STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1143

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 273

       H.D. 1

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred H.B. No. 273, H.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LICENSE RENEWALS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to allow the Director of Transportation to enact emergency rules to provide for the renewal of driver's licenses by mail or online without requiring a written request from the applicant.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Transportation.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Customer Services for the City and County of Honolulu and one individual.

 

     Your Committee finds that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and resulting shut down orders made it virtually impossible to transact business that required a face-to-face interaction.  Section 286-107, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires an applicant who is renewing their driver's license to appear in person, which was impossible during large portions of 2020.  And while section 286-107, Hawaii Revised Statutes, does allow for renewal by mail for any applicant who is unable to appear in person, the applicant must first submit a written request before being allowed to do so.  This provision is not practical for implementation on a mass scale as the department of motor vehicles would potentially be so inundated with requests for renewal by mail that it would be impossible to process them all in a timely manner.  The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the need for a system that can be implemented on a large scale without legislative approval, which may be difficult to obtain in the event of another global pandemic.  This measure will provide wide latitude to the Director of Transportation to enact emergency measures to allow residents of Hawaii to renew their driver's license by mail or online. 

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by adding language to clarify that the ability to renew a driver's license by mail or online without the need to first submit a written request to the examiner of licenses applies to every applicant.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 273, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 273, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

 

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

 

 

 

________________________________

CHRIS LEE, Chair