STAND. COM. REP. NO.  563

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2009

RE:   H.B. No. 271

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 271 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO REAL PROPERTY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to:

     (1)  Streamline real estate transactions; and

     (2)  Facilitate public access to real estate documents,

by permitting the registrar of the Bureau of Conveyances of the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) to accept electronic documents with electronic signatures for recording and to consider such documents as equally valid as manually signed documents.

     This bill also requires DLNR to establish electronic recording standards and practices and provides guidelines to establish those standards.

     The Commission to Promote Uniform Legislation testified in support of this bill.  DLNR provided comments.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 271 and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Finance.

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

____________________________

JON RIKI KARAMATSU, Chair