STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1966

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.C.R. No. 200

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 200 entitled:

"HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION URGING THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES TO PUBLISH THE EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT AS THE TWENTY-EIGHTH AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to urge the President of the United States to publish the Equal Rights Amendment as the Twenty-eighth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from one individual. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from one individual.

Your Committee finds that Article V of the Constitution of the United States sets forth a two-step amending procedure. The first step of the Article V amending procedure is the proposal of an amendment either by two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress or by a convention called by application of two-thirds of the states. In 1972, the ninety-second Congress of the United States, at its second session, in both houses, by a constitutional majority of two-thirds, adopted the Equal Rights Amendment. The second and final step of the Article V amending procedure is ratification of an amendment by three-fourths of the states. As of January 27, 2020, three-fourths of the states have ratified the Equal Rights Amendment. The Equal Rights Amendment now meets the strict requirements of Article V of the Constitution of the United States and should be added as the Twenty-eighth Amendment with no further delay.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 200, and recommends its adoption.

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

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KARL RHOADS, Chair