STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3349

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.R. No. 78

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Economic Development, Tourism, and Technology and Judiciary, to which was referred S.R. No. 78 entitled:

"SENATE RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE HAWAII SISTER-STATE COMMITTEE AND DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND TOURISM TO EVALUATE THE SISTER-STATE PROGRAM AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE THE CAPACITY AND SUSTAINABILITY OF THE EFFORTS TO PROMOTE MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL INTERNATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Hawaii Sister-State Committee and Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, in consultation with certain members of the Legislature, to provide a report to the Legislature that evaluates the sister-state program and makes recommendations to improve efforts to promote mutually beneficial international relationships to stimulate, among other things, economic growth.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; and O‘ahu County Committee on Legislative Priorities of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i.

Your Committees find that the sister-state program was established in 1981, with the first sister-state relation being formed with Fukuoka, Japan. In order to administer the program, in 2006, the Sister-State Committee was established by Act 150, Session Laws of Hawaii 2006, and was administratively placed in the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism. Your Committees further find that to date, the State has established sister-state relations with seventeen different jurisdictions around the world, and one is awaiting formal signing, which would bring the total to eighteen established relations. Your Committees believe that although the sister-state relations established have the potential to stimulate the economy of the State, for some sister-state relations, there has been no activity. Your Committees recognize the benefit of having sister-state relations and encourage more effort to be put toward sister-state relation activities.

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

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Economic Development, Tourism, and Technology and Judiciary that are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the intent and purpose of S.R. No. 78, as amended herein, and recommend its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.R. No. 78, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Economic Development, Tourism, and Technology and Judiciary,

________________________________ BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair

________________________________ GLENN WAKAI, Chair