STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1549

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.C.R. No. 168

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Government Operations, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 168 entitled:

"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE REFERENCE BUREAU TO CONDUCT A STUDY ON THE FEASIBILITY OF A CONTINUOUS LEGISLATIVE SESSION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Legislative Reference Bureau to conduct a study on the feasibility of a continuous legislative session.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Legislative Reference Bureau.

Your Committee finds that pursuant to article III, section 10, of the Hawaii State Constitution, the Legislature only has sixty to seventy-five session days, generally stretching from the middle of January to early May, to conduct its business of enacting legislation. Your Committee further finds that the compressed, rushed legislative process may inhibit the public from participating and advocating at the Legislature during a regular session. Furthermore, efficiency, productivity, orderliness, and transparency of the Legislature may be improved by requiring that the Legislature be in session during every month of the year or by having more days in session. This measure requests that the Legislative Reference Bureau conduct a study on the feasibility of a continuous legislative session that examines the functions of continuous legislatures in other states to determine any increases in productivity of the legislative session by allowing for more time for the legislative process.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Narrowing the scope of the study, which initially requested an examination of legislature functions, to a summary of laws from states that provide for a continuous session of their legislatures and, to the extent such information is available, the policy reasons for those states' laws; and

(2) Amending its title in accordance with its amended purpose.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Government Operations that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 168, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.C.R. No. 168, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Government Operations,

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ANGUS L.K. MCKELVEY, Chair