STAND. COM. REP. NO.  237

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2017

 

RE:   H.B. No. 796

      H.D. 1

 

 

 

 

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 796 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE ASSAULT OF A UTILITY WORKER,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to establish a class B felony for an assault against a utility worker that causes serious or substantial bodily injury or an assault against a utility worker with a dangerous instrument that causes bodily injury.

 

     The Honolulu Police Department, Hawaii State AFL-CIO, Hawaiian Telcom, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local Union 1186, IBEW Local Union 1260, IBEW Local Union 1357, Hawaii Ports Maritime Council, and three individuals testified in support of this measure.  The Office of the Public Defender and Panaewa Hawaiian Home Lands Community Association testified in opposition.  Life of the Land provided comments.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Making the offense a class C felony; and

 

     (2)  Changing its effective date to July 1, 2050 to encourage further discussion.

 

     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. 796, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 796, H.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

 

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

 

 

 

 

____________________________

SCOTT Y. NISHIMOTO, Chair