STAND. COM. REP. NO. 373

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 958

       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 Judiciary and Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 958 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO FAMILY COURT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

     (1)  Establish a program in the Family Court for the registration of child custody evaluators; and

     (2)  Allow the Board of Family Court Judges to adopt procedures for the certification of child custody evaluators.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from AngelGroup and eight individuals.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Judiciary, the Family Law Section of the Hawaii State Bar Association, and one individual.

     Your Committee finds that child custody evaluators can perform a valuable role in Family Court, by assisting the Family Court in making an informed decision regarding custody issues.  Specifically, the intent of this measure is to establish a registry of these child custody evaluators, together with relevant information regarding each evaluator, to allow parties and their attorneys to select an appropriate evaluator for their case.

     This measure also authorizes the Board of Family Court Judges to adopt standards and certifications for child custody evaluators.  In 2006, your Committee notes that the Legislature adopted Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 52, S.D. 1 (2006), which requested the Committees on Human Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives to convene interim hearings on the use of legal interventions available to the Family Court and to establish one or more task forces (collectively, the SCR 52 Task Force) to facilitate their work.  The SCR 52 Task Force submitted a report to the Legislature in 2008, Sen. Spec. Com. Rep. No. 2 (2008), that included recommendations regarding child evaluator licensing requirements.  Among other things, the report recommended that a child custody evaluator be in good standing as a social worker, marriage and family therapist, psychologist, or psychiatrist.  Your Committee believes that these and other recommendations from the 2008 report should be considered.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to allow for further discussion; and

     (2)  Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 958, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 958, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

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

____________________________

CLAYTON HEE, Chair