STAND. COM. REP. NO. 614

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 251

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary and Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 251 entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to exempt candidates who are already declared elected to office after running unopposed in an election or who would be unopposed in the general election from the prohibition on using election campaign funds to make charitable donations or to award scholarships during a certain period of time prior to the general election.

     Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from Common Cause Hawaii.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Campaign Spending Commission.

     Your Committee finds that candidates are prohibited from using campaign funds for certain purposes, such as making charitable donations and awarding scholarships, from the filing of nomination papers to the general election, presumably because these uses may be interpreted as attempts to buy votes.  This measure provides candidates who become elected to office prior to a general election the opportunity to use campaign funds for purposes of making charitable donations or awarding scholarships, as they no longer need to acquire votes to prevail in the general election.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Inserting an effective date of January 7, 2059, to encourage further discussion; and

     (2)  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 Judiciary and Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 251, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 251, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

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

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GILBERT S.C. KEITH-AGARAN, Chair