STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3583

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.R. No. 189

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2024

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.R. No. 189 entitled:

"SENATE RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE OFFICE OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTOR OF THE COURTS TO COLLECT, COMPILE, AND SHARE DATA ON THE ASSESSMENT OF FEES, COURT COSTS, FINES, AND RESTITUTION IN CASES AGAINST MINORS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts to collect, compile, and share data on the assessment of fees, court costs, fines, and restitution in cases against minors.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Crime Victim Compensation Commission, ACLU of Hawaiʻi, Policy Advocacy Clinic at Berkley Law, and Hawaiʻi Friends of Restorative Justice.

Your Committee finds that charging fees, fines, costs, and restitution to youth can be harmful to young people and their families while disproportionately impacting Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Black youth. Your Committee further finds that more than sixteen states in the United States have eliminated or prohibited the imposition of fees or fines, or both, on young people and their families. Your Committee believes that current data is necessary to better understand the statewide and county-specific imposition and impact of fees, court costs, fines, and restitution on young people and their families in the State. This measure will allow the State to better understand how to improve the criminal justice system and increase fairness statewide.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Updating and clarifying data, research, and sources referenced in the findings;

(2) Specifying that current data is needed to better understand the statewide and county-specific imposition and impact of fees, court costs, fines, and restitution on young people and their families in the State;

(3) Inserting language requesting the data collected, compiled, and shared by the Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts to be provided as a statewide aggregate and by court circuit;

(4) Inserting language requesting the Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts to report to the Legislature no later than forty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2025, instead of twenty days, post the Office's report on the Judiciary's public website, and provide a copy of the report to the Judicial Council;

(5) Inserting language requesting the Judicial Council to consult the report during the next Penal Code review; and

(6) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

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 S.R. No. 189, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.R. No. 189, S.D. 1.

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

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KARL RHOADS, Chair