STAND. COM. REP. NO. 37

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2001

RE: S.B. No. 993

S.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 993 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TOBACCO PRODUCTS REPORT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to provide the Department of the Attorney General with access to inspect, examine, and use certain tobacco tax returns and records on file with the Department of Taxation of any entity engaged in the business of manufacturing, wholesaling, distributing, or dealing in cigarettes or tobacco products in order to affect the proper administration for and enforcement of the tobacco liability act. chapter 675, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS).

Testimony in support of this measure was received by the Department of the Attorney General. The Department of Taxation provided comments on this measure.

Your Committee finds that access to tobacco tax information is necessary to confirm information provided to the Attorney General to implement, enforce, and administer the provision of the tobacco liability act. This information is key to enforce the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement. Your Committee further finds that if the State is deficient in its oversight regarding these matters, the State could lose a substantial portion of its tobacco settlement moneys.

Your Committee has amended this measure by making technical, nonsubstantive changes.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health and Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 993, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 993, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health and Human Services,

____________________________

DAVID MATSUURA, Chair