STAND. COM. REP. 2386

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: S.B. No. 2448

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Health and Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 2448 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CRIME VICTIM COMPENSATION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to compensate family members of murder, manslaughter, and negligent homicide victims for mental health counseling services.

Testimony in support of this measure was received from the State Crime Victim Compensation Commission, the Departments of the Prosecuting Attorney for the City and County of Honolulu, and the Counties of Maui, Hawaii, and Kauai, and from the Sex Abuse Treatment Center.

Your Committees find that mental health counseling for surviving family members in cases involving a family member's death is essential to the survivors' recovery. Your Committees further find that the State Crime Victim Compensation Commission is currently not able to provide compensation for the costs of mental health counseling services obtained by surviving family members in cases where a family member is murdered, or killed as a result of manslaughter or negligent homicide. This measure would help rectify such situations.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Health and Human Services that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2448 and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs.

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

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SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair

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ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair