STAND. COM. REP. NO. 336-18

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2018

RE: H.B. No. 2675

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred H.B. No. 2675 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to provide emergency information broadcasted over television to be accessible to persons with hearing disabilities by requiring each local television station to provide closed or open captioning of the emergency information it provides.

The Disability and Communication Access Board, Ho‘omana Pono, LLC., Hawaii Disability Rights Center, Oahu County Committee on Legislative Priorities of the Democratic Party of Hawaii, and numerous individuals testified in support of this measure. The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, Department of Emergency Management of the City and County of Honolulu, and Hawaii Association of Broadcasters, Inc. provided comments.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Removing the mandate for a local television station to provide closed or open captioning for emergency information broadcasted over its station;

(2) Removing the procedures for enforcing compliance and the associated penalties for failure to comply;

(3) Mandating the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to amend the State Emergency Alert System and the State Emergency Management Plans, as necessary, to conform to all federal laws and regulations that ensure the accessibility of video programming that provides emergency information; and

(4) Changing its effective date to July 1, 2050, to promote further discussion.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2675, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2675, H.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce,

____________________________

ROY M. TAKUMI, Chair