STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2427

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2115

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Government Operations, to which was referred S.B. No. 2115 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE STATE ETHICS CODE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Amend the state ethics code to require candidates for state elective offices to disclose the name of clients assisted or represented before state agencies;

(2) Give the State Ethics Commission discretion in determining how financial disclosure statements should be filed; and

(3) Remove the exemption of Hawaii Correctional System Oversight Commission members from financial disclosure requirements.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawai‘i State Ethics Commission, Common Cause Hawaii, and Pono Hawai‘i Initiative.

Your Committee finds that financial disclosure requirements no longer need to use long and short paper forms and that current technology allows for electronic means of disclosing financial information more effectively and efficiently. Your Committee also finds that disclosure of financial interests by candidates for elective offices, including election to the constitutional convention should include the names of the candidate's clients that were represented or assisted by the candidate before a state agency for compensation, and that disclosure of financial interests should also be required of the members of Correctional System Oversight Commission.

Your Committee notes the testimony of the Hawai‘i State Ethics Commission that H.B. No. 2125 is a substantially similar measure that has already been reviewed and revised by the Legislative Reference Bureau, and that this measure should be amended to mirror its language.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by incorporating a technical, nonsubstantive amendment to conform to the language of H.B. No. 2125.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Government Operations that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2115, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2115, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Government Operations,

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LAURA H. THIELEN, Chair