STAND. COM. REP. NO. 877

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 628

       S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 628, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to promote the timely appointment of individuals to vacancies on boards and commissions.

     Specifically, this measure:

(1)  Requires department heads to report to the Governor any vacancies on boards and commissions that are placed in or administratively attached to their respective departments;

(2)  Requires the Special Advisor for Technology Development to assist the Governor in establishing and updating a list of all boards and commissions consisting of the names of the various appointees, current vacancies, legal authorities, terms, and other related information;

(3)  Requires outgoing governors to fill board and commission vacancies and provide an up-to-date list of all boards' and commissions' memberships, terms of service, and any pending vacancies to the governor-elect; and

(4)  Appropriates an unspecified amount of funds for one full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) position to manage the listing of information on all state boards and commissions.

     Your Committee received written comments on measure from the Department of Taxation.

     Your Committee finds that there are over one-hundred seventy state boards and commissions, each with its own specific membership requirements.  Your Committee further finds that establishing a listing of the various state boards and commissions will help highlight current and upcoming vacancies so that the Governor may make timely nominations and appointments for those positions and allow the Senate and the public at large to thoroughly vet each nomination.

     Your Committee has requested that the Governor provide the next Committee that hears this measure with the cost of the full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) position requested by this measure along with the current staffing status of the employees assigned to address the backlog of vacant memberships on boards and commissions.

Your Committee has amended this measure by changing the effective date to July 1, 2050, to facilitate further discussion.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 628, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 628, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

________________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair