STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1041-10

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2010

RE:   S.B. No. 2441

      S.D. 2

      H.D. 2

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2010

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 2441, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ENDANGERED SPECIES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to protect the Hawaiian monk seal from harassment and death by establishing the crime of intentionally or knowingly taking a Hawaiian monk seal as a class C felony.

     The Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Conservation Council for Hawaii, The Humane Society of the United States, Hawaiian Monk Seal Response Team of Oahu, Save Our Seal, and numerous concerned individuals testified in support of this bill.  The Department of Land and Natural Resources also supported this measure with amendments.

     Your Committee has amended this bill by:

     (1)  Placing the substantive provisions of this bill into a new section of chapter 195D, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), rather than in section 195D-9, HRS;

     (2)  Inserting the scientific name of the Hawaiian monk seal;

     (3)  Changing the effective date to July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

     (4)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity, consistency, and style.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2441, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2441, S.D. 2, H.D. 2.

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

____________________________

JON RIKI KARAMATSU, Chair