CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 154

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2021

RE: H.B. No. 541

H.D. 1

S.D. 2

C.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the House of Representatives to the amendments proposed by the Senate in H.B. No. 541, H.D. 1, S.D. 2, 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:

(1) Clarify that the duties of the working group established within the Department of Health by Act 263, Session Laws of Hawaii 2019, include identifying gaps in services, coordinating funding sources, and establishing and identifying outcome measures for behavioral health, substance abuse, and homelessness;

(2) Amend the composition of the working group;

(3) Require the working group to report to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2022;

(4) Make an emergency appropriation to address budget shortfalls relating to payroll and other current expenses for the State Comprehensive Emergency Medical Services System; and

(5) Require the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs to create an additional certification category for emergency medical technicians certified by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians at a higher level of practice than emergency medical responders but who do not provide emergency ambulance service.

Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by:

(1) Removing the emergency appropriation;

(2) Removing the requirement that the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs create an additional certification category;

(3) Inserting an effective date of June 29, 2021; and

(4) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

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 H.B. No. 541, H.D. 1, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 541, H.D. 1, S.D. 2, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

____________________________ JARRETT KEOHOKALOLE Chair	____________________________ RYAN I. YAMANE Co-Chair
____________________________ LES IHARA, JR. Co-Chair	____________________________ LINDA ICHIYAMA Co-Chair
____________________________ J. KALANI ENGLISH Co-Chair	____________________________ ADRIAN K. TAM Co-Chair