CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 152-16

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2016

RE:    S.B. No. 2384

       S.D. 1

       H.D. 1

       C.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 2384, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LICENSING INSPECTIONS,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

     The purpose of this measure is to require the Department of Health to conduct unannounced visits and inspections, including inspections for relicensing and recertification, for certain state-licensed or state-certified care facilities and unannounced inspections for license renewals for medical marijuana dispensaries.

     Your Committee on Conference finds that the Department of Health (Department) is responsible for licensing, certifying, and monitoring several types of facilities, including care facilities and medical marijuana production centers and dispensaries, to ensure a standard of quality.  This measure requires the Department to conduct unannounced visits and inspections for state-licensed care facilities and medical marijuana production centers and dispensaries.  The Department prefers that relicensing or recertification surveys be unannounced in order to maximize the effectiveness of these visits and inspections for care facilities, production centers, and dispensaries, and to ensure improved safeguards for the public.

     Your Committee on Conference further finds that it would be beneficial to have a better understanding of the number of visits and inspections conducted by the Department on certain state-licensed or state-certified care facilities, prior to implementing the unannounced visit and inspection requirements for these facilities.

     Accordingly, your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Requiring the Department to submit reports to the Legislature, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Sessions of 2017, 2018, and 2019, regarding:

          (A)  The annual aggregate numbers of announced and unannounced visits conducted by the Department on state-licensed or state-certified care facilities;

          (B)  The annual aggregate numbers of unannounced inspections conducted by the Department on state-licensed or state-certified care facilities as follow-up visits, visits to confirm corrections or deficiencies, or visits to investigate complaints or suspicions of abuse or neglect; and

          (C)  The general outcomes and corrective actions taken by the Department as a result of the visits and investigations;

     (2)  Changing its effective date to July 1, 2016, and specifying that the provisions in this measure that apply to unannounced visits and inspections of state-licensed or state-certified care facilities shall take effect on July 1, 2019; and

     (3)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2384, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2384, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

____________________________ DELLA AU BELATTI, Co-Chair	____________________________ ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair
____________________________ KARL RHOADS, Co-Chair
____________________________ SCOTT Y. NISHIMOTO, Co-Chair