STAND. COM. REP. NO. 776

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2023

RE: H.B. No. 136

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 136 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LEGISLATIVE ALLOWANCE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require each house of the Legislature to post a report of the legislative allowance expenditures for each member of the respective house on the Legislature's website.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawai‘i State Ethics Commission, Commission to Improve Standards of Conduct, League of Women Voters of Hawaii, and one individual.

Your Committee finds that this measure implements one of the recommendations made by the Commission to Improve Standards of Conduct established by the House of Representatives in House Resolution No. 9, Regular Session of 2022. This measure will increase transparency and accessibility to information related to the expenditure of taxpayer monies.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Requiring each house to post the report on an annual basis rather than a rolling basis; and

(2) 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 Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 136, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 136, H.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

DAVID A. TARNAS, Chair