STAND. COM. REP. NO. 594

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 1537

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2019

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committees on Public Safety, Intergovernmental, and Military Affairs and Higher Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 1537 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY,"

 

beg leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate funds to the Department of Public Safety to contract with the Social Science Research Institute of the University of Hawaii at Manoa for evidence-based research and to collect data on behalf of the Department.

 

     Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the University of Hawaii System and one individual.  Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this measure from one individual.  Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Department of Public Safety, Community Alliance on Prisons, and one individual.

 

     Your Committees find that evidence-based research and data collection are vital to verifying and formulating best practices for state correctional institutions.  Previously, and for many years, the Department of Public Safety utilized researchers from the Social Science Research Institute at the University of Hawaii at Manoa to collect and analyze data for the Department.  Your Committees further find that this working relationship was recently terminated and believes it should be reinstated.  This measure will revive the working relationship between the Department of Public Safety and Social Science Research Institute at the University of Hawaii for evidenced-based research and data collection.

 

     Your Committees have amended this measure by inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion.

 

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Public Safety, Intergovernmental, and Military Affairs and Higher Education that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1537, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1537, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Public Safety, Intergovernmental, and Military Affairs and Higher Education,

 

________________________________

DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair

 

________________________________

CLARENCE K. NISHIHARA, Chair