STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1270-16

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2016

RE:   S.B. No. 2162

      S.D. 2

      H.D. 1

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 2162, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HAWAIIAN LANGUAGE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to appropriate funds to the Judiciary to establish, in collaboration with the University of Hawaii System, Hawaiian language resources for the Judiciary.

The Judiciary, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, University of Hawai‘i Institute of Hawaiian Language Research and Translation, ‘Aha Pūnana Leo, ‘Ai Pohaku, Kamehameha Schools, and many individuals testified in support of this measure.  The Center for Hawaiian Sovereignty Studies testified in opposition to this measure.

     Your Committee finds that the State must encourage and advance the use and utility of the Hawaiian language as provided in article X, section 4, of the Hawaii State Constitution, which directs the State to "promote the study of Hawaiian culture, history, and language."  Your Committee further finds that recommendations made by the Hawaiian Language Web Feasibility Task Force in its report can help to establish long-term Hawaiian language resources and capacity building to train experts in the Hawaiian language.

     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. 2162, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance.

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

____________________________

KARL RHOADS, Chair