Senate District 24 Town Hall Meeting

Wednesday, August 3, 2016
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Windward Community College
Hale Akoakoa Dining Room
45-720 Kea‘ahala Road
Kāne‘ohe, Hawai‘i 96744

Senator Jill Tokuda and Representatives Ken Ito and Jarrett Keohokalole will be hosting a legislative wrap-up meeting to discuss the outcomes of the 2016 Legislative Session and provide you with an opportunity to share your thoughts and concerns about our community. Also joining us will be a guest speaker from the Blue Zones Project Koolaupoko.

Please join us for light refreshments and good conversation between friends and neighbors.

2016 Legislative Update

View Senator Tokuda's 2016 Legislative Update

WOMEN'S HEALTH, SAFETY GETS STATE SUPPORT WITH NEW LAWS

Originally published on the Hawai‘i State Senate Majority website; click here to read the article on hawaiisenatemajority.com.

HONOLULU, Hawai‘i - Measures that toughen the laws on violence against women, increase healthcare access, and provide more help for female veterans are among the bills signed into law today by Governor David Ige.

A total of nine bills have been signed into law that were part of a package of bills submitted this session by the Hawai‘i Women's Legislative Caucus (WLC). Additionally, five resolutions were adopted by the Legislature. The Women's Legislative Caucus is a bi-partisan organization comprised of women legislators in the House and Senate who support an agenda designed to improve the lives of women, children, and families in Hawai‘i. This year, the WLC expanded their membership to include women lawmakers at the City and County level. The WLC co-conveners for 2016 are Senators Rosalyn H. Baker and Laura H. Thielen and Representatives Della Au Bellati and Lauren Kealohilani Matsumoto.

"I'm incredibly proud of the accomplishments of the Caucus this year," said Sen. Laura Thielen (Kailua, Waimānalo, Hawai‘i Kai). "The bills we advocated for this session address serious concerns about violence against women and healthcare and will make a difference in the lives of women and children throughout the state."

"I'm pleased that these important measures made it to the Governor's desk and are now law," said Sen. Rosalyn Baker (South and West Maui). "There's much more work to be done to improve the lives of women and children here and I look forward to continuing these efforts with our colleagues in 2017. These new laws, however, demonstrate a strong commitment by our state to address health and safety concerns for women and families throughout Hawai‘i."

"By collaborating with our community partners and all of our colleagues in the Legislature, the Caucus has been successful in passing laws and policies that will improve the health and well-being of women and families throughout the State. I am incredibly proud to be part of this bi-partisan Caucus that is committed to tackling complex and challenging problems, year after year, to find solutions that will benefit the people of Hawaii," said Rep. Della Au Bellati (Makiki, Tantalus, McCully, Pawa‘a, Mānoa)

"The bills the Governor is signing today represents this Legislature's continued commitment to women and addressing key issues such as sex trafficking, HIV/STD, jury duty and breastfeeding, and veterans issues statewide. While there is still more work to be done, I am incredibly proud of the work our bi-partisan caucus has accomplished this year and I look forward to continuing our work in the next legislative session," said Rep. Lauren Matsumoto (Schofield, Mokulē‘ia, Waialua, Kunia, Waipi‘o Acres, Mililani)

The House and Senate bills signed by the Governor today:

HB1902 CD1: Creates the offense of sex trafficking where a person advances prostitution by the use of force, threat, fraud, or intimidation or where a minor is prostituted. Sex trafficking is classified as a violent crime and a class A felony.

HB1907 CD1: Requires all law enforcement agencies and departments charged with maintenance, storage, and preservation of sexual assault evidence collection kits to conduct an inventory of all stored kits and report to the Attorney General. Requires the Department of the Attorney General to report to the Legislature on the number of untested sexual assault evidence collection kits being stored, plans and procedures for the disposition of new and untested kits, and related information.

HB 1897 CD1: Ensures that all insurers in the State provide insurance coverage for sexually transmitted disease screenings, including HIV and AIDS.

SB2319 CD1: Requires health insurers in the State, including health benefits plans under the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund and Medicaid managed care programs, to cover reimbursement for contraceptive supplies intended to last for up to a twelve-month period for an insured.

SB2317 CD1: Requires and appropriates funds for the Department of Health to conduct child death reviews, implement a program to perform maternal death reviews, and submit annual reports to the Legislature relating to child and maternal deaths and death reviews in the State.

HB2772 CD1: Adopts the preliminary recommendation of the affirmative consent task force including requiring the University of Hawaii to train employees and students on sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking policies.

HB2489 CD1: Appropriates funding for a veterans services counselor IV position within the Office of Veterans' Services to address problems and needs of all veterans, with a primary focus on female veterans.

The following bills were signed into law earlier this session:

SB2315 HD2 (Act 46) which exempts from jury duty a woman who is breastfeeding for a period of two years from the birth of a child

SB2310 (Act 4) provides further safeguards and protections for victims of domestic abuse by prohibiting the court from granting mutual protective orders unless separate petitions are filed and reasonable notice of the filing of a separate petition is provided.

The following resolutions were adopted by the Legislature:

HCR137 SD2: Requesting the Department of Education to convene a working group to review after-school programs in Hawai‘i's public middle and intermediate schools.

HR89: Requesting the Department of Education to affirm its commitment to uphold the tenets of Title IX of the Education Amendment Act of 1972.

SCR85 SD1: Affirming support of Planned Parenthood, recognizing its vital role in providing health care, and denouncing violence towards abortion providers and their patients.

SR56 SD1: Affirming support of Planned Parenthood, recognizing its vital role in providing health care, and denouncing violence towards abortion providers and their patients.

SR57 SD1: Requesting the convening of a paid Family Leave Task Force to examine the benefits and costs of a potential paid family leave program in Hawai‘i.

HOUSING BILLS BECOME LAW

Originally published on the Hawai‘i State Senate Majority website; click here to read the article on hawaiisenatemajority.com.

HONOLULU, Hawai‘i - Measures that aim to address Hawai‘i's long-standing, complex housing shortage was signed into law today.

Governor David Ige signed six housing bills saying they focus on maximizing the use of financing tools, re-orienting target policies to boost production and collaboration with the private sector and the counties to increase the housing supply.

Senator Jill Tokuda (Dist. 24 - Kane‘ohe, Kane‘ohe MCAB, Kailua, He‘eia, ‘Ahuimanu), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means and who served on the Governor's Leadership Team on Homelessness, thanked the Governor as former colleagues and also as allies, for making things better for the people of our communities.

"We can't let another day, another Session go by without us putting significant resources and action together so we can make a difference in this particular area," said Sen. Tokuda. She acknowledged her colleagues in the legislature for their efforts to address homelessness over the years. She also thanked Housing committee chairs Sen. Breene Harimoto and Rep. Mark Hashem for taking up the bills during Session and for their work towards ensuring their passage.

"This is a spectrum approach because it's not just about homelessness. We want them to get to a better place and we want them to get permanent housing surrounded by programs and support," said Sen. Tokuda. "We're looking forward to putting our actions on paper and committing ourselves to this."

The housing bills signed into law:

SB2561 (Act 127) (Special action team for affordable rental housing): Establishes a temporary special action team to develop a rental housing strategy for the state led by the director of the State Office of Planning. Sets a goal of 22,500 affordable rental housing units ready for occupancy over the next decade (between 01/01/17 and 12/31/26).

SB2566 (Act 128) (Rental Housing Revolving Fund): Provides capital for the development of affordable rental housing by transferring excess monies from the rental assistance revolving fund to the rental housing revolving fund.

SB2833 (Act 129) (LIHTC): Increases funding for affordable rental housing development by making the State Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) more valuable by shortening the tax credit period from ten to five years.

SB3077 (Act 130) (TOD council): Officially establishes an action team, led by the Office of Planning, to coordinate and streamline development of state lands located along the transit route. The State Office of Planning will take the lead in working with housing agencies to identify state lands near rail transit stations for mixed-use development including affordable housing. Provides a coordinated, intergovernmental approach towards transit-oriented development statewide.

HB2293 (Act 131) (HHFDC Mixed Use): Enables the Hawai‘i Housing Finance and Development Corporation (HHFDC) to develop mixed-use developments in partnership with state and county departments and agencies to create communities with housing, jobs, shops, and government services located in close proximity.

HB2305 (Act 132) (DURF): Broadens the application of the Dwelling Unit Revolving Fund (DURF) fund to allow the state to finance regional infrastructure projects in conjunction with the counties and private landowners or developers. Authorizes the creation of Regional State Infrastructure Improvement Subaccounts within DURF and the use of DURF to provide loans and grants to finance regional state infrastructure improvements in areas of planned growth.

SENATE WAM COMMITTEE CHAIR VISITS FUTURE SITE FOR DOH ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH ADMINISTRATION

Originally published on the Hawai‘i State Senate Majority website; click here to read the article on hawaiisenatemajority.com.

PEARL CITY, Hawai‘i - Senate Ways and Means Committee Chair Senator Jill Tokuda, the office of Senator Breene Harimoto, and staff spent Friday morning inspecting the buildings on Waimano Ridge in Pearl City which are being refurbished to relocate the Safe Drinking Water and Hazardous Waste Branches of the State Department of Health. Both branches are currently located in the AAFES Building in Kakaako Makai, and the State pays lease rent to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs which owns the building and underlying land. The relocation is part of an on-going effort to consolidate state offices into state owned buildings, which will save the state money.

Renovations on the interior and exterior of the building are on schedule and should be ready for employees to move in February 2017.

WAM Committee Chair Tokuda and staff also paid a visit to the Facility for Troubled Youth, where the group home is undergoing repair work. The licensed facility currently has room for 10 clients, but is hoping to expand services to be able to serve more youth and allow them to stay in Hawai‘i for treatment.

Sen. Tokuda and staff also stopped in at the State Laboratory Division (SLD) located on Waimano Home Road. The site has been the home of the SLD since 1995 and provides environmental and public health laboratory testing. The SLD is currently looking at ways to expand its services.

The visit resulted in better awareness of Waimano Ridge and its facilities, the Department of Health's master plan for the area, and the opportunities and issues for further development.

These site visits are part of the Senate's work during the interim to view first-hand state projects and programs to better understand the needs and challenges of the departments.