STAND. COM. REP. NO. 217

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 217

       S.D. 1

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2011

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 217 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LIMITATION OF ACTIONS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to eliminate the statute of limitations for civil actions brought by persons subjected to sexual offenses as a minor and to revive, for one year, certain actions for which the statute of limitations had previously lapsed.  The intent of this measure is to give certain victims of sexual abuse additional time to seek civil compensation.  

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from The Sex Abuse Treatment Center and four individuals.  Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Hawaii Catholic Conference.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University.   

     Your Committee finds that victims of sexual abuse, particularly minors, often need time to deal with the trauma of the abuse and frequently by the time a victim has dealt with the effects of the abuse, the statute of limitations to file a civil complaint against the perpetrator has tolled.  Your Committee further finds that this measure will further enable victims who were subjected to sexual offenses as a minor to hold perpetrators of sexual offenses civilly accountable for their acts.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency. 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 217, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 217, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary and Labor.

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

____________________________

SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair