STAND. COM. REP. NO.  113-08

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2008

RE:   H.B. No. 3055

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Human Services & Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 3055 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to bring the Child Support Enforcement Agency (Agency) into compliance with federal law and improve Agency actions.  Specifically, this bill:  

(1)  Clarifies the requirements for notice to custodial parents of state income tax refund setoffs where medical support rights have been assigned to the State and the income tax refund setoffs are applied to amounts designated in the child support order for medical purposes;

(2)  Creates an assistant administrator position within the Agency to serve as the policy administrator and develop and implement comprehensive policy and planning documents to guide operations to successful outcomes, including federal performance reporting and interstate activities;

(3)  Allows the Agency, on its own behalf, to request a hearing, instead of having to wait for one of the parties to make a request;

(4)  Allows the Agency to sign proposed administrative orders when no request for hearing is received by the Agency;

(5)  Makes consistent the number of days a party has to request a hearing for actions initiated because of the federally required periodic review of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families cases, and for modification actions initiated at the request of one of the parties, both to 30 days; and

(6)  Transfers two temporary full-time equivalent positions from the County of Kauai to the Department of the Attorney General. 

     The Attorney General testified in support of this bill.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Human Services & Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 3055 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Human Services & Housing,

____________________________

MAILE SHIMABUKURO, Chair