Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor (JDL) - chair: Hee, vice chair: Kokubun

Friday, March 9, 2007, 3:00 p.m. Room 229

Testifier: JoAnn Maruoka, Legislative Committee member, LWV-Hawaii

Click here to view HB1513 HD1

The League of Women Voters supports H.B. 1513 HD1 to increase the financial penalties levied against those who are found guilty of an election fraud. As we stated in our testimony to the House supporting the original bill, doing so emphasizes the importance of clean and fair practices in elections. The increases of the minimum fine to $1,000 from the current $100, and the maximum fine to $5,000 from the current $1,000 put more bite in the penalties. This helps send a stronger message to all candidates that election fraud won’t be tolerated, and to the public that we are committed to making sure elections are as open and honest as possible. In these times of public concern with and lowered confidence in elected officials, demonstrating sincerity by ensuring meaningful consequences to wrong actions is needed to help restore trust in the electoral process. Thank you for the opportunity to testify in support of H.B. 1513 HD1.