STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2498

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2403

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2024

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Government Operations, to which was referred S.B. No. 2403 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require:

(1) Any report of a study or audit enacted with a legislative appropriation to be submitted to the chairs of the appropriate subject matter committee of each house of the Legislature, unless the study or audit is financial or regularly occurring;

(2) Require the chairs of the appropriate subject matter committee of each house of the Legislature to conduct a public hearing or informational briefing within one year of receipt of a report, except under certain circumstances;

(3) Require the chairs of the appropriate subject matter committee of each house of the Legislature to conduct a public hearing or informational briefing within one year of the publication of a performance audit report issued by the Office of the Auditor except for financial audits or single audits; and

(4) Require state departments and agencies to submit a report to the Legislature containing certain information or newly enacted, funded state programs within one year of the date on which the program's enabling Act became law.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Office of the Auditor and two individuals.

Your Committee finds that, every year, laws are enacted that require new studies and audits of various state government departments or agencies. Conducting and completing many of these studies and audits require an appropriation and also consumes valuable time and resources of the department, agency, office, or branch of government tasked with preparing the study or audit. Your Committee also finds that the resultant report is often not widely reviewed by the Legislature or public and can sometimes go completely unnoticed despite the fact that these reports can contain valuable information. This measure will serve the public interest by mandating a public hearing or informational briefing that would facilitate discussion and analysis of the report findings and recommendations.

Your Committee notes the testimony of the Office of the Auditor that they "strongly agree that a public hearing or informational briefing is an invaluable means to inform the subject matter committees, the audited agencies, and the public about [their] performance audit findings".

Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting an effective date of July 1, 2112, to encourage further discussion.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Government Operations that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2403, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2403, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Government Operations,

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ANGUS L.K. MCKELVEY, Chair