CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 168

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2019

RE: S.B. No. 1494

S.D. 2

H.D. 1

C.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 1494, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

The purpose of this measure is to establish and fund a working group to evaluate current behavioral health care and related systems and identify steps to promote effective integration of services to improve response and coordination of care for individuals experiencing substance abuse, mental health conditions, and homelessness.

Your Committee on Conference finds that integrating the State's behavioral health care system will help individuals experiencing chronic substance abuse, mental health conditions, homelessness, and other chronic conditions access a comprehensive continuum of care, which will promote community stabilization and increase health outcomes while decreasing overutilization of high-cost acute care services.

Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by:

(1) Removing language that would have exempted the working group from the notice requirements for open meetings;

(2) Permitting less than a quorum of the working group's members to discuss official business outside of official working group meetings as long as no commitment to vote is made or sought;

(3) Removing the appropriation;

(4) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2019; and

(5) Making a technical, nonsubstantive amendment for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1494, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1494, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

____________________________ JOHN M. MIZUNO Co-Chair	____________________________ ROSALYN H. BAKER Chair
____________________________ JOY A. SAN BUENAVENTURA Co-Chair	____________________________ RUSSELL E. RUDERMAN Co-Chair
____________________________ BERTRAND KOBAYASHI Co-Chair	____________________________ GIL RIVIERE Co-Chair