# Hawaii HB 1696: RELATING TO COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSES.

Hawaii HB 1696, RELATING TO COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSES., is a 2025–2026 Regular Session (Year 2) House bill sponsored by Darius K. Kila (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-05-21 (Act 022, 05/21/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1122).) (as of 2026-11-01).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-HB1696-2026
- As of: 2026-11-01
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Hawaii HB 1696
- State: Hawaii
- Session: 2025–2026 Regular Session (Year 2)
- Title: RELATING TO COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSES.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-20
- Last action: 2026-05-21, Act 022, 05/21/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1122).
- Sponsor: Darius K. Kila (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 4
- Subjects: DOT, DLIR, Commercial Driver's Licenses, Minimum Age, TRS, JDC
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 11 (229 yes, 0 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

Lowers the age of who may drive commercially within the State from nineteen to eighteen. Repeals the requirement that a person only operates category 3 vehicles to qualify to drive commercially in the State. Prohibits a person under twenty-one years of age from operating a commercial motor vehicle outside of a registered apprenticeship program as determined by the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations or a structured, on-the-job training program administered by the person's employer that meets certain requirements. Requires the Department of Transportation to amend its rules to lower the minimum age required for a commercial driver's license. Effective 7/1/3000. (SD1)

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Darius K. Kila (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Tyson K. Miyake (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Christopher L. Muraoka (Republican), House
- Cosponsor: Mahina Poepoe (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Jenna Takenouchi (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-04-30 | House | House Floor Vote | pass | 51 | 0 |   |
| 2026-04-30 | Senate | Senate Floor Vote | pass | 25 | 0 |   |
| 2026-04-24 | Senate | The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS.... | pass | 3 | 0 |   |
| 2026-04-24 | House | The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments.... | pass | 3 | 0 |   |
| 2026-04-14 | Senate | Senate Floor Vote | pass | 25 | 0 |   |
| 2026-04-09 | Senate | The committee(s) on JDC recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENT... | pass | 5 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-17 | Senate | The committee(s) on TRS recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The... | pass | 5 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-10 | House | House Floor Vote | pass | 48 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-05 | House | The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The ... | pass | 7 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-20 | House | Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on JHA... | pass | 49 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-19 | House | The committee on TRN recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The ... | pass | 8 | 0 |   |

## Actions (47)

- 2026-05-21: Act 022, 05/21/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1122). (Senate)
- 2026-05-21: Act 022, on 05/21/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1122). (House)
- 2026-05-01: Received notice of passage on Final Reading in House (Hse. Com. No. 882). (Senate)
- 2026-04-30: Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0). (House)
- 2026-04-30: Passed Final Reading, as amended (CD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). (Senate)
- 2026-04-30: Received notice of Final Reading (Sen. Com. No. 803). (House)
- 2026-04-30: Transmitted to Governor. (House)
- 2026-04-28: Reported from Conference Committee (Conf Com. Rep. No. 9-26) as amended in (CD 1). (House)
- 2026-04-28: Forty-eight (48) hours notice Thursday, 04-30-26. (House)
- 2026-04-28: Reported from Conference Committee as amended CD 1 (Conf. Com. Rep. No. 9-26). (Senate)
- 2026-04-28: 48 Hrs. Notice (as amended CD 1) 04-30-26 (Senate)
- 2026-04-24: The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. The votes were as follows: 3 Ayes: Representative(s) Kila, Tarnas, Muraoka; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none. (House)
- 2026-04-24: The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes of the Senate Conference Managers were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Inouye, Rhoads, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none. (Senate)
- 2026-04-22: Received notice of Senate conferees (Sen. Com. No. 719). (House)
- 2026-04-22: Conference committee meeting scheduled for 04-24-26 9:30AM; CR 329. (Senate)
- 2026-04-21: Senate Conferees Appointed: Inouye Chair; Rhoads Co-Chair; DeCorte. (Senate)
- 2026-04-20: House Conferees Appointed: Kila, Tarnas Co-Chairs; Muraoka. (House)
- 2026-04-20: Received notice of appointment of House conferees (Hse. Com. No. 786). (Senate)
- 2026-04-17: Received notice of disagreement (Hse. Com. No. 780). (Senate)
- 2026-04-16: House disagrees with Senate amendment (s). (House)
- 2026-04-14: Report adopted; Passed Third Reading, as amended (SD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House. (Senate)
- 2026-04-14: Returned from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 604) in amended form (SD 1). (House)
- 2026-04-10: Reported from JDC (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3792) with recommendation of passage on Third Reading, as amended (SD 1). (Senate)
- 2026-04-10: 48 Hrs. Notice 04-14-26. (Senate)
- 2026-04-09: The committee(s) on JDC recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in JDC were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Rhoads, Gabbard, Chang, San Buenaventura, Awa; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none. (Senate)
- 2026-04-01: The committee(s) on JDC deferred the measure until 04-09-26 10:00AM; Conference Room 016 & Videoconference. (Senate)
- 2026-03-25: The committee(s) on JDC will hold a public decision making on 04-01-26 10:30AM; CR 016 & Videoconference. (Senate)
- 2026-03-23: Reported from TRS (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3106) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading and referral to JDC. (Senate)
- 2026-03-23: Report adopted; Passed Second Reading and referred to JDC. (Senate)
- 2026-03-17: The committee(s) on TRS recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in TRS were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Inouye, Elefante, Kanuha, Lee, C., DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none. (Senate)
- 2026-03-13: The committee(s) on TRS has scheduled a public hearing on 03-17-26 3:05PM; Conference Room 229 & Videoconference. (Senate)
- 2026-03-13: The committee(s) on TRS has rescheduled its public hearing to 03-17-26 3:00PM; CR 229 & Videoconference. (Senate)
- 2026-03-12: Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 267). (Senate)
- 2026-03-12: Passed First Reading. (Senate)
- 2026-03-12: Referred to TRS, JDC. (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Passed Third Reading as amended in HD 2 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Kong, Pierick excused (2). Transmitted to Senate. (House)
- 2026-03-06: Reported from JHA (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1172-26) as amended in HD 2, recommending passage on Third Reading. (House)
- 2026-03-06: Forty-eight (48) hours notice Tuesday, 03-10-26. (House)
- 2026-03-05: The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 7 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Cochran, Kahaloa, Takayama, Garcia, Shimizu; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 3 Excused: Representative(s) Belatti, Hashem, Sayama. (House)
- 2026-03-03: Bill scheduled to be heard by JHA on Thursday, 03-05-26 2:00PM in House conference room 325 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. (House)
- 2026-02-20: Reported from TRN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 653-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to JHA. (House)
- 2026-02-20: Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on JHA with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Quinlan excused (1). (House)
- 2026-02-19: The committee on TRN recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 8 Ayes: Representative(s) Kila, Miyake, Cochran, Evslin, Kitagawa, La Chica, Muraoka, Pierick; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Grandinetti. (House)
- 2026-02-13: Bill scheduled to be heard by TRN on Thursday, 02-19-26 9:00AM in House conference room 430 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. (House)
- 2026-01-26: Referred to TRN, JHA, referral sheet 1 (House)
- 2026-01-21: Introduced and Pass First Reading. (House)
- 2026-01-20: Prefiled. (House)

## Bill text

- Bill Text: [PDF](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_CD1_.pdf)
- HB1696_CD1: [HTML](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_CD1_.HTM)
- HB1696_HD1: [HTML](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_HD1_.HTM)
- HB1696_HD2: [HTML](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_HD2_.HTM)
- HB1696_SD1: [HTML](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_SD1_.HTM)
- Original: [HTML](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_.HTM), [PDF](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/GM1122_.PDF)

## Related bills

- SB 847: RELATING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS. (became law)
- SB 2338: RELATING TO HOUSING. (signed)
- HB 2344: RELATING TO SCHOOL FACILITIES. (signed)
- HB 2023: RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION. (signed)
- HB 2021: RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION. (signed)
- SB 2964: RELATING TO PROPERTY INSURANCE. (signed)

## Sources
- [Bill Text (PDF)](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_CD1_.pdf)
- [HB1696_CD1 (HTML)](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_CD1_.HTM)
- [HB1696_HD1 (HTML)](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_HD1_.HTM)
- [HB1696_HD2 (HTML)](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_HD2_.HTM)
- [HB1696_SD1 (HTML)](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_SD1_.HTM)
- [Original (HTML)](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/HB1696_.HTM)
- [Original (PDF)](https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2026/bills/GM1122_.PDF)

## Related
- [SB 847: RELATING TO PSYCHOLOGISTS.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-SB847-2026)
- [SB 2338: RELATING TO HOUSING.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-SB2338-2026)
- [HB 2344: RELATING TO SCHOOL FACILITIES.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-HB2344-2026)
- [HB 2023: RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-HB2023-2026)
- [HB 2021: RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-HB2021-2026)
- [SB 2964: RELATING TO PROPERTY INSURANCE.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-SB2964-2026)
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- [Hawaii state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/hawaii)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/HI-HB1696-2026 (as of 2026-11-01).