HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-03-13 Letter to Justin H. Woodson, Mark J. Hashem, Amy A. Perruso, John M. Mizuno and Bertrand Kobayashi SB 383, SD2 Relating to Youth Suicide Prevention
County of Hawai‘i
Office of the Mayor
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County of Hawai‘i is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer.
Wil Okabe
Managing Director
Harry Kim
Mayor
Barbara J. Kossow
Deputy Managing Director
March 13, 2019
Representative Justin H. Woodson, Chair
Representative Mark J. Hashem, Vice Chair
Representative Amy A. Perruso, Vice Chair
Committee on Lower and Higher Education
Representative John M. Mizuno, Chair
Representative Bertrand Kobayashi, Vice Chair
Committee on Health
Dear Chairs Woodson and Mizuno, Vice Chairs Hashem, Perruso and Kobayashi, and Committee Members:
RE: SB 383, SD2 Relating to Youth Suicide Prevention
Thank you for this opportunity to testify on SB 383, SD2, dealing with youth suicide prevention.
I am not knowledgeable enough, nor do I have the expertise, to comment on the specific detailed
approach to suicide prevention laid out in this bill. However, having done some minimal research to warrant
supporting SB 226, SD2 (funding for suicide prevention on Kauai, Maui, and Hawaiʻi by the Department of
Health), I feel comfortable urging this Legislature to recruit the Department of Education in the prevention
effort.
Whether or not you want to mandate the specific provisions of SB 383, SD2, or choose to pass a more
generic bill, I leave to your discretion. In either case, I hope you keep the concept alive for further discussion,
and perhaps explicitly recognize that additional funding may be necessary if your mandate is to be properly
carried out.
Respectfully Submitted,
Harry Kim
MAYOR