47
THE SENATE                           S.C.R. NO.            
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                    SENATE  CONCURRENT
                        RESOLUTION

  REQUESTING THE AUDITOR TO REVIEW AND IDENTIFY FISCALLY-RELATED
    POWERS CONFERRED UPON OR ASSUMED BY THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH
    SINCE 1987 THAT MAY BE RECLAIMED BY THE LEGISLATURE.


 1        WHEREAS, in the American system of government, a
 2   fundamental tenet of democracy is the separation of powers
 3   between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of
 4   government; and
 5   
 6        WHEREAS, in the United States, as well as in Hawaii's
 7   model of democracy, the power to make appropriations is a power
 8   which is vested exclusively in the legislative branch; and
 9   
10        WHEREAS, the Constitution of the State of Hawaii states
11   that "No public money shall be expended except pursuant to
12   appropriations made by law"; and
13   
14        WHEREAS, this is the Legislature's "power of the purse,"
15   and perhaps more than any other power, it is this power of the
16   purse that is the hallmark of the Legislature's authority and
17   independence; and
18   
19        WHEREAS, Hawaii's constitutional provision is based on
20   similarly decisive language in the United States Constitution
21   which declares "No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but
22   in consequence of appropriations made by law"; and
23   
24        WHEREAS, the Constitution of the State of Hawaii conveys
25   to the Legislature a dominant role in fiscal affairs, but over
26   time, that dominant role has apparently shifted to the
27   executive branch; and
28   
29        WHEREAS, the basic and constant issue debated upon between
30   the legislative and executive branches is the safeguarding and
31   assertion of legislative authority and independence versus the
32   need or desire for flexibility and freedom from legislative
33   controls on the part of the executive branch; and
34   

 
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                                  S.C.R. NO.            
                                                        
                                                        


 1        WHEREAS, under the rationale of the need for flexibility,
 2   the executive branch has assumed increasingly more
 3   discretionary authority on spending matters; and
 4   
 5        WHEREAS, the executive branch has exercised substantial
 6   discretionary authority as to how much can be spent on the
 7   various programs of state government and how those programs and
 8   projects are to be financed; and
 9   
10        WHEREAS, for example, although there is a large pool of
11   capital improvement projects which will go through the life
12   cycle of being proposed, authorized, and lapsed, only a
13   fraction of the projects in the CIP pool will ever be
14   constructed; and
15   
16        WHEREAS, because the CIP pool is much larger than the
17   State's implementation capacity, the executive branch has the
18   ability to pick and choose its projects, thereby usurping the
19   Legislature's authority to designate which CIP projects are
20   appropriated for and actually implemented; and
21   
22        WHEREAS, examples of flexibility in capital improvements
23   financing include utilizing special fund cash, instead of
24   revenue bonds, for harbors capital improvements; special fund
25   cash, instead of revenue bonds, for Hawaiian Home Lands
26   projects; and special fund cash, instead of general obligation
27   reimbursable bonds, for highways, harbors, boating, land
28   development, or economic development projects; and
29   
30        WHEREAS, this means that in spite of the method of funding
31   specified by the Legislature for capital improvements in the
32   appropriations acts, the administration has considerable
33   latitude to utilize cash from the general funds as well as cash
34   from the various special funds; and
35   
36        WHEREAS, another example of increased discretionary
37   authority is the Governor's authority to transfer
38   appropriations from one program to another, one of the most
39   enduring of the flexibility provisions in the General
40   Appropriations Act; and
41   
42        WHEREAS, the General Appropriations Act also customarily
43   provides discretionary authority to allow the Governor to
44   transfer positions; and

 
 
 
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                                  S.C.R. NO.            
                                                        
                                                        


 1   
 2        WHEREAS, it follows that if our form of government is to
 3   work properly, the Legislature's power to make appropriations
 4   should not be diminished or frustrated by the executive
 5   branch's power to execute those appropriations; and
 6   
 7        WHEREAS, the Legislature believes that there is a serious
 8   imbalance in executive-legislative fiscal relations, one not
 9   intended by the Constitution of the State of Hawaii; and
10   
11        WHEREAS, a dominant role in fiscal affairs by the
12   Legislature is absolutely necessary for representative
13   government and the system of checks-and-balances to work
14   properly; and
15   
16        WHEREAS, in order for the Legislature to reassert its
17   dominant role in fiscal matters, the trend in favor of
18   executive flexibility and discretionary authority must be
19   reviewed; now, therefore,
20   
21        BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twentieth Legislature
22   of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2000, the House of
23   Representatives concurring, that the Auditor is requested to
24   review and identify fiscally-related powers conferred upon or
25   assumed by the executive branch since 1987 that may be
26   reclaimed or reasserted by the Legislature; and
27   
28        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor report any
29   findings to the Legislature not later than twenty days prior to
30   the convening of the Regular Session of 2001; and
31   
32        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this
33   Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Auditor.
34   
35 
36 
37 
38                         OFFERED BY:  ____________________________