jurisdiction to include investigating contractual acts of private agencies;

(2) Defines a "private agency" as any private, nongovernmental agency or organization that provides health or human services under contract to an agency; and

(3) Includes noncompliance with contractual terms as an appropriate subject for investigation.

This bill also renames the Ombudsman's First Assistant as the Deputy Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman testified in support of this bill.

Currently, a number of public programs and services are delivered through contracts with private agencies, especially nonprofit organizations. Complaints regarding the delivery of these programs and services cannot be addressed by the Ombudsman, because private agencies fall outside of its jurisdiction.

Your Committee has amended this bill by:

(1) Clarifying that the Ombudsman's jurisdiction over private agencies is limited to those that are contracted by the State pursuant to chapter 103F, Hawaii Revised Statutes; and

(2) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments to correct technical drafting errors.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Legislative Management that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 440, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 440, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Legislative Management,

		____________________________ MICHAEL Y. MAGAOAY, Chair