STAND. COM. REP.
Honolulu, Hawaii
APR 0 3 2024
RE: S.C.R. No. 163
S.D. 1
Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi
President of the Senate
Thirty-Second State Legislature
Regular Session of 2024
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committees on Commerce and Consumer Protection and
Judiciary, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 163 entitled:
"SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO CONDUCT A STUDY TO DETERMINE THE
EFFECTIVENESS OF EXISTING STATE LAWS IN ADDRESSING THE FALSE
LABELING OF HAWAII-MADE FOOD PRODUCTS,"
beg leave to report as follows:
The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the
Department of the Attorney General to conduct a study to determine
the effectiveness of existing state laws in addressing the false
labeling of Hawaii-made food products.
Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure
from the Hawaii Cattlemen's Council, Inc.; Hawai‘i Farm Bureau; and
one individual.
Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this
measure from the Department of the Attorney General.
Your Committees received comments on this measure from the
Department of Agriculture.
Your Committees find that certain individuals and entities
have falsely labeled their food products in a manner that can
mislead consumers into believing that they were produced or
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manufactured in Hawaii, when they were in actuality produced or
manufactured elsewhere. Presently, existing state laws may not
provide adequate protection, relief, or recourse for local
producers and consumers who seek to stop manufacturers from
falsely labeling their food products as being Hawaii-made when
they are not. Therefore, this measure will assist local producers
and consumers by requesting that a study be conducted to address
the false labeling of Hawaii-made food products.
Your Committees note the concern raised in the testimony of
the Department of Attorney General that the data gathering,
surveys, research, and analysis of economic and statistical data
that would be necessary for the study proposed in this measure
goes beyond the purview of the Department. Therefore, it is
necessary to amend this measure to address this concern.
Accordingly, your Committees have amended this measure by:
(1) Deleting language that would have requested the
Department of the Attorney General to independently
conduct a study and inserting language requesting the
Department of the Attorney General to convene a working
group to study the effectiveness of existing state laws
in addressing the false labeling of Hawaii-made food
products, with a specific emphasis on the legal
mechanisms and costs associated with protecting the
brands of Hawaii-made food products;
(2) Inserting language requesting the working group to
comprise the following members:
(A) The Attorney General, or the Attorney General's
designee, to serve as the Chairperson of the
working group;
(B) One member from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa
William S. Richardson School of Law with academic
or professional expertise in intellectual property
law, to be selected by the Dean of the William S.
Richardson School of Law;
(C) The Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture, or the
Chairperson's designee;
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 STAND. COM. REP. NO.
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(D) The Director of Business, Economic Development, and
Tourism, or the Director's designee;
(E) The Executive Director of the Office of Consumer
Protection of the Department of Commerce and
Consumer Affairs, or the Executive Director's
designee;
(F) One member from the Intellectual Property and
Technology section of the Hawaii State Bar
Association, to be selected by the President of the
Hawaii State Bar Association who is requested to be
invited by the Chairperson; and
(G) Any other member deemed necessary by the working
group;
(3) Inserting language that requests the working group, with
the assistance of the Department of the Attorney
General, to submit a report of the working group's
findings and recommendations, including any proposed
legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty
days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of
2025;
(4) Updating the list of recipients to whom the certified
copies are to be transmitted;
(5) Amending its title to reflect its amended purpose; and
(6) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the
purposes of clarity and consistency.
As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your
Committees on Commerce and Consumer Protection and Judiciary that
are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the
intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 163, as amended herein, and
recommend its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.C.R.
No. 163, S.D. 1.
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Respectfully submitted on
behalf of the members of the
Committees on Commerce and
Consumer Protection and
Judiciary,
KARL RHOADS, Chair
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 The Senate
Thirty-Second Legislature
State of Hawaii
Record of Votes
Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection
CPN
Bill / Resolution No.:* Committee Referral: Date:
OKIG?)
__ The Committee is reconsidering its previous decision on this measure.
If so, then the previous decision was to: ______________________________________
The Recommendation is:
Pass, unamended V Pass, with amendments __ Hold __ Recommit
2312 2311 2310 2313
Members Aye Aye (WR) Nay Excused
KEOHOKALOLE, Jarrett (C)
FUKUNAGA, Carol (VC)
MCKELVEY, Angus L.K.
RICHARDS. III. Herbert M. “Tim"
AWA. Brenton
TOTAL
Recommendation: /
|_2j Adopted __ Not Adopted
Chair’s or Designee’s Signature:
Distribution: Original Yellow Pink Goldenrod
File with Committee Report Clerk's Office Drafting Agency Committee File Copy
*Only one measure per Record of Votes
Revised: 12/27/23
 The Senate
Thirty-Second Legislature
State of Hawaii
Record of Votes
Committee on Judiciary
JDC
Bill / Resolution No.:* Committee Referral: Date:
OPN 1 JVC/ 03 1 22 f24
iSOR 11p3
__ The Committee is reconsidering its previous decision on this measure.
If so, then the previous decision was to:______________________________________
The Recommendation is:
__ Pass, unamended Pass, with amendments Hold __ Recommit
2312 2311 2310 2313
Members Aye^ Aye (WR) Nay Excused
RHOADS, Karl (C)
GABBARD, Mike (VC)
ELEFANTE, Brandon J.C.
SAN BUENAVENTURA, Joy A.
AWA, Brenton
Recommendation:
TOTAL
/
a ——- — /
Ivi Adopted __ Not Adopted
ChairJ^ or^signe^
xO? Signature:
Distribution: X" Original Yellow Pink Goldenrod
File with Committee Report Clerk's Office Drafting Agency Committee File Copy
*Only one measure per Record of Votes
Revised: 11/30/22