STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2927

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    H.B. No. 2473

       H.D. 2

       S.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Economic Development and Taxation, to which was referred H.B. No. 2473, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TECHNOLOGY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to appropriate funds for the Hawaii Broadband Task Force for fiscal year 2008-2009.

     Testimony in support of this measure was received from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, the High Technology Development Corporation, and a member of the Hawaii Broadband Task Force.

     Your Committee finds that the Task Force has submitted an interim report to the Legislature, as required by Act 2, Special Session Laws of Hawaii 2007, which outlines the vision for broadband in Hawaii and the work of the Task Force since it began meeting in October 2007.  Your Committee further finds that in the coming year, the Task Force plans to collect the quantitative data on the availability of current services, which will be necessary to develop sound policy recommendations, as required by Act 2.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by deleting its content and replacing the content with that of S.B. No. 2393, S.D. 1, previously heard in this Committee.

     As amended, this measure:

     (1)  Appropriates $300,000 in fiscal year 2008-2009 to support the work of the Hawaii Broadband Task Force;

     (2)  Clarifies that the expending agency shall be the Office of the Auditor; and

     (3)  Takes effect on July 1, 2020.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Economic Development and Taxation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2473, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2473, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Economic Development and Taxation,

____________________________

CAROL FUKUNAGA, Chair