STAND. COM. REP. NO. 941

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2019

RE: H.B. No. 1261

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 1261 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATED TO JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to make permanent the requirement that decisions in contested case hearings of the Commission on Water Resource Management, Land Use Commission, Public Utilities Commission, Hawaii Community Development Authority, and those involving conservation districts be appealed directly to the Supreme Court, with certain exceptions.

The University of Hawai‘i System; Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce; Maunakea Observatories; David S. De Luz, Sr. Enterprises, Inc.; Hawaii Island Chamber of Commerce; Land Use Research Foundation of Hawaii; and several individuals testified in support of this measure. An individual testified in opposition. The Judiciary and Department of the Attorney General provided comments.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Extending the requirement for two years instead of making it permanent; and

(2) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity, consistency, and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1261, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1261, H.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

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

____________________________

CHRIS LEE, Chair