HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.C.R. NO.

23

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2003

H.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

 
   


HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

Urging the governor to allocate adequate funding to the hawaii state commission on the status of women to enable it to carry out its mission and duties as mandated by law.

 

WHEREAS, women achieved significant economic, political, and social advances during the twentieth century but still struggle to attain gender equality in the new millennium; and

WHEREAS, throughout the United States, women continue to earn less than men, remain underrepresented in political office, and make up a disproportionate share of those in poverty; and

WHEREAS, policy changes designed to improve the status of women must be encouraged to remove any and all remaining barriers to equality facing women in the United States; and

WHEREAS, the Institute for Women's Policy Research recently published "The Status of Women in the States," Fourth Edition, 2002-03, a report that presents data for each state on thirty indicators of women's status, and ranks each state for women's overall status in five areas: political participation, employment and earnings, social and economic autonomy, reproductive rights, and health and well-being; and

WHEREAS, the Institute for Women's Policy Research found that while women's status has improved in many important ways in recent years, it has worsened or stagnated in other areas, and women have not yet achieved equality with men in any state; and

WHEREAS, the Institute for Women's Policy Research ranked Hawaii as one of the top ten states for women's business ownership, seventh in the nation for women in elected office, first in the nation for reproductive rights, and second overall for women's health and well-being; and

WHEREAS, despite these positive strides for women in our State, the Institute for Women's Policy Research also reported that:

(1) Hawaii has the lowest reported voter registration rate for women in the country, with only 51 percent of women registered for the 1998 and 2000 elections combined;

(2) Hawaii has the fifth lowest women's voter turnout in the nation at 43.9 percent;

(3) Hawaii is one of only four states where the wage gap actually worsened between 1989 and 1999, and Hawaii experienced the greatest decline in earnings ratio at 3.9 percent;

(4) Between 1997 and 1999, women's earnings in Hawaii fell 1.1 percent, while men's wages increased 15.1 percent;

(5) Hawaii has fallen below the midpoint of all states, from sixteenth to twenty-seventh, for women's employment and earnings, and with its ratio of women's to men's earnings at 72.1 percent in 1999, Hawaii has dropped an alarming 25 states in ranking, from second to twenty-seventh in the country; and

(6) Since 2000, Hawaii has dropped out of the overall top states for women;

and

WHEREAS, fortunately, Hawaii is one of 15 states with a state-level commission for women and a formal women's caucus in each house of the Legislature; and

WHEREAS, the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women was established by the Governor by executive order on May 15, 1964, to, among other things, coordinate research planning, programming, and action on the opportunities, needs, problems, and contributions of women in Hawaii; and

WHEREAS, the statutorily-mandated functions and responsibilities of the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women include:

(1) Acting as a central clearinghouse and coordinating body for governmental and nongovernmental activities and information relating to the status of women;

(2) Creating public awareness and understanding of the responsibilities, needs, potentials, and contributions of women and their roles in the changing society;

(3) Recommending legislative and administrative action on equal treatment and opportunities for women;

(4) Encouraging a long-range program of education of women in their political rights and responsibilities, particularly with respect to their voting duties;

(5) Maintaining contacts with appropriate federal, state, local, and international agencies concerned with the status of women;

(6) Cooperating and collaborating with national groups on the status of women and arranging for participation by representatives of the State in White House conferences and other national conferences from time to time;

(7) Administering funds allocated for its work; and

(8) Submitting an annual report with recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature;

and

WHEREAS, since its inception, the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women has remained steadfast in its mission to ensure equality for women and girls in the State by acting as a catalyst for positive change through advocacy, education, collaboration, and program development; and

WHEREAS, the services of the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women are vital to our community and essential to furthering the economic, political, and social equality of women in our State; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, the Senate concurring, that this body strongly supports the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Governor is requested to allocate adequate funding to the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women to enable it to carry out its mission and duties as mandated by law; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and the Executive Director of the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women.

Report Title:

Expresses Support for the Hawaii Commission on the Status OF