STAND. COM. REP. NO. 813

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2005

RE: S.B. No. 1094

S.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 1094 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT MAKING AN APPROPRIATION FOR THE HANA COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to appropriate funds for the Hana Community Health Center for operations and equipment expenses.

Your Committee finds that maintenance of the levels of programs provided by the Hana Community Health Center is clearly essential to the public health, safety, and welfare. The Hana Community Health Center is the only health care provider in the district of Hana, one of the most isolated areas of the State. It provides essential medical services in an area that is federally designated as having a medically underserved population, mental health underserved population, and dental underserved population. Further, your Committee is also aware that Act 263, Session Laws of Hawaii 1996, authorized the transfer of the Hana medical center from the State to the Hana Community Health Center in July 1997, with a guarantee to continue providing needed state funding to support the development of the community-based health care program. In this regard, while the Center has demonstrated an ability to generate funds from a variety of funding resources for the initiation of new programs and services, state support will always be required to fund core medical services.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this bill by:

(1) Replacing the appropriation from the general fund with an appropriation of an unspecified amount from the emergency and budget reserve fund established by section 328L-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes;

(2) Adding language making the legislative finding that maintenance of the levels of programs at the Hana Community Health Center are essential to the public health, safety, and welfare; and

(3) Making technical nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1094, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1094, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

____________________________

BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair