STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1393

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2021

RE: S.B. No. 1144

S.D. 2

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, Human Services, & Homelessness, to which was referred S.B. No. 1144, S.D. 2, entitled:

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

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to increase marriage license fees to:

(1) Fund modernization of the vital statistics system;

(2) Support the Hawaii Birth Defects Program; and

(3) More fairly compensate marriage license agents.

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

Your Committee finds that marriage license fees support the Hawaii Birth Defects Program, pay into the Spouse and Child Abuse Special Fund, and provide compensation for non-civil service marriage license agents. Your Committee further finds that the allocation for the Hawaii Birth Defects Program was set at $10 in 2002 and the allocation to compensate marriage license agents was set at $9 in 1998. Neither allocation has been adjusted to meet rising operating and salary costs and your Committee finds that the money collected from marriage license fees is no longer adequate to support these activities. Increasing marriage license fees and reallocating funds from those fees will ensure the Hawaii Birth Defects Program maintains adequate funding to fulfill its mandated responsibilities and appropriately compensate marriage license agents.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Removing remittance of a portion of the marriage license fees to the Vital Statistics Improvement Special fund;

(2) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2060, to encourage further discussion; and

(3) 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 Health, Human Services, & Homelessness that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1144, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1144, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health, Human Services, & Homelessness,

____________________________

RYAN I. YAMANE, Chair