STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2160

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2437

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary and Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 2437 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CAMPAIGN SPENDING,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to change the name of the Hawaii election campaign fund to the Hawaii citizens' election fund.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from one individual.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Campaign Spending Commission and one individual.

     Your Committee finds that the name of the Hawaii election campaign fund may be misleading.  This measure changes the name of the Hawaii election campaign fund to better reflect the purpose of the fund, which is to fund the State's partial public funding program, and promote public awareness and understanding of the fund in hopes of increasing revenue derived from contributions from taxpayers' income tax returns.  Your Committee notes that this measure should be contingent upon the passage of S.B. No. 2438, Regular Session of 2016, as amended, which replaces the Hawaii election campaign fund with the general revenues of the State as the funding source for the operating expenses of the Campaign Spending Commission.

     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. 2437 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

________________________________

GILBERT S.C. KEITH-AGARAN, Chair