Governor’s Deadline Today to Enact or Veto Bills

By Wendy Osher

Today  is the deadline for Governor Neil Abercrombie to enact bills before him or veto them.  So far, the Governor has placed his signature on 221 bills that were approved in the last legislative session.

Yesterday, the Governor enacted a bill that enhances monitoring within the Department of Education of cyberbullying, and harassment.  House Bill 688 also requires the DOE to establish reporting requirements for such activity.

A list of 10 other bills signed by the Governor yesterday are listed below:

• HB 739: Requires that the primary caregiver be a certified nurse aide and the substitute caregiver be a nurse aide who has completed certain training in community care foster family homes approved for a maximum of three clients.
• HB 761: Changes references in the Hawai’i Revised Statutes by substituting “intellectual disabilities” wherever the term “mental retardation” appears.
• SB 11: Creates a taskforce to determine whether a new Department of the Sheriff is needed and feasible.
• SB 45: Repeals the civil service exemptions for the first and second deputy sheriffs.
• SB 631: Increases, with certain limitations, the areas within agricultural lands in which solar energy facilities may be constructed.
• SB 1530: authorizes the Board of Land and Natural Resources to extend leases of public lands for hotel or resort use upon approval of a proposed development agreement to make substantial improvements.
• SB 1213: Establishes a temporary taskforce to review state and county administrative rules that could be amended to make the permitting and approval process less burdensome.
• HB 985: Allows a procurement officer to submit a single bid for the design and construction of a project and adds a new definition to the procurement code designated as “design-build.”
• HB 320: Exempts the requirement for a license realtor who provides opinions on the estimated price on real estate to obtain a license as an appraiser.
• SB 98: Amends the Hawai’i Water Carrier Act to clarify the authority of the Hawai’i Public Utilities Commission to issue a certificate of public convenience and necessity to a water carrier.