STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3725

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.R. No. 178

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.R. No. 178 entitled:

"SENATE RESOLUTION DENOUNCING RUSSIA'S ACTIONS CAUSING A HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN UKRAINE AND URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO TAKE CONCRETE ACTION TO SUPPORT UKRAINIAN REFUGEES AND TO INCREASE THE REFUGEE LIMITS FOR THE UNITED STATES AND INCREASE FUNDING RELATED TO THOSE EFFORTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Strongly and forcefully denounce the Russian Federation and its President Vladimir Putin for the blatant targeting of civilians by the Russian military and the destruction of civilian infrastructure, which makes evacuating civilians from the warzone even more difficult;

(2) Urge the United States Congress to take concrete actions to help with the refugee crisis facing Ukraine and its European neighbors by increasing material support to refugees, both those internally displaced, such as those who have fled to the relatively safe western part of Ukraine, and those who have fled the country, by sending monetary support and supplies to Ukraine and its neighbors who have accepted large numbers of refugees; and

(3) Urge the President and Congress of the United States to take an active role in assisting the crisis by raising the U.S. Refugee Admissions and Refugee Resettlement Ceilings, making a stronger effort at resettling more Ukrainian refugees into the United States, and allocating more funding in order to support those efforts.

Your Committee did not receive any testimony on this measure.

Your Committee finds that the Russian invasion of Ukraine has prompted two million Ukrainians to flee the country as of March 8, 2022, and the number has grown even higher as Russia continues its siege tactics of indiscriminately bombing cities. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, as of March 8, 2022, Poland has received 1,204,403 refugees, Hungary has received 191,348 refugees, Romania has received 143,000 refugees, Slovakia has received 140,745 refugees, the Czech Republic has received more than one hundred thousand refugees, and Moldova has received 82,762 refugees, with other countries receiving fewer refugees. This measure will urge the United States to do more to help the Ukrainian government and countries housing refugees as soon as possible.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Replacing the term "refugees" with "internally displaced people" when referring to people displaced within Ukraine;

(2) Specifying that according to the UN Refugee Agency, as of March 31, 2022, Poland has received 2,384,814 refugees, Romania has received 623,627, Moldova received 390,187 refugees, Hungary has received 374,535 refugees, and Slovakia has received 292,039 refugees;

(3) Specifying that although United States President Biden has stated that the United States will accept one hundred thousand refugees, the United States needs to do more to help the refugee crises as countries like Poland, Romania, and Moldova are taking in a disproportionate amount of Ukrainian refugees compared to the rest of the world; and

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

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.R. No. 178, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.R. No. 178, S.D. 1.

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

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KARL RHOADS, Chair