STAND. COM. REP. NO. 646

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 1297

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Transportation and Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 1297 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MOTOR VEHICLES,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Require an application for motor vehicle registration to include the applicant's name, occupation, address of residence, social security number, date of birth, driver's license number, phone number, electronic mail address, and emergency contacts;

(2) Authorize the counties to assess a fine to the legal or registered owner of a vehicle deemed abandoned; and

(3) Require the legal or registered owner to have up-to-date motor vehicle registration and motor vehicle insurance prior to repossession of the abandoned vehicle.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Honolulu Police Department and one individual. Your Committees received comments on this measure from Enterprise Holdings.

Your Committees find that abandoned vehicles on public roads are a widespread environmental hazard that creates unsafe and unhealthy conditions for Hawaii's residents and adversely impacts the availability of legal parking in many areas of the State. Your Committees believe that in order to address the rampant issue of individuals abandoning their cars in Hawaii, the State will require more information on the legal or registered owner of vehicles, thereby holding owners more accountable if they abandon their vehicles.

Your Committees recognize the concern regarding the amount of personal information that is being required by this measure and believe that while more information is necessary in order to keep vehicle owners accountable, many residents are uncomfortable with providing highly sensitive information.

Accordingly, your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Removing the requirement of providing an individual's social security number, date of birth, and electronic mail address from the list of personal information needed for registration; and

(2) Clarifying that the legal or registered owner shall not be fined if the abandoned vehicle has been stolen or taken from the legal or registered owner without permission or authorization, as suggested by Enterprise Holdings.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Transportation and Judiciary that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1297, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1297, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Transportation and Judiciary,

________________________________ KARL RHOADS, Chair

________________________________ LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair