STAND. COM. REP. NO. 846

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1194

       S.D. 2

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 1194, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO LOBBYISTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to allow lobbyist disclosure statements to be easily submitted and easily accessible online.

     More specifically, this measure requires:

     (1)  Lobbyist disclosure forms to be electronically transmitted to the State Ethics Commission; and

     (2)  The State Ethics Commission to make lobbyist disclosure forms available, text searchable, and downloadable in spreadsheet form on their website for at least four years.

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from Common Cause Hawaii and two individuals.

     Your Committee finds that requiring lobbyist disclosure forms to be submitted electronically will provide lobbyists with an efficient and effective way to transmit their required disclosure statements, while ensuring that the State Ethics Commission has a reliable, modern means by which to receive these documents.  Your Committee further finds that requiring lobbyist disclosure forms to be provided online will lead to easily accessible, searchable information, thus improving transparency for government processes.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by changing the effective date from January 7, 2059, to upon approval. 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1194, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1194, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

________________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair