Judiciary committee delays decision on $19 million in claims against the State, seeks follow-up from AG

The Senate Judiciary Committee on March 20 considered HB2250, a claims-against-the-state bill that lists 28 claims totaling a little over $19 million. Deputy Attorney General Skylar Cruz told the committee the bill includes Attachment A with brief descriptions of each claim and asked for passage; Cruz also said no claims had been added since the bill's last hearing.

Committee members pressed the Attorney General's office on multiple fronts: why payments for 24 claims are proposed from the general fund rather than departmental budgets; why advice memos and corrective-action guidance had not been issued more promptly to the affected departments; and why certain claims were litigated rather than paid earlier. Cruz said advice memos are being prepared and must be thoroughly vetted and that the department has a statutory obligation under HRS 37-77.5 to issue advice and took responsibility for providing follow-up documentation.

The committee questioned several high-profile claims. Two wrongful-imprisonment claims (names provided in the transcript) prompted questions about litigation strategy versus statutory payments under HRS 661B (which committee discussion referenced as $50,000 per year). The Deputy AG said appellate litigation was required to interpret the statute before settlement could proceed. A committee member noted one claimant waited many years and died homeless before receiving settlement funds.

Other claims discussed included an $8 million settlement related to special-education programming (the Deputy AG said privacy laws may limit details in this forum), claims tied to alleged environmental compliance cited by EPA against a Department of Agriculture property, a landlord claim tied to a charter school closure, and a $104,000 reissued check. The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation acknowledged that staffing and mental-health shortfalls were identified in prior litigation and said it is seeking funding for 35 new clinical positions (psychiatrists, APRNs, RNs) this session to address issues raised in expert reports.

Given the number and complexity of outstanding questions, the committee postponed decision-making on HB2250 and scheduled a decision-making meeting for Tuesday, March 24 at 10:30 a.m. in room 016 to allow the Attorney General's office to provide written follow-ups, advice memos and supporting documents.

The committee recorded no final vote on HB2250 on March 20 and directed staff to compile the requested materials for the March 24 meeting.