House and Senate to Hold Briefing on GIA's

Representative Marcus Oshiro, chair of the House Finance Committee, announced today that the committee will hold two joint informational briefings with the Senate Ways and Means Committee on all grants-in-aid applications submitted to the 2008 Legislature.

The first informational briefing, for Oahu applicants, will be held on Saturday, March 8, 2008 at the State Capitol in the Capitol Auditorium located on the Chamber level. It will start at 9:00 a.m. and go until completion.

The second informational briefing will include Neighbor Island applicants and will be held on Wednesday, March 12, 2008 from 9:00 a.m. until completion.

This year, the Legislature received 250 applications for a total request of $156,457,762. Given the number of applicants, the chairs of the committees will be conducting the briefing under the following rules:

1. Only one representative per application will be called to provide information and answer questions.
2. Each representative will be allowed no more than three minutes to provide any additional information.
3. Applicants will be heard in alphabetical order.

Applicants are NOT required to attend the joint informational briefings, and all grants-in-aid applications will be duly considered regardless of whether the applicants attend the briefing.

Additionally, representatives of the State administration, who are responsible for the release and distribution of funds appropriated by the Legislature, have been asked to be present. They will be consulted on their respective analyses of the various requests and are to be available for questions by the committee members.

The GIA Process

The following guidelines are used as criteria for the Legislature in decision making. The applicant:

1. Must address health, safety, welfare and/or community needs.
2. Must have had their application reviewed by the state agency to which funds would be appropriated for expenditure.
3. Must be accredited in accordance with federal, state and county statutes.
4. Must comply with all federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination.
5. Must agree not to use state funds for entertainment or lobbying.
6. Must comply with all requirements of HRS 42F-103.

In addition to the informational briefings, the applications are posted on the Capitol website, www.capitol.hawaii.gov. The general public may download a list of applicants and view the applications on the website; all personal and sensitive information is redacted. The site also contains an email link for those who wish to comment directly on any of the applications.