STAND. COM. REP. NO. 637

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1047

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Transportation and International Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 1047 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HIGHWAY SAFETY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to allow a driver who is at least eighteen years of age to obtain a commercial driver's license to drive in intrastate commerce.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Transportation Association.  Testimony in opposition was received from the Department of Transportation and Honolulu Police Department.

     Your Committee finds that there is a shortage of commercial drivers in Hawaii and the age requirement for commercial licenses makes recruiting younger individuals, such as high school seniors, difficult because they have to wait years to obtain a license. 

     The current age required to receive a commercial driver's license is twenty-one.  This measure would increase the pool of qualified commercial drivers by lowering the age to eighteen.  Your Committee is keenly aware that lowering the age may not solve the problem of the shortage of drivers, and may present highway safety concerns.  The measure addresses these concerns by requiring compliance with federal regulations, limiting the type of commercial vehicle that can be operated, prohibiting the transportation of hazardous materials and school passengers and requiring drivers to have prior driving experience and a clean driving record.

     In addition, your Committee believes that increasing the eligible pool of commercial drivers will increase demand for commercial driving schools and other instructional programs to enable the licensing of more commercial drivers.  High school seniors would be more inclined to consider commercial driving as a career if the license eligibility age were eighteen.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation and International Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1047 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation and International Affairs,

____________________________

J. KALANI ENGLISH, Chair