STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2098-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: S.B. No. 3025

S.D. 2

H.D. 3

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Madame:

Your Committee on Finance, to which was referred S.B. No. 3025, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MEDICAL DEBT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Authorize the Office of Wellness and Resilience to develop, implement, and administer a Medical Debt Acquisition and Forgiveness Program to acquire and forgive outstanding medical debt for state residents, subject to the availability of program funds; and

(2) Appropriate funds for the program, subject to a 1:1 matching requirement of private funds.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Office of Wellness and Resilience; The Queen's Health Systems; Hawaiʻi Public Health Institute; AlohaCare; Indivisible Hawaiʻi Healthcare Team; Aloha Independent Living Hawaii; American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network; 50501 Hawaii; General Strike Hawaii; American Association of University Women of Hawaiʻi; Mana Up; HPM Building Supply; Healthcare Association of Hawaii; Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law and Economic Justice; Holomua Collaborative; and seven individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the State Procurement Office.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying that the Office of Wellness and Resilience may acquire and forgive outstanding medical debt of residents that is identified as available for acquisition, rather than through contracts with organizations that administer medical debt acquisition and forgiveness;

(2) Authorize the Office of Wellness and Resilience to partner with other state agencies;

(3) Specifying that the contracts of the Office of Wellness and Resilience are exempt from the Public Procurement Code and procurement laws for contracts to provide health or human services;

(4) Specifying that acquisition and forgiveness of medical debt shall be negotiated to ensure the best possible value for the State;

(5) Specifying an appropriation lapse date of June 30, 2027; and

(6) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Finance that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 3025, S.D. 2, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3025, S.D. 2, H.D. 3.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Finance,

____________________________

CHRIS TODD, Chair