STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2350

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2936

       S.D. 1

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2012

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 2936 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

     (1)  Eliminate the asset limit for Hawaii's Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program eligibility; and

     (2)  Exempt the fair market value of all motor vehicles in a household when determining eligibility for Hawaii's Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.

     Prior to the hearing, your Committee posted a proposed S.D. 1 of this measure that replaced the contents of this measure with provisions that allowed the Department of Human Services to draw from other funds appropriated to the Department in the event that amounts appropriated for general assistance are insufficient to meet general assistance benefits programs.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of the proposed S.D. 1 from the Department of Human Services, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and one individual.

     Your Committee finds that the general assistance program (HMS 204) is a block grant program that provides a monthly benefit to disabled individuals.  The Department of Human Services must adjust general assistance payments to remain within the general assistance appropriation when the caseload increases.  Your Committee also finds that for fiscal year 2012, the payment level began at $353, but due to caseload increases was reduced to $319 in October 2011.  To remain within the authorized appropriation, the $319 monthly benefit must be further reduced to $275 in April 2012 or maintained until May 2012 then reduced to $188 in June 2012.  Since these reductions and fluctuations provide little stability to households who already live below poverty levels, the Department has requested an emergency appropriation for the 2011-2012 fiscal year to maintain the $319 monthly benefit.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by adopting the proposed S.D. 1, which will reduce the future need to request emergency appropriations for the general assistance program by authorizing the Department of Human Services to utilize, when needed, savings from other programs.

     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. 2936, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2936, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

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

____________________________

SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair