Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2006

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 3262 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to protect public health and welfare by prohibiting smoking in public places and places of employment, ensuring a consistent level of basic protections statewide from exposure to secondhand smoke.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Department of Accounting and General Services; the American Cancer Society; the American Heart Association; the American Lung Association of Hawaii; the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Hawai'i; the Hawaii Association of Health Plans; the Hawaii Medical Service Association; the Hawai'i Primary Care Association; the Hawaii State AFL-CIO; the Hawai'i Women's Coalition; Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Hawai'i; Kaiser Permanente; Kalihi-Palama Health Center; Kiwanis of Kauai; Laborers' International Union of North America Local 368, AFL-CIO; Maui Tobacco-Free Partnership; REAL Hawaii Youth Movement Against the Tobacco Industry; Tobacco Education and Assistance Program; Tobacco Free Kauai; and thirty-nine individuals. Comments were submitted by the Department of Health and the Department of Public Safety.

Your Committee finds that exposure to secondhand smoke is a health hazard and causes heart disease, cancer, SIDS, asthma, and other diseases. Thus, it is extremely appropriate to protect innocent non-smokers from these effects by prohibiting smoking in the work place and public places. Your Committee further finds that this measure will reflect the most current public health policy relating to secondhand smoke and create a new statewide smoking law to ensure consistent levels of basic public health protection.

Your Committee has amended this measure by making a technical, nonsubstantive change to correct a typographical error.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 3262, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3262, S.D. 1.