Second Crossover

HOUSE VOTES TO MOVE BILLS TO CONFERENCE COMMITTEES FOR FURTHER DEBATE

House and Senate Conferees to Sort out Differences on Legislation and State Budget

The State House of Representatives voted on over a hundred-fifty bills today dealing with education, sustainability, the environment, revitalizing our economy, and improving the quality of life for Hawaii residents.  The majority of bills will go into conference committees where House and Senate conferees will negotiate differences in the measures and determine which will go through for final consideration.

"We look forward to meaningful discussions with our Senate counterparts that will lead to agreements on legislation important to our State and citizens. With just about a month left in this legislative session, I believe that the state budget that we developed and the bills that we crafted have met the objectives that the House set for itself when the session began.  We have engaged the community, developed sound public policies, and approached the state budget in a fiscally conservative manner," said House Speaker Joseph M. Souki.

SB1082 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION OF SCHOOL CHILDREN Repeals various provisions relating to student transportation policy requirements allowing the State to have reasonable flexibility with school bus contracts.

SB1083 HD2 RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION OF SCHOOL CHILDREN Exempts contracts from statutory requirements for wage certification, primarily base salaries for bus drivers.

SB105 SD2 HD1 RELATING TO HEALTH Requires the Department of Health's Emergency Medical Services and Injury Prevention System Branch to establish and maintain a statewide Fall Prevention and Early Detection Program to support the health and well-being of the elderly population.

SB102 SD2 HD1 RELATING TO THE ELDERLY Requires financial institutions to report instances of suspected financial abuse directly to the appropriate county police department as well as the Department of Human Services.

SB106 SD1 HD1 RELATING TO AGING Appropriates funds for programs and services that support the State's elderly population and establishes a Task Force on Mobility Management.

SB1093 SD2 HD2 RELATING TO SCHOOL READINESS Establishes a School Readiness Program as part of the State's Early Learning System.

SB1084 SD1 HD1 PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE X, SECTION 1, OF THE HAWAII STATE CONSTITUTION TO PERMIT THE APPROPRIATION OF PUBLIC FUNDS FOR PRIVATE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PROGRAMS Proposes a constitutional amendment to authorize the appropriation of public funds for the support or benefit of private early childhood education programs.

SB1095 SD2 HD2 RELATING TO EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION Establishes the Early Childhood Education Program. This bill is contingent upon the ratification of the constitutional amendment proposed in SB1084 above.

SB237 SD2 HD1 RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOL LANDS Authorizes the Board and the Department of Education to facilitate the redevelopment of public school lands, by cooperating with private enterprises; the various components of federal, state, and county governments; and the public in order to generate income to improve public school facilities and infrastructure to meet the challenges of the twenty first century.

SB563 SD3 HD2 RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII Reconstitutes the form and processes of the Candidate Advisory Council to ensure the appointment of qualified individuals to serve as members of the Board of Regents and effectively lead the University of Hawaii. Several concerns have been raised as to the selection process, which has hampered the work of the Board of Regents Candidate Advisory Council, and this bill seeks to address those concerns.

SB9 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO ANIMALS Provides greater protections for animals by requiring that a person convicted of cruelty to animals in the first or second degree shall, in addition to any fine or imprisonment, be prohibited from possessing or owning any animal involved in the offense for a period of time.

SB978 HD1 RELATING TO THE PENAL CODE Increases protections for pet animals by making the offense of cruelty to animals in the second degree involving twenty-five or more pet animals in any one instance a class C felony.

SB635 SD1 HD3 RELATING TO ANIMAL CRUELTY Establishes felony and misdemeanor offenses for injuring or killing an animal engaged in law enforcement or corrections activities.

SB642 HD2 RELATING TO HEALTH The intent of the bill is to reduce the number of under aged individuals using tobacco products by requiring that tobacco products, including cigarettes, be stored for sale behind a counter in certain retail establishments. The bill also amends the Medical Marijuana Law to, among other provisions, increase the number of plants that can be grown, limits the “adequate supply amount” to 21 or less marijuana plants among registered patients and caregivers, and transfers the Medical Use Marijuana Program from the Department of Public Safety to the Department of Health.

SB655 SD2 HD2 RELATING TO HEALTH Protects public health by allowing health care professionals to provide Expedited Partner Therapy by dispensing or prescribing antibiotic medication.  Allows health care professionals to prescribe medication for partners of a patient diagnosed with sexually transmitted disease without first examining them.

SB548 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO TELEMEDICINE Exempts from the licensing requirement to practice medicine in the State any commissioned medical officer employed by the U.S. Department of Defense, who is credentialed by Tripler Army Medical Center to provide telemedicine support. This measure is necessary to ensure that service members who seek medical services at Hawaii National Guard armories on the neighbor islands will be able to receive telemedicine support by qualified medical personnel.

SB668 SD2 HD1 RELATING TO HEALTH Requires health insurers, mutual benefit societies, and health maintenance organizations to provide coverage for autism spectrum disorder treatments.

SB1171 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO THE REVIEW OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION PROJECTS The purpose of this bill is to protect Hawaii's historical and cultural heritage while providing flexibility in the review of construction projects. It authorizes the phased review of projects by the Department of Land and Natural Resources' State Historic Preservation Division. The inability to phase review could affect complex multi-year and multi-phase projects.

SB535 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO LABOR Extends certain basic labor rights and protections to domestic workers by prohibiting an employer from discharging or discriminating against a domestic worker in compensation or in terms, conditions, or privileges of employment.

SB930 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO THE PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL SPACE CENTER FOR EXPLORATION SYSTEMS SUSTAINABLE CONCRETE INITIATIVE Appropriates funds to support the investigative stage of the Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems (PISCES) sustainable concrete initiative.  Requires PISCES to provide reports to the Legislature regarding the Sustainable Concrete Initiative and other issues that would support economic development in Hawaii.

SB1256 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO THE PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL SPACE CENTER FOR EXPLORATION SYSTEMS Appropriates an unspecified amount for operations, personnel costs, and the purchase of equipment required to support the Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems (PISCES) activities. Requires PISCES to submit an annual report to the Legislature.

SB1221 SD2 HD2 RELATING TO HIGHER EDUCATION Appropriates an unspecified amount for each year of fiscal biennium 2013-2015 for a Program Coordinator and technical support staff member for the proposed international flight training center and associated proposed aeronautical training programs at the University of Hawaii at Hilo and Hawaii Community College.

SB23 SD1 HD1 RELATING TO THE ISSUANCE OF SPECIAL PURPOSE REVENUE BONDS TO ASSIST A SEAWATER AIR CONDITIONING PROJECT Authorizes the issuance of special purpose revenue bonds in an unspecified amount to assist Kaiuli Energy, LLC, with financing the planning, design, construction and other cost items of a seawater air conditioning district cooling facility and chilled water distribution system in and around Waikiki, on the island of Oahu.

SB1092 SD1 HD1 MAKING AN APPROPRIATION TO RECAPITALIZE THE HURRICANE RESERVE TRUST FUND Makes a general fund appropriation of an unspecified amount for fiscal year 2014-2015 to recapitalize the hurricane reserve trust fund.

SB1094 SD1 HD1 MAKING AN APPROPRIATION TO THE EMERGENCY AND BUDGET RESERVE FUND Makes a general fund appropriation of an unspecified amount for fiscal year 2014-2015 to recapitalize the emergency and budget reserve fund.

SB1194 SD2 HD1 RELATING TO TRANSIENT ACCOMMODATIONS TAX Repeals the additional Transient Accommodations Tax imposed by Act 61, SLH 2009 and reestablishes the tax rate at 7.25%. Repeals the daily tax on transient accommodations furnished on a complimentary or gratuitous basis imposed by Act 103, SLH 2011. Makes permanent the caps on Transient Accommodations Tax revenue distributions to the Tourism Special Fund and the counties beginning July 1, 2013.

SB98 SD1 HD1 RELATING TO TAXATION Reduces the tax liability for low-income taxpayers by creating a tax credit that will reduce a taxpayer's income tax to a minimum amount if the taxpayer's federal and Hawaii adjusted gross income falls below certain thresholds.

SB498 SD2 HD1 RELATING TO EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES Appropriates funds out of the Emergency Medical Services Special Fund to establish and fund a twenty-four-hour, seven-days-a-week, special emergency medical response vehicle unit based in Maalaea, Maui.

SB524 SD1 HD1 RELATING TO AGRICULTURE Appropriates funds to support the objective of food security and self-sufficiency by establishing an agricultural development and food security program. Establishes state economic planning and policy objectives regarding increased demand for, to, and production of locally grown foods and appropriates funds to begin meeting these objectives.

SB606 SD2 HD2 RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII Appropriates an unspecified amount to the University of Hawaii to pay student employees at new or expanded worksites on each campus and for the University of Hawaii at Manoa student employment functions.

SB614 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO PUBLIC WORKS OF ART Requires the Comptroller and the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts to commission permanent works of art to honor the late U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye and the late U.S. Representative Patsy T. Mink. 

SB66 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO THE CODE OF ETHICS Makes the financial disclosure statements of members of certain state boards and commissions available for public inspection and duplication. Clarifies the fair treatment law by separating out certain limitations placed on task force members from those placed on legislators and makes clear that legislators are not prohibited from taking action in the exercise of the legislator's legislative functions.

SB1357 SD2 HD1 RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION Specifies that a government agency does not assume ownership or jurisdiction over a disputed road solely through maintenance activities. This bill would allow for government entities to repair disputed roads that would otherwise not be maintained.

SB19 SD1 HD2 RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY Exempts landlords and lessors who install renewable energy systems on their property and provide, sell, or transmit electricity generated from those renewable energy systems to tenants or lessees on the premises from the definition of public utility.

SB623 SD2 HD3 RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY Replaces the current renewable energy technology systems tax credit with tax credits for solar energy property and wind energy property. Requires the Department of Taxation and Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to report tax credits claimed under the renewable energy technology property tax credit and make recommendations to the Legislature.

SB1087 SD2 HD3 RELATING TO GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE Establishes a regulatory financing structure that authorizes the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) and the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism (DBEDT) low-cost loans for green infrastructure equipment to achieve measurable cost savings and to meet Hawaii's clean energy goals.

The House also passed two bills that will go to the Governor for his consideration and approval.  They are:

SB120 SD1 RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES Authorizes the public utilities commission to establish a policy to implement economic incentives and cost recovery regulatory mechanisms to induce and accelerate electric utilities' cost reduction efforts, encourage greater utilization of renewable energy, accelerate the retirement of utility fossil generation, and increase investments to modernize the State's electrical grids.

SB1040 RELATING TO ELECTRIC SYSTEMS Directs the Public Utilities Commission to consider the value of implementing advanced grid modernization technology in the State.