STAND. COM. REP. NO. 112-10
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2010
RE: H.B. No. 1932
H.D. 1
Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twenty-Fifth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2010
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 1932 entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO FOOD LABELING,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this bill is to protect consumers of fish purchased in local markets by providing penalties for those whose mislabeling of fish causes the consumer to become ill.
The Hawaii Teamsters and Allied Workers, Local 996 supported this bill. The Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Budget and Finance opposed this measure.
Your Committee finds that instances have occurred when
improper labeling of fish products have left consumers unaware that the type of
fish being eaten may cause illness if eaten in certain quantities. This bill
does not intend to increase the workload on DOH food inspectors, but only seeks
to provide DOH with additional powers to address the misbranding of fish
products. Currently, if an inspector receives a complaint, an investigation
may be initiated. This bill allows fines to be imposed on a person who is
found to have placed incorrect information on a fish product. This bill would
also allow DOH to increase its revenues as the funds collected would be placed
into a Food Misbranding Special Fund administered by DOH.
Your Committee has amended this bill by:
(1) Requiring that confirmation of illness be made by a physician licensed under Chapter 453, Hawaii Revised Statutes;
(2) Providing DOH with discretionary powers to determine whether a fine is warranted if a misbranding violation is confirmed;
(3) Changing the fines for misbranding fish products to unspecified amounts; and
(4) Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for clarity, consistency, and style.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1932, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1932, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committees on Consumer Protection & Commerce and Judiciary.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health,
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____________________________ RYAN I. YAMANE, Chair |
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