STAND. COM. REP. NO. 649________

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 645
                                     




Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs, to
which was referred H.B. No. 645 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO VETERANS RIGHTS AND
     BENEFITS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to:

     (1)  Require the Comptroller, at the request of a deceased
          Filipino veterans' survivor or an interested party, to
          make payment directly to a mortuary or crematory for:

          (a)  Funeral and burial services for a deceased WWII
               Filipino veteran; and

          (b)  Transportation of the veteran's remains to the
               Philippines;

          and

     (2)  Specify procedures by which the Comptroller and the
          Office of Veteran's Service (OVS) may disburse burial
          grant funds.

     The Office of Veterans' Services and a member of the public
testified in support of this measure.


 
 
 
                                 STAND. COM. REP. NO. 649________
                                 Page 2

 
     Your Committee finds that because of the tremendous up-front
costs associated with funeral and burial services and
transportation to the Philippines, some World War II Filipino
veterans, including the families and friends of these veterans,
cannot afford to pay for these activities in advance.
Consequently, some World War II Filipino veterans will not be
able to qualify for these burial grants from the OVS on account
of their being too poor.  This measure provides an alternative to
current OVS procedures for such individuals.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs that is attached
to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and
purpose of H.B. No. 645 and recommends that it pass Second
Reading and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Public Safety and
                                   Military Affairs,



                                   ______________________________
                                   NESTOR R. GARCIA, Chair