STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1158-14

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2014

RE:   S.B. No. 2597

      S.D. 1

      H.D. 1

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2014

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Veterans, Military, & International Affairs, & Culture and the Arts, to which was referred S.B. No. 2597, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT MAKING AN APPROPRIATION FOR A WAR MEMORIAL,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to recognize the sacrifices and contributions of veterans from Hawaii who served in the Persian Gulf War, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation New Dawn, Global War on Terrorism, Homeland Defense, and Operation Noble Eagle, as well as those who have protected the borders of the United States by land, sea, and air, by authorizing the issuance of general obligation bonds and appropriating the proceeds from the sale of these bonds to the Office of Veterans' Services for the planning, design, and construction of a memorial at the State Veterans' Cemetery on Oahu, and replicas of the memorial at veterans' cemeteries on each neighbor island, honoring the veterans of these conflicts.

The State Department of Defense; Office of Veterans' Services; National Association for Uniformed Services-Hawaii Chapter; Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs; Military Officers Association of America, Hawaii Chapter; Department of Hawaii, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States; Advisory Board on Veterans' Services; and two concerned individuals testified in support of this bill.

     Your Committee has amended this bill by:

     (1)  Designating the memorial as the Hawaii Gulf War Memorial and specifying that it be located on the grounds of the Hawaii State Veterans Cemetery in Kaneohe, on the island of Oahu;

     (2)  Specifying that replicas of the Memorial be located on the grounds of state veterans' cemeteries statewide;

     (3)  Changing the method of financing for the Memorial from general obligation bonds to general funds;

     (4)  Specifying that the Office of Veterans' Services shall consult with the Department of Accounting and General Services when expending funds for the planning, design, and construction of the Memorial; and

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

     Should the Committee on Finance deliberate on this measure, your Committee respectfully requests that it consider appropriating $5,000,000 for the planning, design, and construction of the Hawaii Gulf War Memorial and its replicas.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Veterans, Military, & International Affairs, & Culture and the Arts that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2597, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2597, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Veterans, Military, & International Affairs, & Culture and the Arts,

____________________________

K. MARK TAKAI, Chair