STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3177

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.R. No. 18

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Public Safety, Intergovernmental, and Military Affairs, to which was referred S.R. No. 18 entitled:

"SENATE RESOLUTION URGING UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES TO IMMEDIATELY RESUME BIOMETRIC INTAKE AND INTERVIEWS ON THE COUNTIES OF HAWAII, MAUI, AND KAUAI,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to urge the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to immediately resume biometric intake and interviews on the counties of Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Coalition for Immigrant Rights, Hawaii Friends of Civil Rights, Inter-Agency Council for Immigrant Services, and seven individuals.

     Your Committee finds that Honolulu is the only place in the State in which immigration services are available.  Immigrants residing on the neighbor islands who require such services are forced to travel to Honolulu at their own expense in order to obtain or maintain lawful immigration status.  The expenses of travel and accommodations, in addition to the application costs associated with United States Citizenship and Immigrant Services, are a great financial strain to these immigrants, many of whom are from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.  Your Committee finds that restoring biometric intake and interviews on the neighbor islands would relieve an unjust burden of individuals who are the least able to bear that burden.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Public Safety, Intergovernmental, and Military Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.R. No. 18, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means, in the form attached hereto as S.R. No. 18, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Public Safety, Intergovernmental, and Military Affairs,

________________________________

CLARENCE K. NISHIHARA, Chair