STAND. COM. REP. NO. 217

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 31

 

 

 

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Intergovernmental and Military Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 31 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO VETERAN BURIAL GRANTS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to require the Office of Veterans' Services to provide an alternative to current procedures regarding funerals and transportation of remains for certain Filipino veterans of World War II.

 

     Specifically, this measure provides that upon the request of an eligible Filipino veteran's survivor or an interested party, the Office of Veterans' Services shall provide funeral and burial services and transport remains to the Philippines; provided that the amount disbursed shall not exceed $2,500 per person.

 

     This measure also appropriates an unspecified amount of money for burial grant funds for deceased Filipino veterans.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the United Filipino Council of Hawaii; the Filipino Coalition for Solidarity; the National Federation of Filipino American Associations Region 12; the Oahu Filipino Community Council; Nursing, Advocates and Mentors, Inc.; the Congress of Visayan Organizations; and the Asian American Network for Cancer Awareness Research and Training.

 

     Comments were submitted by the Office of Veteran Affairs of the Department of Defense.

 

 

     The measure would only apply in situations where a deceased Filipino veteran's survivor or an interested party has already paid for services rendered on behalf of the deceased veteran, or in situations where the deceased veteran may have purchased a pre‑paid funeral and burial plan.  During World War II, 142,000 Filipino forces joined the U.S. Armed Forces in the Far East, serving as an integral part of the U.S. Military.  Since 1992, approximately, 3,000 of these World War II Filipino veterans are residents of the State of Hawaii.  Approximately eighty per cent of these 3,000 World War II Filipino veterans presently reside on Oahu.

 

     Your Committee finds that, under the program established pursuant to this measure, the Office of Veterans' Services should provide direct disbursement for funeral services and transportation of remains for eligible Filipino veterans, rather than require veterans' survivors and interested parties to pay out-of-pocket for these expenses and wait to be reimbursed. 

 

     The intent of this measure is to provide direct disbursement, up to $2,500 per person, to eligible Filipino veterans' survivors and interested parties for the cost of funeral services and transportation of veteran's remains to the Philippines. 

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Intergovernmental and Military Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 31 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

 

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

 

 

 

____________________________

LORRAINE R. INOUYE, Chair