STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1985

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2019

RE: S.B. No. 1131

S.D. 2

H.D. 2

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred S.B. No. 1131, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO OHANA ZONES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to enhance the State's efforts to address the homelessness issue by:

(1) Amending the Ohana Zones Pilot Program, enacted by Act 209, Session Laws of Hawaii 2018, to:

(A) Include private property owned by non-profit organizations under a public-private partnership as potential Ohana Zone locations;

(B) Expand the number of Ohana Zone locations from three to six sites on Oahu and requiring, if the program capacity permits, two sites on the islands of Hawaii, Kauai, and Maui;

(C) Delete the deadline to establish evaluation timetables, criteria, and processes for the Ohana Zones Pilot Program;

(D) Add additional requirements for the reports on the Ohana Zones Pilot Program to be submitted to the Legislature; and

(E) Extend the sunset date for the Ohana Zones Pilot Program to June 30, 2022; and

(2) Appropriating $500,000 for each year of the fiscal biennium 2019-2021 for the Ohana Zones Pilot Program's staffing, facility construction, provision of services, and administration costs.

A Councilmember of the Kaua‘i County Council, Oahu County Democrats, LGBT Caucus of the Democratic Party of Hawaii, and O‘ahu County Democrats Committee on Legislative Priorities supported this measure. The Department of Human Services, Mayor of the County of Hawai‘i, a Councilmember of the Maui County Council, and Hawaii Kai Homeless Task Force offered comments on this measure.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the appropriation for the Ohana Zones Pilot Program to an unspecified amount; 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 Finance that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1131, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1131, S.D. 2, H.D. 2.

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

____________________________

SYLVIA LUKE, Chair