STAND. COM. REP. NO. 631

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 211

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 211, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HAWAIIAN AS AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require that the Hawaiian language version of a law be held binding if the law in question was originally drafted in Hawaiian and then translated into English.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Kūpuna for the Mo‘opuna, and two individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Center for Hawaiian Sovereignty Studies. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of the Attorney General.

Your Committee finds that Article XV, section 4, of the Hawaii State Constitution provides that English and Hawaiian shall be the official languages of Hawaii except that Hawaiian shall be required for public acts and transactions as provided by law. Although Hawaiian was established as an official language of the State of Hawaii and codified in section 1-13, Hawaii Revised Statutes, English continues to be dominate and Hawaiian language access to government functions remains limited. This measure, therefore, reinforces the parity of Hawaiian language with the English language by codifying that laws drafted in Hawaiian shall be binding.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 211, S.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary,

________________________________

KARL RHOADS, Chair