Photo by Rick Proctor on Unsplash
LEGISLATIVE REPORT
The last week in February, when I am writing this, is normally the first crunch time for bills at the Hawaii State Legislature. Committees are fast and furiously getting bills ready for a final vote in the originating chamber so they can pass them over to the other one. By the time you are reading this, bills will be “crossing over” from one chamber to the opposite chamber (House to Senate, Senate to House) to begin the hearing process all over again.
Marijuana
The numerous marijuana bills have dwindled to two — one which would legalize marijuana outright, the other which would decriminalize it, making users subject to a fine, but not a felony. As of this writing, the Senate legalization version (SB 636) is awaiting a final joint hearing by the Senate Commerce, Consumer Protection and Health Committees and the Senate Judiciary. The House decriminalization version (HB 1383) passed out of committee Feb. 27 with amendments. Should both bills crossover, it will be interesting to see which side gives in.
Palliative care
Bills to support palliative care (HB 722, HB 1447, SB 804) and provide education on suicide prevention (HB 330, HB 655, HB 1416, SB 226, SB 383) seem to be moving ahead without issue. It would be hard for anyone to stand opposed to providing education on how to access better palliative care (and hospice service) or access suicide prevention training.
Statute of limitations
The eyes of the legislature seem to be narrowing as they focus on the Roman Catholic Church. One bill to open the window on the statute of limitations against minor sex abuse (SB 1035) and another to get rid of the window all together (HB 18) have had hearings and passed their respective committees. A concurrent senate resolution (SCR 8) asking the state attorney general to investigate the Roman Catholic Church has also received a hearing and seems to be poised for passage. The bill is an outright slam against the church and has animus written all over it!
Affecting the church
Two other bills that would directly affect the church are HB 710 and SB 980. The first adds reproductive health decisions and family leave to the list of categories that are protected against discriminatory employment practices. SB 980 mandates that private schools must be accredited by an accreditation agency or licensed by HCPS (Hawaii Content and Performance Standards). That means that a third party could ultimately mandate what Hawaii Catholic schools do in matters such as curriculum and personnel. The House version was killed after testimony by Michael Rockers, the superintendent of Catholic schools.
Abortion
Two diametrically-opposed abortion bills had hearings. HB 1184 would have protected babies born alive during a botched abortion. The House Health Committee had a hearing, but soundly defeated it. The members had no qualms voting it down rather than deferring it. SB 510 expands Hawaii’s already liberal abortion laws to allow an APRN (advanced practice registered nurse) to do aspiration abortions. It also allows them to do procedures in their “office.”
Housing
On a more positive note, a lot of housing bills have kept our partners over at Catholic Charities Hawaii busy. Normally the bills become more manageable as we near crossover. We will provide more details on the bills as they narrow in scope. The same can be said for the bills relating to minimum wage. Advocates are pushing hard for $17 per hour and a tie to the Consumer Price Index so that lower paid workers can make a decent living.
Eva Andrade is director of the Hawaii Catholic Conference, the public policy arm of the Diocese of Honolulu.
