STAND. COM. REP. NO.  731

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2013

 

RE:   H.B. No. 951

      H.D. 1

 

 

 

 

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2013

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 951 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE SERVICE OF PROCESS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to update various sections of the Hawaii Revised Statutes to clarify that law enforcement officers and other persons authorized by the courts may serve certain types of legal process.

 

     The Department of Public Safety testified in support of this measure.  The Judiciary testified in opposition to this bill.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Authorizing the Director of Public Safety to maintain a list of independent civil process servers authorized to process specified writs and other orders;

 

     (2)  Authorizing the independent civil process servers from the Department of Public Safety's list to serve specified types of legal process;

 

     (3)  Removing the power of the court to authorize persons to effect service of process by court rule or otherwise;

 

     (4)  Shielding the Department of Public Safety and the State from responsibility or liability for the conduct of any independent civil process server placed on the list;

 

     (5)  Specifying that an independent civil process server placed on the Department of Public Safety's list shall not be considered a law enforcement officer, sheriff or deputy sheriff, or employee or agent of the State;

 

     (6)  Repealing the amendments made under this Act on June 30, 2015; and

 

     (7)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity, consistency, and style.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 951, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 951, H.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary,

 

 

 

 

____________________________

KARL RHOADS, Chair