STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2261

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2302

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 2302 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO YOUTH HOMELESSNESS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate funds to the Hawaii Youth Services Network as a grant to provide short-term funding, from May to September 2018, to address the anticipated loss of federal funds that support the runaway and homeless youth partnership's transitional living program.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Governor's Coordinator on Homelessness, Department of Human Services, Office of Youth Services, Hawaii Substance Abuse Coalition, Hawaii Youth Services Network, League of Women Voters, Hale Kipa, Domestic Violence Survivor Advocate, Hawaii Children's Action Network, Rainbow Family 808, and three individuals.

Your Committee finds that the 2017 State of Hawaii homeless point-in-time count recorded an overall twelve percent decrease statewide in the total number of unsheltered homeless, yet the homeless youth count was nearly identical to that of 2016. Your Committee further finds that three hundred nineteen unaccompanied youth were counted as homeless and that eighty-two percent of unaccompanied youth were unsheltered.

Your Committee notes that the Hawaii Youth Services Network, a nonprofit statewide coalition of youth-serving organizations, has conducted a statewide runaway and homeless youth partnership program providing street outreach, emergency shelter, and transitional living space to runaway and homeless youth. The homeless youth partnership program offers safe and stable housing for youth ages sixteen to twenty-one for up to eighteen months. Your Committee recognizes that the Hawaii Youth Services Network has received federal grant funding to support services of the transitional living program and that the current federal grant funding ends on April 30, 2018.

Your Committee also notes that in June 2017, Hawaii Youth Services Network and other grantees were informed that they could not apply to renew grant funding and there was no certainty that there would be funding available in 2018. Should funding be available in 2018, the new grant would not become available until September 30, 2018, creating a minimum five-month lapse in funding for the transitional living program. Appropriating funds to the Hawaii Youth Services Network and partner organizations to fill this gap in funding demonstrates the need and importance of programs and services for unaccompanied homeless youth such as transitional living programs.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2302 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 Human Services,

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JOSH GREEN, Chair