STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1119

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.C.R. No. 62

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Transportation, International and Intergovernmental Affairs, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 62 entitled:

 

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THAT MOTOR VEHICLE OWNERS DISABLE AUDIBLE MOTOR VEHICLE ALARM SYSTEMS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to make clear that vehicle owners with audible motor vehicle alarms consider disabling the audible feature or resetting the sensitivity of their alarms so that the wind and the vibrations of passing vehicles do not activate the alarms.

 

     No testimony was submitted.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by deleting its title and contents and inserting amended provisions of House Concurrent Resolution No. 158, which addresses the need for federal assistance in meeting costs incurred by the State as a result of the Compact of Free Association.

 

     As amended, this measure:

 

     (1)  Strongly urges the United States Department of the Interior to:

 

          (A)  Review the funding of the Compact Impact Assistance grant and to make every effort to increase the amount of direct assistance available to Hawaii to offset costs incurred by the State due to the Compact of Free Association; and

 

          (B)  Identify and secure other forms of direct assistance to the State and the Compact of Free Association population in the United States, including grants from other sources and federal programs; and

 

     (2)  Strongly urges the United States Congress to support federal legislation to amend the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to allow Compact of Free Association migrants to once again receive federally funded financial and medical assistance.

 

     Your Committee finds that migrants from Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau, are allowed to enter the State of Hawaii under the Compact of Free Association.  Many state agencies provide a broad range of health and social services to migrants from the Compact of Free Association who have moved to Hawaii.  The cost to the State of providing these services continues to increase each year.

 

     The federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 prevents needy persons from the Compact of Free Association nations from receiving federally funded financial and medical assistance.  When that law went into effect in 1997, Hawaii continued to provide equivalent services for the Compact of Free Association migrants using state funds.

 

     The federal government must address the issue of additional federal support for the State to continue providing state services arising from the unique federally-created relationship the United States has with the Compact of Free Association nations.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation, International and Intergovernmental Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 62, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.C.R. No. 62, S.D. 1.

 

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

 

 

 

____________________________

J. KALANI ENGLISH, Chair