STAND. COM. REP. NO. 794-20

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2020

RE: H.B. No. 1706

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 1706 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require any candidate, candidate committee, or noncandidate committee to return excess contributions by nonresident contributors within thirty days and escheat excess contributions that were not returned within thirty days to the Hawaii Election Campaign Fund.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Campaign Spending Commission, Common Cause Hawaii, and five individuals.

Your Committee finds that Hawaii law currently limits the amount of time a candidate leaving office may contribute toward scholarships or other charitable causes, which can cut off financial support for some students at four-year programs, among other consequences.

Your Committee also finds that current law allows candidates to use campaign funds to purchase vehicles for personal use, which may be excessive for Hawaii elections.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Inserting a purpose section;

(2) Amending the allowable uses of campaign funds to:

(A) Include the lease of vehicles for the duration of a campaign, instead of allowing for the purchase of vehicles; and

(B) Increase the total amount of donations to certain organizations, public schools, or public libraries and scholarship awards to four times the maximum amount that one person may contribute to the candidate;

(3) Allowing, until November 5, 2024, a candidate who is elected to office to use campaign funds for certain purposes or return funds to contributors until two years following the end of the candidate's term for which the campaign funds were received, instead of two years from the date of the election for which the campaign funds were received;

(4) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

(5) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of 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. 1706, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1706, 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