STAND. COM. REP. NO. 147-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: H.B. No. 1782

H.D. 1

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Madame:

Your Committee on Economic Development & Technology, to which was referred H.B. No. 1782 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR THE PROTECTION OF MINORS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish safeguards, protection, oversight, and penalties for interactions between minors and artificial intelligence companion systems or conversational artificial intelligence services.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; Department of Education; Department of the Attorney General; Office of Wellness and Resilience; Friends of Kamalani & Lydgate Park; Young People's Alliance; Catholic Charities Hawaiʻi; Imua Alliance; Public Citizen; Hawaiʻi Children's Action Network Speaks!; HawaiiKidsCAN; Hawaiʻi State Teachers Association; and numerous individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from TechNet. Your Committee received comments on this measure from CivicNexus and Retail Merchants of Hawaii.

Your Committee finds that generative artificial intelligence systems (gen AI), which are systems that are capable of generating text, images, audio, video, and interactive dialogue, are becoming increasingly accessible to children and minors through websites, applications, educational tools, and other consumer platforms. Your Committee further finds that, based on recent national and international reporting, academic research, and public safety investigations, there are significant concerns about the use of gen AI chatbots and other gen AI companion-style systems by minors. In particular, your Committee is concerned about the potential of gen AI chatbots and other companion-style systems that are designed to foster emotional dependency and simulate personal relationships to severely impact the mental health and development of Hawaii's youth. Your Committee believes the safeguards established in this measure will protect the safety, privacy, and well-being of Hawaii's children from the harms posed by companion and conversational AI systems while still allowing for the use of innovative technologies that support education, accessibility, and creativity.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the effective date to July 1, 3000, to encourage further discussion; and

(2) Making a technical, nonsubstantive amendment for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Economic Development & Technology that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1782, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1782, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Economic Development & Technology,

____________________________

GREGGOR ILAGAN, Chair