HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	601
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021		H.D. 2
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO THE TRAFFIC CODE.

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

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that due to the shortage of police officers in every county, enforcement of special no stopping, standing, or parking zones throughout the State is very limited. Unlike the department of transportation airport and harbor divisions, the highway division does not have an enforcement branch and relies on county police departments to enforce traffic and safety violations.

The purpose of this Act is to improve public safety and efficiency by authorizing county police chiefs to designate other county employees, such as trained county staff or park rangers, to cite for certain traffic violations.

SECTION 2. Section 291C-165, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) There shall be provided for use by authorized police officers, or county employees designated by the county chiefs of police, a form of summons or citation for use in citing violators of those traffic laws [which] that do not mandate the physical arrest of [such] violators. The form and content of [such] the summons or citation shall be as adopted or prescribed by the administrative judge of the district courts and shall be printed on a form commensurate with the form of other summonses or citations used in modern methods of arrest, so designed to include all necessary information to make the same valid within the laws and regulations of the State."

SECTION 3. Section 291C-167, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§291C-167 Summons or citation on illegally parked vehicle. Whenever any motor vehicle without a driver is found parked or stopped in violation of any of the restrictions contained in the state traffic laws, the officer or designated county employee finding the vehicle shall take its registration number and may take any other information displayed on the vehicle that may identify its registered owner and conspicuously shall affix to the vehicle a citation, as described in section 291C-165, for the registered owner of record to answer as provided in chapter 291D."

SECTION 4. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on January 1, 2050.

Report Title:

Traffic Code; Illegally Parked Vehicles; Citations; Counties

Description:

Amends the statewide traffic code to allow for the county chiefs of police to designate county employees to issue citations for traffic violations. Effective 1/1/2050. (HD2)

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.