STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1808

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.C.R. No. 11

       S.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 11 entitled:

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE REFERENCE BUREAU TO STUDY CUSTODY EVALUATOR TRAINING MODELS APPLIED BY OTHER JURISDICTIONS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to request the Legislative Reference Bureau to conduct a study on custody evaluator models that are applied in other jurisdictions.

     Specifically, the Concurrent Resolution requests the Legislative Reference Bureau to review other jurisdictions' qualifications for custody evaluators, custody evaluator training models, and mechanisms for oversight of the custody evaluation process.

     The National Association of Social Workers submitted comments in support of this measure.  The Legislative Reference Bureau submitted comments.

     Pursuant to Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 52, Regular Session of 2006, the Committees on Human Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives convened a task force during the interim following the 2006 Regular Session to examine issues pertaining to the Hawaii Family Court.  Due to time constraints, the task force was unable to fully explore the issue of training and oversight of custody evaluators in both the Hawaii Family Court and in other jurisdictions.  This measure will assist the task force members to determine whether to recommend action to improve custody evaluation in the Hawaii Family Court.

     Your Committee has amended this measure to request that the study to be conducted by the Legislative Reference Bureau also include a review of the process by which custody evaluators are selected in other jurisdictions, whether it is by random selection, from a list, or by request of the client.  Your Committee has also amended this measure by placing the four issues to be studied in logical order: qualifications, selection, training, and oversight.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 11, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.C.R. No. 11, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

____________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair