STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3283

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 1911

H.D. 2

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 H.B. No. 1911, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE JUDICIARY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to appropriate moneys for the Judiciary through the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Judiciary, Hawaii State Bar Association, and one individual.

Your Committee finds that the Court Operations Specialist position has been vacant for more than a year and few individuals have applied for the position due to its temporary nature. Your Committee believes that converting the position from temporary to permanent will assist with employee recruitment and retention.

Your Committee further finds that responses to a request for proposals to provide the Judiciary's new accounting system have included prices significantly higher than $600,000, which was the amount originally anticipated. Accordingly, due to statewide budgetary challenges and uncertainty, your Committee feels that lapsing $600,000, instead of the $425,000 amount specified to be lapsed in the measure, is appropriate.

Your Committee also finds that the appropriation of $7,000,000 of general obligation bond funds for lump sum capital improvement projects for Judiciary facilities will not adequately support the Judiciary's needs for maintenance and upkeep of its facilities. Accordingly, your Committee believes that this appropriation should be made from general funds.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Adding one permanent position in JUD101 - Courts of Appeal for the conversion of a temporary Court Operations Specialist to a permanent Court Operations Specialist;

(2) Increasing by $205,000 the general fund appropriation for JUD350 - Fifth Judicial Circuit to restore funding for a District Family Court Judge position, which is currently funded by moneys budgeted for salaries for positions that remain vacant;

(3) Increasing by $137,000 the general fund appropriation for JUD601 - Administration to establish reoccurring funding for the `Ōlelo Hawai`i Program;

(4) Deleting the forced lapse of $425,000 in lump sum general funds for capital improvement projects and replacing that forced lapse amount with the $600,000 presently appropriated for the projected cost of a new accounting system that the Judiciary is expected to defer;

(5) Changing the method of financing for lump sum capital improvement projects for statewide Judiciary facilities from general obligation bond funds to general funds; and

(6) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2024.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1911, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1911, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

________________________________

KARL RHOADS, Chair