STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3219

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.C.R. No. 231

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 S.C.R. No. 231 entitled:

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN TO ASSIST THE BUREAU OF CONVEYANCES IN BECOMING A MORE EFFICIENT, EFFECTIVE, AND ACCOUNTABLE OPERATION, AND DEVELOP STRATEGIC INITIATIVES FOR THE BUREAU,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to assist in addressing the existing problems and issues at the Bureau of Conveyances by urging the Department of Land and Natural Resources to develop and implement a comprehensive plan to assist the Bureau of Conveyances in becoming a more efficient, effective, and accountable operation, and to develop strategic initiatives for the Bureau.

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Hawaii Association of Realtors; the American Resort Development Association (ARDA); and the Hawaii Government Employees Association (HGEA), AFSCME, Local 152.  Testimony in opposition to this measure was submitted by the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

     In 2007, the Legislature adopted S.C.R. No. 226, which established a Joint Senate-House Investigative Committee to investigate the personnel, operational, and fiscal management of the Bureau of Conveyances to ensure that the Bureau serves the public at its most optimal level, and required the Joint Investigative Committee to submit its findings and recommendations to the Legislature.  During the six months of public hearings and intense investigative work, the Joint Investigative Committee uncovered several and sometimes troubling findings relating to the voluminous and escalating problems at the Bureau of Conveyances.  As a result, the Joint Investigative Committee drew three prevailing and interlocking conclusions from its findings:

     (1)  Severe mismanagement of the employees and operations of the Bureau of Conveyances hampers effective and efficient property recordings;

     (2)  A lack of fiscal management and accountability at the Bureau of Conveyances has led to a loss of revenue for the State; and

     (3)  Employee and operational mismanagement and a lack of fiscal accountability cause the operations of the Bureau of Conveyances to be vulnerable to abuse.

     The Joint Investigative Committee found it necessary and appropriate to develop and mandate methods and solutions, short- and long-range, to assist the Bureau of Conveyances in becoming a more efficient, effective, and accountable operation, especially in light of the long standing nature of the problems uncovered, and the appearance that the Bureau of Conveyances lacks the will or capability to address these issues without some form of concentrated intervention.  Thus, your Committee finds that urging the Department of Land and Natural Resources to develop and implement a comprehensive plan to assist the Bureau of Conveyances in becoming a more efficient, effective, and accountable operation, and to develop strategic initiatives for the Bureau will provide the special concentrated and comprehensive action that is necessary to address the problems at the Bureau.

     Your Committee notes the Working Group that the Department of Land and Natural Resources formed in October 2007 to address some of the problems at the Bureau of Conveyances, and its development of an automation plan to enhance the Bureau's ability to serve the public.  However, while your Committee recognizes that the implementation of an automation plan may aid in streamlining certain functions and services at the Bureau, your Committee emphasizes that a comprehensive plan is necessary and vital in order to address the full range of problems and issues that the Bureau currently faces, which automation cannot appropriately and effectively address.

     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 concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 231 and recommends its adoption.

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

____________________________

RUSSELL S. KOKUBUN, Chair