STAND. COM. REP. NO. 151

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 304

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 304 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE JUDICIARY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to establish positions and appropriate funds for Adult Services Probation of the First Circuit Court.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Judiciary and one member of the Kalihi Palama Neighborhood Board.

Your Committee finds that in June 2024, the American Probation and Parole Association published national standards for community supervision which indicated that the optimal caseload distribution according to risk level is: intensive, twenty to one; moderate to high risk, fifty to one; and low risk, two hundred to one. One study highlighted the benefits of following these national standards, showing that recidivism fell by thirty percent where agencies redistributed caseloads to ensure smaller caseloads of higher-risk individuals. Although the Adult Client Services Branch has made efforts to align with the national standards recommended by the American Probation and Parole Association, these standards are unattainable with existing staffing at the Adult Client Services Branch. This measure will allow the Adult Client Services Branch to move towards the recommended national best practice standards for community supervision.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Inserting legislative findings;

(2) Deleting language that would have appropriated funds for one full-time equivalent secretary position;

(3) Changing the appropriations to unspecified amounts for operating expenses and an unspecified number of positions;

(4) Inserting an effective date of April 23, 2057, to encourage further discussion; and

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

Your Committee notes that that this measure, as amended, contains an unspecified appropriation amount.  Should your Committee on Ways and Means choose to deliberate on this measure, your Committee respectfully requests that it consider inserting an appropriation amount of:

(1) $739,440 to establish permanent positions in Adult Services Probation of the First Circuit Court, including:

(A) $73,836 each for eight full-time equivalent (8.0 FTE) probation officer positions;

(B) $50,880 for one full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) social worker assistant position; and

(C) $48,936 each for two full-time equivalent (2.0 FTE) clerk positions; and

(2) $140,000 for operating expenses for Adult Services Probation of the First Circuit Court.

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. 304, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 304, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

________________________________

KARL RHOADS, Chair