STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3274

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 2000

                                   RE:  H.B. No. 2586
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2000
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No.
2586 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CHAPTER 92F, UNIFORM
     INFORMATION PRACTICES ACT (MODIFIED),"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill, as received by your Committee, is
to clarify that agencies have ten working days from the date of
the receipt of a request to allow examination of a personal
record.

     Your Committee finds that this clarification in the law will
assist agencies and the public in ensuring that requests for
examination of personal records are addressed in a timely manner.
Your Committee further finds that the Office of Information
Practices (OIP) is responsible for the enforcement of this
provision, among others contained in chapter 92F, Hawaii Revised
Statutes (HRS).  Your Committee notes that chapter 92F, HRS, and
the OIP were originally legislative initiatives, and while the
legislature has amended various provisions of chapter 92F, HRS,
since its creation in 1988, the OIP remains a temporary office
within the office of the lieutenant governor.  Your Committee
agrees that because of the key function OIP serves as the
citizen's advocate for access to government records, the more
appropriate permanent placement of the office should be within
the legislative branch rather than the executive branch. 


 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3274
                                   Page 2


     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the
Office of Information Practices.

     Upon further consideration, your Committee has amended this
measure by:

     (1)  Placing the Office of Information Practices (OIP)
          within the Office of the Ombudsman for administrative
          purposes and allowing the Director of OIP to be
          appointed by the legislature;

     (2)  Transferring all OIP personnel and equipment to the
          Ombudsman;

     (3)  Making an appropriation to the Office of the Ombudsman
          to effectuate the transfer;

     (4)  Changing the effective date to allow the transfer of
          OIP to become effective July 1, 2000; and

     (5)  Making technical non-substantive changes for the
          purposes of clarity and style.

     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 H.B. No.
2586, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second
Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2586, S.D. 1, and
be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

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



                                   ______________________________
                                   AVERY B. CHUMBLEY, Co-Chair



                                   ______________________________
                                   MATTHEW M. MATSUNAGA, Co-Chair

 
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