Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred H.B. No. 660 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to authorize the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) to order a rebate to cable television subscribers when the cable fees deposited annually into the Compliance Resolution Fund exceed the amount necessary to regulate the cable television industry.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Mayor of the County of Maui, DCCA, and The League of Women Voters of Hawaii.

Your Committee finds that fees passed on to consumers should be reasonable and necessary. While the charge may have been necessary to fund cable television regulation activities in the past, your Committee finds that, in recent years, more fees were collected than required to cover regulation activities.

Concern was expressed regarding the rebate process. DCCA advised it was considering a prospective rebate and that the cable television operator would be responsible for distributing the rebate to current subscribers. There was discussion that providing rebates to past subscribers for the years during their subscription in which there were surplus funds would be a daunting task. The cost of undertaking any rebate is unknown.

In light of these concerns, your Committee has amended this bill by providing an effective date of July 1, 2099, to promote further discussion. Technical, nonsubstantive amendments were also made for clarity, consistency, and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 660, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 660, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.