Bills & Legislation

RELATING TO DEFAMATION.

Protects individuals who make claims of sexual misconduct from defamation lawsuits unless the claims were proven to be made with malice. Effective 4/23/2057. (SD1)

Karl RhoadsDemocrat

RELATING TO AGRICULTURE.

Requires the Department of Agriculture to establish a Healthy Soils Program. Requires an annual report to the Legislature. Appropriates funds. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Mike GabbardDemocrat

RELATING TO AGRICULTURE.

Appropriates funds to the Agribusiness Development Corporation to acquire a conservation easement on agricultural lands in Central Oahu. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Donovan M. Dela CruzDemocrat

RELATING TO CHARTER SCHOOLS.

Requires the Auditor to conduct a financial audit of each charter school under the State Public Charter School Commission. Requires a report to the Legislature. Requires the State Public Charter School Commission to take action based on the Auditor's recommendations. Appropriates funds. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)

Herbert M. "Tim" Richards IIIDemocrat

RELATING TO HATE CRIMES.

Defines "reported hate crime". Requires reporting of all possible reported hate crimes to appropriate authorities, including consistent documentation and analysis of such incidents. Requires law enforcement officers to receive annual training to identify, investigate, and document hate crimes and possible hate crimes. Requires the Attorney General to establish or update guidelines, protocols, and training materials for the reporting and investigation of hate crimes and possible hate crimes. Effective 7/1/2077. (SD1)

Chris LeeDemocrat

RELATING TO PROSPECTIVE JURORS.

Authorizes the Judiciary to determine the format of the juror qualification form and the means of its delivery and return. Authorizes the Judiciary to use more than one method of delivery and attempt to contact any one juror more than once. Removes the requirement that the form be mailed. Effective 4/23/2057. (SD1)

Ronald D. KouchiDemocrat

RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY.

Authorizes certain government entities to establish a self-certification process for behind-the-meter, customer-sited solar distributed energy resource systems and exempt the systems from the Federal Emergency Management Agency No-Rise/No-Impact declaration requirements under certain circumstances. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)

Glenn WakaiDemocrat

RELATING TO HEARING AIDS.

Requires health insurance policies and contracts issued on or after 1/1/2026 to provide optional coverage for the cost of hearing aids at a minimum $1,500 per hearing aid for each hearing-impaired ear every thirty-six months. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)

SAN BUENAVENTURA

RELATING TO ELECTIONS.

Allows an on-call circuit judge in the relevant circuit to perform the duties of the Board of Registration for purposes of hearing elections disputes if the Board of Registration lacks full membership. Requires the Judiciary to designate one or more on-call circuit court judges in each circuit to perform the duties of the Board of Registration for purposes of hearing elections disputes. (SD1)

Ronald D. KouchiDemocrat

RELATING TO MEDICAL CANNABIS.

Prohibits persons from operating a medical cannabis dispensary or cultivating cannabis without a license from the Department of Health. Prohibits individuals from providing certain services to individuals engaging in unlicensed cannabis operations. Requires the Department of Health to send a cease and desist notice to violators. Establishes criminal penalties. Establishes an affirmative defense for, and a conclusive basis for certain violations. Establishes exceptions. Establishes a cannabis cultivator license to authorize the cultivation and distribution of cannabis plants. Requires the Department of Health to only issue one cannabis cultivator license for each person. Establishes limits on: (1) the number of cannabis cultivator licenses the Department of Health may issue; (2) the maximum size of plant canopy for indoor and outdoor cultivations for each cannabis cultivator license; and (3) the maximum plant count of mature cannabis plants for each cannabis cultivator license. Authorizes expenditures from the Medical Cannabis Registry and Regulation Special Fund to fund programs for the mitigation and abatement of nuisances relating to chapter 329D, HRS. Appropriates funds out of the Medical Cannabis Registry and Regulation Special Fund for the Department of Attorney General to enforce, and mitigate nuisances relating to, chapter 329D, HRS. Effective 12/31/2050. (SD2)

AQUINO

RELATING TO ELECTIONS.

Specifies that election ballots issued by the Chief Election Officer or county clerk shall exclude any candidate who is disqualified by a constitutional or statutory provision. Provides for a process for challenging an inclusion or exclusion of a candidate from a ballot. Includes a candidate's disqualification as grounds for an election contest complaint. Specifies that electors of presidential and vice presidential candidates shall not be individuals who are disqualified by a constitutional or statutory provision.

Karl RhoadsDemocrat

RELATING TO PUBLIC FINANCING FOR CANDIDATES TO ELECTED OFFICE.

Establishes a comprehensive system of public financing for all candidates seeking election to state and county public offices in the State of Hawaii, to begin with the 2028 general election year. Requires the Campaign Spending Commission to submit reports to the Legislature. Appropriates funds. Effective 4/23/2057. (SD1)

Karl RhoadsDemocrat

RELATING TO HOUSING.

Authorizes a county to reduce the number of housing units that may be built within any portion of the county only if the county increases the number of housing units that may be built elsewhere in the county, such that there is no net loss in residential capacity. Effective 4/23/2057. (SD1)

Stanley ChangDemocrat

RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HAWAIIAN HOME LANDS.

Appropriates moneys from the Act 279 Special Fund for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to purchase a parcel of land identified as tax map key: (1) 9-1-013-025. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)

Dru Mamo KanuhaDemocrat

RELATING TO CHILD CARE.

Requires the Department of Human Services to establish and implement an Early Learning Services Contracts Program to make available a designated number of seats at licensed infant and toddler child care centers and group child care centers that meet certain criteria. Requires the Department of Human Services to submit reports to the Legislature. Sunsets the pilot program on 6/30/2028. Effective 12/31/2050. (HD1)

SAN BUENAVENTURA

RELATING TO HEALTH INSURANCE.

Beginning 1/1/2026, requires all health insurers in the State, excluding Medicaid managed care programs, to cover the cost of continuous glucose monitors and related supplies under certain conditions. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)

Dru Mamo KanuhaDemocrat

RELATING TO HAWAIIAN INDEPENDENCE DAY.

Establishes the twenty-eighth day of November of each year as "La Kuokoa", Hawaiian Independence Day, as a state holiday, rather than a day of observance. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Kurt FevellaRepublican

RELATING TO OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC HEALTH AND MORALS.

Clarifies and updates the sex trafficking and promoting prostitution criminal offense statutes by clarifying the definition of "profits from prostitution" and making technical and other housekeeping amendments. (HD1)

Ronald D. KouchiDemocrat

RELATING TO SCHOOL CAFETERIA MEAL COSTS.

Reduces the amount the Department of Education is authorized to charge for school meals to all students enrolled in department schools to no more than one-quarter of the cost of preparing the meals. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Michelle N. KidaniDemocrat

RELATING TO ENERGY.

Requires an attestation or declaration regarding project labor standards, including adherence to state-approved apprenticeship programs and prevailing wage requirements, for covered large-scale renewable energy generation projects. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Glenn WakaiDemocrat

RELATING TO INSURANCE.

Requires each motor vehicle insurance policy to cover the replacement cost of a child passenger restraint system that was damaged or in use by a child during a motor vehicle accident for which liability coverage under the policy is applicable. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Angus L.K. McKelveyDemocrat

RELATING TO TRANSPARENCY.

Requires under the State's wage compensation laws that food, beverage, and service establishments that accept tips and employ tipped employees post signs that include language explaining their tip allocation practices and the contact information for the Wage Standards Division of the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations and the Wage and Hours Division of the United States Department of Labor. Establishes back wages and penalties as available remedies for employees in the event of a violation. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)

Chris LeeDemocrat

RELATING TO VEGETATION MANAGEMENT NEAR UTILITY LINES.

Requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to create and annually update a wildfire hazard map. Requires private and public property owners to trim grasses within certain proximities of public rights of way and utility lines, enforced by the State Fire Marshal as to State-owned land and the applicable county fire department as to privately owned land. Authorizes electric utility companies to enter private or public property to trim or remove hazardous vegetation. Appropriates funds. Effective 6/1/2050. (SD2)

Lorraine R. InouyeDemocrat

RELATING TO ADMINISTRATIVE RULES.

Beginning 1/1/2027, requires all state agencies to make the full text of their rules available on the website of the Office of the Lieutenant Governor in a digitally accessible and searchable format that meets or exceeds certain federal standards. Effective 1/1/2525. (SD1)

Karl RhoadsDemocrat

RELATING TO THE STATE FIRE MARSHAL.

Provides that no person shall serve as State Fire Marshal for more than three terms. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)

Donovan M. Dela CruzDemocrat

RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT.

Requires employers in the hospitality industry to implement anti-harassment measures, provide training, and equip certain workers with panic buttons. Prohibits retaliation against a hospitality worker who files a complaint, uses the provided panic button, or participates in an investigation or proceeding related to a harassment complaint. Requires the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations to adopt rules, including rules determining penalties and establishing procedures for handling complaints. Requires all hospitality employers to comply no later than 1/1/2026. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD1)

Angus L.K. McKelveyDemocrat

RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII.

Requires the Board of Regents or the President of the University of Hawaii to allocate general funds appropriated to the University of Hawaii to University of Hawaii program IDs in accordance with performance-based outcomes relating to student achievement and degree attainment. Requires the President to submit reports to the Legislature. Requires the President to propose at least three efficiency measures to the Director of Finance to produce a more effective budget.

Sharon Y. MoriwakiDemocrat

RELATING TO FIREARMS.

Expands the ban on pistols with a detachable magazine with over a ten-round capacity to any firearm with a detachable magazine with over a thirty-round capacity. Exempts detachable ammunition magazines with a capacity in excess of thirty rounds that are designed for or capable of use with any firearm other than a pistol obtained before 1/1/2026. Effective 1/1/2026. (SD2)

Karl RhoadsDemocrat

RELATING TO FITNESS TO PROCEED.

Clarifies who may serve as a qualified examiner in a fitness-to-proceed examination. Clarifies the term of commitment for a defendant being held at a hospital or mental health facility for a fitness-to-proceed examination. Reduces the number of qualified examiners required for a fitness-to-proceed examination in a felony case from 3 to 1. Establishes a reduced penalty, except in certain circumstances, for a person who commits the offense of escape in the second degree while in the custody of the Director of Health. Sunsets the amendments related to fitness-to-proceed examinations on 12/31/26. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

SAN BUENAVENTURA

RELATING TO CHANGES TO RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH CONCERNING PATIENTS, THE COUNTY OF KALAWAO, AND THE KALAUPAPA SETTLEMENT.

Establishes the Kalaupapa State Historical Area. Authorizes the Department of Health to continue providing services statewide to Hansen's disease patients living in the community. Repeals sections of Chapter 326, HRS, and makes associated conforming amendments, to take effect upon the one‑year anniversary of the passing of the last patient resident of Kalaupapa, as affirmed in a Governor's proclamation. Requires future planning for the Kalaupapa Settlement to include community organizations, including one selected in consultation with the Molokai community. Effective 12/31/2050. (HD1)

Ronald D. KouchiDemocrat

RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII.

Establishes an External Audit Committee within the University of Hawaii to audit the University of Hawaii System and the Board of Regents. Requires annual reports to the Legislature.

Donovan M. Dela CruzDemocrat

RELATING TO EDUCATION.

Appropriates funds to the Department of Education to support public schools impacted by a local investor‑owned electric utility's planned public safety power shutoff program. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Michelle N. KidaniDemocrat

RELATING TO RESTORATION OF BEACH LANDS.

Amends the definition of "beach restoration" to include activities undertaken to maintain and improve eroded beaches and degraded dune systems through the management of sand and native vegetation, place sand on an eroded beach, and remove abandoned remnant materials that pose a risk to public and ecosystem health. Appropriates funds for a Kahana Bay beach restoration pilot project and a sand restoration and dune replenishment pilot project on the island of Maui. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Ronald D. KouchiDemocrat

RELATING TO WATER POLLUTION.

Requires a landowner in possession of ten thousand or more acres in the State to be liable for damages and fines arising from runoff originating on the land and entering into state waters. Requires the Department of Health to prioritize enforcement of water pollution control regulations in rural areas where there are existing reports of runoff and other terms of water pollution. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Lynn DeCoiteDemocrat

RELATING TO AGRICULTURE.

Extends the offense of false labeling of Hawaii-grown coffee to include roasted coffee. Imposes a mandatory $10,000 fine for each separate offense of false-labeling of Hawaii-grown roasted coffee. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Dru Mamo KanuhaDemocrat

RELATING TO UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANKS.

Requires an owner or operator of an underground storage tank or tank system with a confirmed release to meet certain standards for the restoration of the environment. Establishes a rebuttable presumption that any detection of these contaminants in the vicinity of an underground storage tank or a tank system after a confirmed release is a result of the confirmed release. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Jarrett KeohokaloleDemocrat

RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII.

Requires the Board of Regents to expend funds appropriated to renew, improve, or modernize existing University of Hawaii facilities for only those purposes and not for current, ongoing, or anticipated capital improvement projects. Requires annual reports to the Legislature. Effective 7/31/2050. (SD1)

Sharon Y. MoriwakiDemocrat

RELATING TO THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII REVENUE BONDS.

Authorizes the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii to issue revenue bonds for the purpose of financing qualifying priority capital improvement projects. Appropriates funds. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Ronald D. KouchiDemocrat

RELATING TO MEDICAL DEBT.

Requires the Office of Wellness and Resilience to conduct a study on the cost and feasibility of establishing a program to acquire and forgive medical debt owed by certain households in the State. Requires a report to the Legislature. Effective 12/31/2050. (HD1)

Chris LeeDemocrat

RELATING TO INVASIVE SPECIES.

Establishes a Plant Nursery Registry Program to regulate the sale of nursery stock. Requires certain plant nurseries to register with the Department of Agriculture. Establishes penalties. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Jarrett KeohokaloleDemocrat

RELATING TO AUDIBLE VEHICLE REVERSE WARNING SYSTEMS.

Prohibits a state- or county-owned vehicle purchased on or after 1/1/2028, from using an audible reverse warning system that emits a warning sound other than one using broadband technology. Authorizes the Director of Transportation to grant exemptions under certain circumstances. Requires the Director of Transportation to maintain an updated record of all exemptions granted and a report to the Legislature. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Karl RhoadsDemocrat

RELATING TO MANAGING AGENTS.

Requires managing agents for residential condominium properties with more than one hundred units located in a county with a population greater than 500,000 to possess a community association manager credential from a recognized nationwide community association management industry trade group. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Carol FukunagaDemocrat

RELATING TO THE GENERAL EXCISE TAX.

Exempts from the state general excise tax any grants received from the federal Restaurant Revitalization Fund by an eligible business pursuant to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Requires the Department of Taxation to notify all taxpayers eligible for refunds of any state general excise tax paid for grants received from the federal Restaurant Revitalization Fund of their eligibility and requires taxpayers to file refund claims no later than six months following notification. Requires any state general excise taxes paid by eligible businesses for Restaurant Revitalization Fund grants to be refunded to the taxpayer. Effective 7/1/3000. Applies retroactively to 3/11/2021. (HD1)

AQUINO

RELATING TO RENTAL APPLICATIONS.

Prohibits a landlord from rejecting a rental application solely due to an applicant's inability to provide a recent paycheck. Authorizes the landlord to require the applicant to provide evidence dated within ninety days of the application demonstrating the applicant has sufficient unearned income or liquid assets to cover the rental costs. Effective 7/1/2050. (HD1)

Sharon Y. MoriwakiDemocrat

RELATING TO STATE FUNDS.

Allocates interest earned on balances within the emergency and budget reserve fund to the general fund in years in which the emergency and budget reserve fund's balance exceeds the State's fund balance objective. For any fiscal year following a fiscal year in which emergency and budget reserve fund interest is deposited into the general fund, requires the Governor to include in the budget or supplemental budget submitted to the Legislature a request that an amount of general funds equal to the amount of interest deposited be expended to advance projects that address climate change impacts. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Ronald D. KouchiDemocrat

RELATING TO HAWAII EMPLOYMENT SECURITY LAW.

Expands the circumstances where the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations may waive the requirements for individuals to register to work and report to an employment office to be eligible for unemployment benefits. Authorize the Department to allow individuals to report to a location other than an employment office or other location approved pursuant to its rules. Beginning 4/1/2027, requires notices of determinations and documentation relating to appeals to be sent electronically, unless the election for mail is made. Allows an individual to change an elected withholding status more than once during a benefit year. Amends the statutory definition of "registered for work" or "registration for work". Repeals the requirement for individuals to post their work availability online to be eligible for unemployment benefits. Repeals the statutory provision for joint experience rating. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

AQUINO

RELATING TO RECYCLING.

Establishes an End-of-Life Lithium-ion Battery Management Working Group. Requires a report to the Legislature. Effective 1/1/2026. (SD1)

Brandon J.C. ElefanteDemocrat

RELATING TO CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AT STATE SMALL BOAT HARBORS AND STATE PARKS.

Authorizes the Department of Land and Natural Resources to engage in certain capital improvement projects at state small boat harbors and state parks without prior approval from the Legislature and Governor for existing facilities. Requires quarterly reports to the Legislature. Sunsets 5 years after the effective date. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Angus L.K. McKelveyDemocrat