STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3596

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    GOV. MSG. NO. 527

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Affordable Housing, to which was referred Governor's Message No. 527, submitting for study and consideration the nomination of:

Board of Directors of the Hawai‘i Housing Finance and Development Corporation (HHFDC)

G.M. No. 527

DAVID A. LAWRENCE, for a term to expire 6-30-2012,

begs leave to report as follows:

     Your Committee reviewed the personal history, resume, and statement submitted by the nominee, and finds David A. Lawrence to have the necessary qualifications to be nominated to the Board of Directors of the Hawai‘i Housing Finance and Development Corporation.

     Testimony in support of Mr. Lawrence's nomination was submitted by the Hawai‘i Housing Finance and Development Corporation.

     Mr. Lawrence received his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees from the University of California at Santa Barbara, and his Master in Business Administration in the Executive Masters in Business Administration program from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.  He is currently employed at Wells Fargo Home Mortgage of Hawaii where he serves as a Mortgage Broker.  He has ten years of commercial lending experience, including small business and real estate transactions; twenty years of business management experience, including sole proprietorships and corporations; ten years of management experience with non-profit corporations, including federal, state, and county contract and fund administration; and twenty years of fundraising experience for non-profit organizations, including events, board campaigns, capital campaigns, and venture development.

     Mr. Lawrence has been a board member of the IMUA Rehab for the past twenty years, has served as its President for ten years, and currently serves as its Treasurer.  He has served as a board member of Montessori of Maui for the past ten years and is currently involved with a $7,000,000 capital campaign for construction of phase two of Montessori of Maui's nine acre campus.  He is also a founding member of the Statewide Microenterprise Development Initiative.

     Mr. Lawrence has served on the Board of Directors of the HHFDC since the agency's inception in 2006, and currently serves as the Board's Vice Chairperson.  As a home mortgage consultant with Wells Fargo Mortgage of Hawaii, he is able to help hardworking families to become first-time homebuyers, and is deeply committed to increasing, strengthening, and maintaining affordable housing opportunities in the State.  Mr. Lawrence's demonstrated commitment, motivation, business background, education, and professional experiences will greatly assist the Board of Directors of the Hawai‘i Housing Finance and Development Corporation.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Affordable Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee, after full consideration of the background, experience, and qualifications of the nominee, has found the nominee to be qualified for the position to which nominated and recommends that the Senate advise and consent to the nomination.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Affordable Housing,

____________________________

RUSSELL S. KOKUBUN, Chair