Legislature Overrides 34 of Governor’s Vetoes

The Hawaii House of Representatives today joined with the State Senate in overriding 34 of Governor Lingle’s 53 vetoes. On June 30th, the Governor announced a list of 65 potential vetoes, one-fourth of the 250 bills passed in the 2009 legislative session.

“We weighed each veto carefully, taking into consideration the Governor’s objections,” said Speaker of the House Calvin Say. “These measures did go through the legislative process with significant public input. The overrides that we supported today are for bills that we and the public have debated and worked hard on. The majority of members, with their vote, believe they should go forward.”

The total number of bills passed this year was lower than in previous years due to the state’s severe budget shortfall. In 2008, the legislature passed 294 bills. In 2007, the legislature passed 394 bills. Of note, there were only three bills outside of the state budget bill that contained an appropriation of general funds. These bills are of critical statewide importance, related to healthcare, and considered high priority for Hawaii’s most vulnerable population.

“The state of the economy and the on-going budget crisis were top of mind as we approached the override session,” said Majority Leader Blake Oshiro. “This year, knowing that people are losing their jobs and businesses are closing, our first concern in considering overrides is how the public will be impacted, now and for the long-term. Critical needs like healthcare for children and the poor, food and energy security – these will end up costing all of us much more down the road if we abandon these efforts now.”

The following measures vetoed by the Governor were overridden by the Legislature and are now law:

House Bills

HB31 SD1 CD1 - RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES. Employers prohibited from using individual’s credit history in hiring and firing decisions, with exemptions.

HB183 HD1 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO EDUCATION. Addresses various organizational issues for and activities of the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board.
HB343 HD1 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO RURAL PRIMARY HEALTH CARE TRAINING. Appropriates funds to develop a statewide rural primary health care training program and support for the family medicine residency program of the UH John A. Burns School of Medicine.

HB358 HD1 SD1 CD1 – RELATING TO DRUG TREATMENT. Authorizes placement of certain offenders in secure drug treatment facilities.

HB754 HD1 SD1 CD2 – RELATING TO THE HAWAII TOURISM AUTHORITY. Transfers tourism research and statistics from DBEDT to HTA. Places ex-officio members from the HTA board to an advisory group. Expands the scope of tourism emergency. Provides additional funds to the tourism special fund for one fiscal year.

HB952 HD1 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO LABOR. Certifies entities as exclusive representatives without an election where no other representatives are certified as the exclusive bargaining representatives for employers with an annual gross revenue of $5 million or more.

HB982 HD3 SD1 CD1 – RELATING TO FAMILY LEAVE. Establishes a new data collection system for family leave. Appropriates $10,000 from the disability benefits special fund.

HB989 HD1 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO CHILDREN’S HEALTH CARE. Amends Act 236, SLH2007, which established the Hawaii Children’s Health Care program (Keiki Care) to extend the program to June 30, 2012. Appropriates $200,000 for each year of the biennium.

HB1471 HD2 SD1 CD1 – RELATING TO FARMS. Establishes a pilot program within the Department of Agriculture to implement a safe food certification for products, coordinate purchasing agreements between agricultural cooperatives and hotels/restaurants.

HB1479 HD2 SD1 CD1 – RELATING TO LABOR. Requires the department of labor and industrial relations to include in certified payroll records a fringe benefit reporting form, on which contractors and subcontractors itemize the cost of fringe benefits paid to both union and non-union laborers who perform work for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings and public works. Allows for any certified form containing fringe benefit reporting requirements to be submitted in lieu of a form supplied by the department of labor and industrial relations. Effective 10/1/2009.

HB1504 HD1 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO HEALTH. Creates the Hawaii Health Authority to develop a comprehensive plan to provide universal health care in Hawaii.

HB1525 HD1 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO MEDICAID. Requires the department of human services to include specified reporting requirements in all medicaid healthcare insurance plan contracts.

HB1538 HD1 SD1 – RELATING TO ENVIRONMENTALLY-SENSITIVE PRODUCTS. Requires the department of education to give first preference to Green Seal approved environmentally sensitive cleaning and maintenance products for use in public schools; requires the department of health to maintain a list of Green Seal program approved products.

HB1544 HD1 SD1 CD1 – RELATING TO TAX EXEMPTIONS. Conforms state tax exemptions to federal phaseout provisions under section 151(d)(3) of the IRC. Ties threshold to amounts in place in 2008.

HB1552 HD2 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO PUBLIC LANDS. Authorizes DLNR to issue long-term residential leases to qualified persons in state living parks. Establishes living park planning councils to develop state living park master plans to ensure the living park achieves its purpose and goals; establishes 2-year moratorium on evictions of residents of Kahana valley state park.

HB1676 HD1 SD2 CD1 – RELATING TO PUBLIC WORKS. Requires that the collective bargaining agreement be submitted to the director of labor and industrial relations in order for the terms in the agreement to dictate the prevailing wages with regard to a project financed through the issuance of a special purpose revenue bond. Effective 07/01/2009.


Senate Bills


SB19 SD1 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO PROCUREMENT. Requires a procurement preference to a bidder in a public works construction contract of not less than $250,000 if the bidder is a party to an apprenticeship agreement registered with the department of labor and industrial relations for each apprenticeable trade the bidder will employ to construct the public works.

SB43 – RELATING TO PHYSICIAN WORKFORCE ASSESSMENT. Creates the John A. Burns school of medicine special fund and establishes an expenditure ceiling therefor; assesses a $60 fee upon renewal of physician and osteopathic physician licenses, with proceeds to be deposited to the special fund; requires recurring reports; appropriates $5,000 from the compliance resolution fund to the John A. Burns school of medicine special fund; requires reimbursement by June 30, 2010.

SB50 SD1 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY PRODUCERS. Sets terms and conditions for leases of public lands to renewable energy producers, including requiring a public hearing, project completion, design, and financing documentation, and limitations on terminating or altering existing leases of public lands affected.

SB266 SD2 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO GLOBAL WARMING. Establishes the climate change task force to assess the impacts of global warming and climate change trends in the State.
SB415 SD2 HD1 CD1 – RELATING TO HOME CARE AGENCIES. Requires the department of health to license home care agencies. Sunsets 6/30/2014.

SB420 SD2 HD2 – RELATING TO NATUROPATHIC MEDICINE. Amends the title of chapter 455 to "naturopathic medicine" and amends references therein; defines "naturopathic medicine"; changes the name of the board of examiners in naturopathy to the board of naturopathic medicine and authorizes the board to make rules; authorizes temporary license to licensed out-of-state naturopathic physicians in a declared public health emergency.

SB423 SD1 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO HEALTH. Appropriates money to match federal funds for medicaid disproportionate share hospital allowance.

SB539 SD1 HD1 CD1 – RELATION TO CORRECTIONS. Renames the intake service center division of DPS to the reentry intake service centers and directs the reentry intake service centers to work closely and collaborate with the furlough programs in each county, the Hawaii paroling authority, and the correction program services division to ensure that the reentry needs of inmates are being met. Establishes an oversight committee and reentry commission.

SB605 SD1 HD3 CD1 – RELATING TO NOISE. Requires the department of health to add the dBC decibel weighting system to the current dBA decibel weighting system for purposes of community noise control. Sets permissible maximum sound levels for nighttime in any urban land use district and grants the DOH and the county liquor commission the authority to enforce these limits. Directs the county liquor commission, with assistance from DOH and DLIR, to develop recommendations for a permanent maximum sound level, in decibels.

SB695 SD1 HD1 CD1 – RELATING TO WORKERS’ COMPENSATION. Requires the employer to continue medical services to an injured employee despite disputes over whether treatment should be continued, until the director of labor and industrial relations decides whether treatment should be continued. Effective July 1, 2009.

SB777 SD1 HD1 – RELATING TO COMPREHENSIVE SEXUALITY HEALTH EDUCATION. Requires any recipient of state funding specifically for sexuality health education programs to provide comprehensive medically accurate sexuality education.

SB1005 SD2 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO PUBLICITY RIGHTS. Establishes property rights in the commercial use of a person's name, voice, signature, or likeness.

SB1058 SD2 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES. Establishes a task force to examine issues relating to medical cannabis patients and current medical cannabis laws. Establishes a task force to examine the effects of salvia divinorum.

SB1183 SD2 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICES. Requires the Hawaii civil rights commission to define in administrative rules certain definitions for purposes of discriminatory employment practices.
SB1206 SD1 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO COUNTIES. Specifies that, subject to the approval of a county governing body, or in a county with a population of at least 500,000 people that has a county charter provision authorizing a county board to issue revenue bonds in its own name, then the county board may exercise all powers vested in the county with respect to an undertaking or loan program under the board's jurisdiction. Effective 07/01/09.

SB1218 SD2 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO MORTGAGE LOAN ORIGINATORS. Allows the commissioner of financial institutions to regulate, license, examine, and enforce laws regulating mortgage loan originators. Exempts mortgage loan originators from chapter 454, HRS, relating to mortgage brokers and solicitors.

SB1224 SD1 HD2 CD1 – RELATING TO AIRPORT CONCESSIONS. Allows for certain adjustments and modifications to airport concession leases. Effective 07/01/09.

SB1665 SD2 HD1 CD1 – RELATING TO HIGHER EDUCATION. Enhances the workforce development capacity of Hawaii's community colleges by establishing a skilled worker and business development center to provide workforce training to meet the rapidly evolving needs of both employers and employees. Appropriates Reed Act funds.