STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2987

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2897

S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 2897, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MARRIAGE LICENSE FEES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to increase the marriage license fee to provide additional funding for certain Department of Health functions and programs.

More specifically, the increase in the marriage license fee will be directed to:

(1) Support the Hawaii Birth Defects Program;

(2) Fund modernization of the State's vital statistics system; and

(3) More fairly compensate marriage license agents.

Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Department of Health.

Your Committee finds that the data collected by the Hawaii Birth Defects Program is critical to identifying and investigating factors that may cause birth defects and to addressing community concerns about birth defects in the State.

Your Committee has amended this measure by changing the effective date to July 1, 2050, to facilitate further discussion on the measure.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2897, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2897, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

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DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair