STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2715

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2288

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 Government Operations, to which was referred S.B. No. 2288 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO GOVERNMENT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require any travel report submitted by a state employee, officer, or other representative of any state department or agency, including the Judiciary and University of Hawaii, in connection with out-of-state or intra-state travel for purposes of official state business, to be made available for public review on the Comptroller's website.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Accounting and General Services; Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; and one individual.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Law Enforcement and Department of Education.

Your Committee finds that the State's government should strive for transparency and accountability. This measure will affirm the State's transparency and accountability by requiring public access to travel reports submitted by any state employees, officers, and other representatives of the State traveling on official state business.

Your Committee notes the testimony of the Department of Education requesting that the measure define the term "other representative of any state department or agency" to clarify whether students and chaperones who travel for the Department's education and co-curricular programs would be required to submit a travel report. Your Committee also notes the concerns raised the Department of Law Enforcement regarding the lack of an exception for law enforcement operational travel, such as custody transport, fugitive details, and other travel where disclosing the details of the travel will compromise law enforcement operations, tactics, procedures, or safety. Accordingly, this measure needs to be amended to address these concerns.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Inserting a definition of "other representative of any state department or agency" to specify that anyone using state funds for travel must submit a travel report;

(2) Limiting the information to be disclosed for travel reports relating to law enforcement operations;

(3) Allowing law enforcement agencies to delay the reporting of their law enforcement operation travel reports to preserve the confidentiality of an investigation or a prosecution;

(4) Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2112, to encourage further discussion; and

(5) 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 Government Operations that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2288, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2288, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

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

________________________________

ANGUS L.K. MCKELVEY, Chair