THE SENATE

S.C.R. NO.

43

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2004

S.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

   


SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

requesting that the department of health establish a VIOLENCE PREVENTION UNIT THAT INCLUDES sexual assault, to provide safety for victims of sexual assault, promote effective intervention, and reduce the incidence of sexual assault.

 

WHEREAS, the Department of the Attorney General's "Crime in Hawaii 2001" reported that there was a 16.8 per cent increase in forcible rape from 2000; and

WHEREAS, sexual assault is an underreported crime, with an estimated 29.9 per cent being reported to police in Hawaii according to the Attorney General; and

WHEREAS, funding to increase sexual assault programs would increase the probability of reporting by ten per cent; and

WHEREAS, in a report release in 2003, Ruggiero and Kilpatrick, using national factors predictive of female forcible rape (such as age, race/ethnicity, and national region), estimate that approximately 14.5 per cent of adult women in Hawaii have at some point in their lifetime been subject to a completed forcible rape, which is slightly higher than the national average; and

WHEREAS, various state agencies supply funding to providers of sexual assault services but approximately fifty per cent of the funding in Hawaii is provided through the Department of Health; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Health funding has remained at the same level since 1996 although the cost and demand to deliver sexual assault services has substantially increased; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-Second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2004, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Health is requested to establish a violence prevention unit that includes sexual assault, to provide safety for victims of sexual assault, promote effective intervention, and reduce the incidence of sexual assault; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the violence prevention unit is tasked with the following:

(1) Administer the funds for sexual assault treatment and prevention;

(2) Provide leadership in advocating for sexual assault prevention services;

(3) Promote and facilitate interagency and interdepartmental cooperation among government agencies that fund sexual assault prevention providers;

(4) Set guidelines for the planning, coordination, and delivery of services;

(5) Ensure accountability for funds and service delivery;

(6) Establish a uniform system of reporting and collecting statistical data from programs that receive funding; and

(7) Develop innovative projects based on proven practices of effectiveness that address sexual violence; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health is requested to consult with key government stakeholders such as the four county sexual assault program directors, the Hawaii Coalition Against Sexual Assault, and a consultant in developing a plan to establish a violence prevention unit; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health is requested to submit a report to the Legislature, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the 2005 Regular Session on the status of this request, including:

(1) Details of funding, services, and victim data for sexual assault;

(2) An outline of a statewide strategic plan and vision for sexual assault and treatment;

(3) How the violence prevention unit is functioning in regards to:

(a) Promoting the coordination for appropriate investigation, treatment, and legal processes for child sex abuse, currently funded by the Judiciary; and

(b) Providing services to children and their families who have been sexually assaulted by a family member and are known to Child Protective Services, currently under the jurisdiction of the Department of Human Services; and

(4) A progress report on the implementation and outcomes of the seven items above tasked to the Department of Health; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Health, the Director of Human Services, the Attorney General, and the Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court.

 

 

Report Title:

Sexual Assault Branch; DOH