STAND. COM. REP. NO.  91-10

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2010

RE:   H.B. No. 2297

      H.D. 1

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2010

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred H.B. No. 2297 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MOTOR VEHICLE SUN SCREENING DEVICES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to allow for the installation of transparent window sun screening devices on a vehicle's windshield that will reduce heat and protect a vehicle's interior without jeopardizing public safety.

     The Hawaii Business League and T&T Tinting Specialists, Inc., testified in support of this bill.   K&Y Auto Service testified in opposition to this measure.  The Department of Customer Services (DCS) of the City and County of Honolulu provided comments.

     When the current law in Hawaii regarding the installation of sun screening devices (more commonly known as window tint) on the windows of motor vehicles was enacted, it provided that only the upper four inches of the front windshield could be tinted.  This was considered a safety measure for law enforcement and also a means of preserving visibility for the driver.  Since that time, however, new technology has been developed that includes a clear window film which screens out 50 percent of the heat but does not reduce light transmittance.  Therefore, allowing for installation of this clear "tint" will not affect public safety.

     However, your Committee understands the concerns raised by DCS that as currently written, the exemption may be misinterpreted and applied to the sun-screening materials itself rather than when it is applied to the vehicle.  Accordingly, your Committee has amended this bill by clarifying that the exemption for the installation of transparent window sun screening devices on a vehicles windshield applies to transparent sun screening materials that meet the requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 205 when applied to the AS-1 portion of the windshield.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2297, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2297, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committees on Judiciary and Consumer Protection & Commerce.

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

____________________________

JOSEPH M. SOUKI, Chair