Bill would limit
contribution of
political partiesGood Samaritan bill
Stiffer arson penalties
Mistake would have nixed EnglishBy Pat Omandam Hawaii Revised Statutes
Legislature Bills
Star-BulletinThe state House has approved a campaign spending bill that closes "soft" money loopholes in Hawaii political campaigns, but not before Republicans tried to rewrite the measure on the House floor.
House Bill 165, HD 1, was among nearly two dozen bills yesterday passed third reading by the House.
Also making the chamber crossover are bills to change the primary election date, to enact a sexual privacy law dealing with videotaping and to allow confidential information as a reason to close state and county public meetings.
As passed, HB 165 HD1 would eliminate unregulated political money -- known as 'soft' money -- into Hawaii campaigns by holding political parties to the same campaign contribution limits of those of individuals and other entities, such as political action committees.
Currently, political parties can receive up to $50,000 from a single source, and can give up to that amount to any political candidate.
The contribution limit for political parties under the bill would be between $2,000 and $6,000, depending on what office the candidate is seeking.
House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Chairman Paul T. Oshiro (D, Ewa Beach) told colleagues political contributors could use a loophole in current campaign spending law to give a candidate more money than legally allowed.
For example, he said, a political donor could give $2,000 directly to a candidate while also giving his or her political party money that would be earmarked for that candidate as well, thereby bypassing any regulation.
Oshiro said HB 165 eliminates that loophole, ensuring everyone abides by the same rules.
"Let me emphatically state for the record that this is not a partisan or politically motivated measure," he said.
But the House minority disagreed, arguing the measure would reduce the contribution power of broad-based organizations like the Republican and Democrat parties, instead giving it to special interest groups
"The purpose of this bill is to shut down, once and for all, the minority party in this state," stated House Minority Leader Barbara Marumoto (R, Waialae Iki).
In response, the House minority, in a seldom-used motion, proposed a floor amendment to replace HB 165 with another bill introduced by the Campaign Spending Commission.
The motion, however, failed by a vote of 31-13, with freshman Democrat Brian Schatz (D, Makiki) going against the Democrat majority and voting in favor of the floor amendment with strong reservations.
Other measures passed by the House and sent to the Senate include:
The House and the Senate today begins a mandatory five-day legislative recess until March 3.House Bill 966, which allows a state or county board to close a public meeting to deliberate or decide on a matter that requires the consideration of information that must be kept confidential because of a law or court order.
Good Samaritan bill
By Craig Gima
makes it a crime not to
help those in need
Star-BulletinThe final episode of "Seinfeld" showed Jerry and the gang going to jail for not helping a man who was car-jacked.
The plot could have happened in Hawaii under a "good Samaritan" bill making its way through the Legislature.
The bill would make it a petty misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and up to 30 days in jail, to fail to help someone who is injured.
Schatz said the bill would not require someone to risk physical harm to provide assistance. He said all it requires is a simple call to authorities for help.
"I think it is sad that this has to be legislated," he said. "But given that there are instances where people aren't rendering assistance, this is a simple and unintrusive way to ensure that everybody is more safe."
Since the bill was introduced, Schatz said people have told him about incidents that show the need for a law.
"A friend of mine was rendering CPR to somebody who passed out on Fort Street Mall and he asked every bystander to call 9-1-1 and nobody would," Schatz said.
But not everyone believes failing to be a good Samaritan should be a reason to put someone in jail.
The public defender's office testified that the bill should be changed to make the penalty a violation, which is a fine of up to $1,000 and does not include a prison sentence. The office also suggested changes to make the intent of the law clearer.
Schatz said his bill is modeled after legislation in Minnesota. He said there are seven other states that have good Samaritan laws.
Arson for profit or
By Rod Ohira
for hire could result in
stiffer penalties
Star-BulletinHawaii lawmakers are considering a bill that would broaden the scope of investigations and create tougher penalties for arson.
Arson is currently investigated under criminal property damage statutes and is punishable by maximum jail terms of five to 10 years, depending on whether damages are under or over $10,000.
Criminal property damage "looks at spite and revenge but doesn't address arson for profit or arson for hire as motives," Cravalho said.
Cravalho said if a homeowner deliberately set fire to his residence to collect insurance money, the case could be investigated as a theft or fraud only if a claim was filed.
TriData, a private consulting firm hired by the National Fire Administration, came here last year to study arson investigations in Honolulu.
"They suggested that Hawaii should adopt an arson law," Cravalho said. "One reason was that lean economic times in Hawaii could cause more arsons to occur.
"I haven't seen that yet but I believe we should plan for the future by having a law in place now."
The Honolulu Fire Department has increased its investigative staff to four by adding a full-time investigator, while police will have two full-time fire/arson investigators and two others on call, Cravalho says.
Restitution to county or state agencies for putting out a maliciously set fire is among the penalties being proposed in the Senate bill, Cravalho said.
Police, meanwhile, are looking at "spite and revenge" as a motive for Saturday's $40,000 fire that damaged an office trailer owned by Red River Service Corp. at 91-469 Komohana St.
The same trailer was targeted earlier this month.
Opps! Mistake would
Star-Bulletin
have nixed EnglishState senators nearly passed a bill that eliminated the requirement that the Department of Education provide instruction in writing, spelling and speaking English in elementary and intermediate schools.
A mistake was made in a bill that was originally designed to give the Department of Education more flexibility in providing courses to students. Instead of just taking out a section that mandated at least 50 percent of the school day be devoted to English, the bill was written to remove all references to writing, speaking and spelling.
It was up for passage in the Senate last week, when the error was noticed. The bill was sent back to committee to correct the mistake.
