STAND. COM. REP. NO.504

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2003

RE: S.B. No. 1351

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Human Services and Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 1351 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR ADULT SERVICES PROGRAMS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require the Department of Human Services to establish standards and conduct criminal history record checks on service providers who have direct contact with individuals receiving services under the Department's adult services programs.

Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Departments of Human Services and the Attorney General.

Your Committees recognize the need to provide safe environments for individuals receiving services under the Department's adult services programs, who may be especially vulnerable to abuse, neglect, or exploitation, due to age, mental or physical disability, or lack of competency. Your Committees find conducting criminal history background checks of direct service providers is one way to help ensure their safety. Your Committees further find that imposing such a requirement is consistent with existing criminal history background check requirements for providers of home and community-based services under the Medicaid waiver program.

The Department of the Attorney General testified that the Criminal History Record Improvement Revolving Fund (fund) is used as a pass-through to process payments to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for national criminal history record checks. Accordingly, your Committees find the $50,000 appropriation is needed to raise the fund's ceiling to pay the FBI's fees for this program.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Human Services and Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1351 and recommend that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Human Services and Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs,

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COLLEEN HANABUSA, Chair

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SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair