CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 120-16

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2016

 

RE:    S.B. No. 2559

       S.D. 1

       H.D. 1

       C.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

 

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

 

Sirs:

 

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 2559, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HOMELESSNESS,"

 

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

 

     The purpose of this measure is to address homelessness by providing more emergency and transitional shelter space funded in a cost-effective manner.

 

     Specifically, this measure:

 

     (1)  Establishes minimum requirements regarding sanitation facilities, partitioned space, and storage for personal possessions in emergency shelters that receive stipends from or are owned by the Department of Human Services;

 

     (2)  Authorizes the Department of Human Services to establish additional requirements for emergency shelters;

 

     (3)  Requires provider agencies that provide homeless shelter or assistance to submit financial audits annually, instead of triennially;

 

     (4)  Requires that homeless shelter stipends be made based upon performance measures actually achieved;

 

     (5)  Repeals statutory automatic annual adjustments of homeless stipend amounts and authorizes the Department of Human Services to contract with the provider agency for automatic adjustments;

 

     (6)  Requires that shelter and service payments amounts collected from homeless families and individuals be based upon ability to pay or other criteria established by contract with the Department of Human Services;

 

     (7)  Establishes positions and appropriates funds to assist in the operation of the homeless program;

 

     (8)  Appropriates funds for the establishment or improvement of emergency and transitional shelters for the homeless and for non-recurring costs for projects or programs to assist homeless families and individuals; and

 

     (9)  Requires the Department of Human Services to submit interim and final reports on the expenditure of funds in 2017 and 2018, respectively, for the establishment or improvement of emergency and transitional shelters for the homeless and for non-recurring costs for projects or programs to assist homeless families and individuals.

 

     Your Committee on Conference believes that requiring, rather than authorizing, emergency shelters to provide partitioned space for each homeless family or individual will help to make emergency shelters more appealing to homeless families and individuals.  Further, your Committee notes that the funds appropriated and positions established by this measure are more suitable for inclusion within House Bill No. 1700, the Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2016.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Requiring, rather than authorizing, shelters to provide partitioned space for each homeless family or individual;

 

     (2)  Deleting the provisions establishing and appropriating an unspecified amount of general funds for 2.0 permanent full-time equivalent (2.0 FTE) program specialist IV positions to assist in the operation of the homeless program;

 

     (3)  Deleting the provision appropriating an unspecified amount of general funds for the establishment or improvement of emergency and transitional shelters for the homeless and funding of other non-recurring costs for projects or programs to assist homeless families and individuals;

 

     (4)  Deleting the provisions requiring the Department of Human Services to submit reports to the Legislature and Governor on the expenditure of funds for the establishment or improvement of emergency transitional shelters after June 30, 2017;

 

     (5)  Making section 6, which requires any contract executed after June 30, 2017, between the Department of Human Services and a provider of emergency or transitional shelter, to comply with the requirements of the measure, effective July 1, 2016; and

 

     (6)  Making the effective date for sections 1 through 5, 7, and 8 of the measure July 1, 2017.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2559, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2559, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, C.D. 1.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

 

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

 

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

 

____________________________

DEE MORIKAWA, Co-Chair

 

____________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair

____________________________

SYLVIA LUKE, Co-Chair

 

____________________________

BREENE HARIMOTO, Co-Chair