REPORT TITLE:
Combative Sports


DESCRIPTION:
Prohibits persons from holding, promoting, advancing, profiting
from, or participating in a combative sport.  Civil and criminal
penalties are provided.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        2891
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO COMBATIVE SPORTS.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  Chapter 440D, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by adding three new sections to be appropriately
 
 3 designated and to read as follows:
 
 4      "§440D-     Rules.  The department shall establish through
 
 5 rules, a process and criteria allowing for inclusion or removal
 
 6 of martial arts organizations listed in the definition of
 
 7 "martial arts" in section     ; provided that the primary factors
 
 8 in favor of including an organization in the list shall include
 
 9 the following:
 
10      (1)  The organization's primary purpose is to provide
 
11           instruction in self defense techniques;
 
12      (2)  The organization requires the use of hand, feet, and
 
13           groin protection during any competition or bout; and
 
14      (3)  The organization has an established set of rules that
 
15           require the immediate termination of any competition or
 
16           bout when any participant has received severe
 
17           punishment or is in danger of suffering serious
 
18           physical injury;
 

 
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 1 provided further that removal of organizations from the list
 
 2 shall only occur if the organization no longer substantially
 
 3 exhibits the characteristics specified in the above factors.
 
 4      §440D-      Penalties.  (a)  Any person who violates any
 
 5 provision of this chapter or rules adopted hereunder shall be
 
 6 subject to a civil fine of not more than $10,000 for each
 
 7 offense.  Each day's violation or failure to comply shall be
 
 8 deemed a separate offense.  Procedures and remedies otherwise
 
 9 applicable to unlicensed activity under section 436B-26.5, other
 
10 than the civil penalties specified under subsection (c), shall
 
11 apply to the civil penalties authorized under this subsection.
 
12 All fines imposed under this subsection shall be levied and
 
13 collected by the department.
 
14      (b)  Any person who knowingly promotes, advances, or profits
 
15 from a combative sport shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.  Persons
 
16 convicted in the previous five years of violating this subsection
 
17 shall be guilty of a C felony.
 
18      §440D-      Definitions.  For purposes of this chapter:
 
19      "Combative sport" means any contest, match, exhibition, or
 
20 activity other than boxing, sparring, wrestling, or martial arts
 
21 wherein contestants or participants deliver, or are not forbidden
 
22 by the applicable rules thereof, from delivering, kicks, punches,
 
23 or blows of any kind to the body of an opponent or opponents.
 

 
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 1      "Department" means the department of commerce and consumer
 
 2 affairs.
 
 3      "Martial arts", except as determined by the department
 
 4 pursuant to the process and criteria established under section
 
 5 , means an activity that is a professional match or exhibition:
 
 6      (1)  Sanctioned by any of the following organizations:  U.S.
 
 7           Judo Association, U.S. Judo, Inc., U.S. Judo
 
 8           Federation, U.S. Tae Kwon Do Union, North American
 
 9           Sport Karate Association, U.S.A. Karate Foundation,
 
10           U.S. Karate, Inc., World Karate Association,
 
11           Professional Karate Association, Karate International,
 
12           International Kenpo Association, or World Wide Kenpo
 
13           Association; and
 
14      (2)  In which participants must follow rules, procedures,
 
15           and techniques, approved by the sanctioning
 
16           organization.
 
17      "Person" includes an individual, partnership, joint venture,
 
18 corporation, association, business, trust, or any organized group
 
19 of persons or legal entity, or any combination thereof."
 
20      SECTION 2.  Chapter 440D, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
21 amended by amending its title to read:
 
22                          [[]CHAPTER 440D
 
23      [NO RULES COMBAT OR SIMILAR CONTESTS]] COMBATIVE SPORTS
 

 
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 1      SECTION 3.  Section 440D-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended to read as follows:
 
 3      "[[]§440D-1[]]  [No rules combat, extreme or ultimate
 
 4 fighting, or similar] Combative sport contests prohibited.(a)
 
 5 No person shall hold, promote, advance, profit from, or
 
 6 participate as a contestant in [no rules combat, extreme or
 
 7 ultimate fighting, or similar contests.] a combative sport.
 
 8      [(b) In addition to any other applicable judicial remedy, a
 
 9 person who violates this section shall be subject to section
 
10 436B-26.5 and a fine of not more than $10,000 for each offense.
 
11 Each day's violation or failure to comply shall be deemed a
 
12 separate offense.  The fines shall be levied and collected by the
 
13 department.
 
14      (c)  As used in this section, "no rules combat, extreme or
 
15 ultimate fighting, or similar contest" means a match or
 
16 exhibition performed in this State, in which the contestants:
 
17      (1)  Are permitted to use a combination of combative contact
 
18           techniques, including punches, kicks, chokes, joint
 
19           locks, and other maneuvers, with or without the use of
 
20           weapons, that place contestants at an unreasonably high
 
21           risk of bodily injury or death; and
 
22      (2)  Have received, directly or indirectly, any money,
 
23           prize, reward, purse, or other compensation, or promise
 

 
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 1           thereof, for the expenses of training, for taking part
 
 2           in the contest, or for winning the contest.
 
 3 The term does not include a contest involving the exclusive use
 
 4 of boxing, wrestling, kickboxing, or martial arts.
 
 5      (d)  In any proceeding before the department involving a
 
 6 violation of this section, there shall be a rebuttable
 
 7 presumption that a violation has occurred and a promoter or
 
 8 contestant shall have the burden of overcoming the presumption.
 
 9      (e)  For the purposes of this section, "department" means
 
10 the department of commerce and consumer affairs.]
 
11      (b)  A person profits from a combative sport when the person
 
12 accepts or receives money, property, or any other thing of value
 
13 with intent to participate in the proceeds of a combative sport,
 
14 or participates or is to participate in the proceeds of a
 
15 combative sport pursuant to an agreement or understanding with
 
16 any person.
 
17      A person advances a combative sport when, acting other than
 
18 as a spectator, the person engages in conduct which materially
 
19 aids any combative sport.  Such conduct includes but is not
 
20 limited to conduct directed toward the:
 
21      (1)  Creation, establishment or performance of
 
22           paraphernalia, equipment or apparatus for the combative
 
23           sport;
 

 
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 1      (2)  Solicitation or inducement of persons to attend or
 
 2           participate;
 
 3      (3)  Actual conduct of the combative sport; or
 
 4      (4)  Arrangement of any of the combative sport's financial
 
 5           or promotional phases, or of any other phase of a
 
 6           combative sport.
 
 7 A person also advances a combative sport when, having substantial
 
 8 proprietary or other authoritative control over premises being
 
 9 used with the person's knowledge for purposes of a combative
 
10 sport, the person permits the combative sport to occur or
 
11 continue or makes no effort to prevent its occurrence or
 
12 continuation."
 
13      SECTION 4.  This Act does not affect rights and duties that
 
14 matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were
 
15 begun before its effective date.
 
16      SECTION 5.  If any provision of this Act, or the application
 
17 thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
 
18 invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of
 
19 the Act which can be given effect without the invalid provision
 
20 or application, and to this end the provisions of this Act are
 
21 severable.
 
22      SECTION 6.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
23 New statutory material is underscored.
 

 
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 1      SECTION 7.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
 
 2 
 
 3                       INTRODUCED BY:  ___________________________