STAND. COM. REP. NO.  510

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2009

RE:   H.B. No. 896

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 896 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TOBACCO,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to continue to regulate the sale of tobacco by making permanent the retail tobacco permit law that was established in Act 131, Session Laws of Hawaii 2005.

     The Department of Taxation, Attorney General, Coalition for a Tobacco Free Hawaii, American Heart Association of Hawaii, Hawaii Food Industry Association, American Lung Association in Hawaii, and American Cancer Society Hawaii Pacific, Inc. supported this bill.  The Retail Merchants of Hawaii opposed this bill.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 896 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health,

____________________________

RYAN I. YAMANE, Chair