STAND

 

STAND. COM. REP. NO. 287-04

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: H.B. No. 2023

H.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Human Services and Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 2023 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to provide public-assistance recipients and applicants with an opportunity for a fair hearing when appealing to the Director of Human Services by requiring that the hearing shall be a hearing de novo.

The Legal Aid Society of Hawaii (Legal Aid) testified in support of this bill. The departments of the Attorney General and Human Services (DHS) opposed this measure.

There was conflicting testimony about the fairness of the existing hearings. According to Legal Aid, without a de novo review, the hearing ends up as nothing more than the hearing officer "rubber stamping" DHS' previous determinations on the matter. On the other hand, DHS testified that its hearings must provide the aggrieved party with a review that meets due process standards by a hearing officer who decides, based on evidence presented at the hearing, whether DHS' findings should be upheld or not.

Your Committee has amended this bill by specifying the effective date of this measure as July 1, 2020.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Human Services and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2023, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2023,

H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Human Services and Housing,

 

		____________________________ MICHAEL PUAMAMO KAHIKINA, Chair