HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
THE THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION OF 2026
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Rep. Jackson D. Sayama, Chair |
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Rep. Mike Lee, Vice Chair |
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Rep. Andrew Takuya Garrett |
Rep. Sam Satoru Kong |
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Rep. Jeanne Kapela |
Rep. Julie Reyes Oda |
AMENDED NOTICE OF HEARING
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DATE: |
Thursday, February 19, 2026 |
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TIME: |
9:30 AM |
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PLACE: |
VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE Conference Room 309 State Capitol 415 South Beretania Street |
Click here to submit testimony and to testify remotely or in person.
A live stream link of all House Standing Committee meetings will be available online
shortly before the scheduled start time.
Click here for the live stream of this meeting via YouTube.
A M E N D E D A G E N D A
The following measure(s) has been ADDED to the agenda: HB2358
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RELATING TO THE HAWAII EMPLOYER-UNION HEALTH BENEFITS TRUST FUND INVESTMENT OFFICE STAFF SALARIES. Enables the Board of Trustees of the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund to establish appropriate salaries for the investment office staff of the Trust Fund.
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO THE HAWAII EMPLOYER-UNION HEALTH BENEFITS TRUST FUND STAFF SALARIES. Authorizes the Board of Trustees of the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund to establish the salary for an assistant administrator.
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO HOUSING. Provides the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation with autonomy in personnel matters. Increases the salary cap for the Executive Director and Deputy Executive Director of the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation. Renames the Executive Assistant of the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation the Deputy Executive Director. Prohibits the extension of any employment contract of the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation and Hawaii Public Housing Authority beyond two years without legislative approval. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)
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HSG, LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO CIVIL SERVICE EXEMPT POSITIONS WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES. Exempts certain positions within the State Historic Preservation Division and Commission on Water Resource Management within the Department of Land and Natural Resources from the state civil service law. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)
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WAL, LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. Exempts certain positions in the Developmental Disabilities Division of the Department of Health and Hawaii State Hospital from civil service. Authorizes the Director of Health to appoint two additional associate administrators and two project managers for the Hawaii State Hospital or a secure psychiatric rehabilitation facility. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)
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HLT, LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING. Requires the Department of the Attorney General to develop a Human Trafficking Awareness Training Program to educate and train workers in the transient accommodations sector. Requires transient accommodations employers or transient accommodations third-party contractors to periodically provide the human trafficking awareness training to certain employees and contract workers, keep records of the training, post signage, and develop and implement a human trafficking prevention policy that includes procedures for the reporting of suspected human trafficking. Establishes penalties. Requires the Department of Law Enforcement to adopt rules. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)
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TOU, LAB, JHA |
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RELATING TO ESSENTIAL PERMITTING POSITIONS. Establishes a pilot program to improve the speed, accountability, and quality of permit processing through targeted staffing, performance incentives, and interdepartmental competition within participating counties. Requires annual reports to the Legislature. Sunsets 6/30/2031. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)
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ECD, LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO STATE EMPLOYEE BENEFITS. Authorizes the Department of Health to establish a vacation payout pilot program in which eligible Department of Health employees may defer unused vacation leave credits in favor of a pay out to provide home purchase down payment assistance. Requires reports to the Legislature. Sunsets 6/30/2029. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)
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HLT, LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING. Raises the ceiling for the prevailing wages exemption on public works construction projects from $2,000 to $5,000 for governmental contracting agencies. Creates exemption to contractors licensing laws for public works construction projects valued up to $5,000 for governmental contracting agencies.
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS. Clarifies that a county employee's code compliance review of plans for construction applicable to the specific engineering field is considered lawful experience in engineering work for purposes of professional engineering licensure.
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LAB, CPC |
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RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT EARNINGS. Requires hourly rate or salary ranges to be disclosed on job listings for full-time, part-time, temporary, or seasonal employees. Removes the exemption for employers having fewer than fifty employees.
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LAB, CPC |
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RELATING TO PERSONAL INFORMATION. Requires every government agency that maintains, uses, collects or processes the home address of a covered public servant or candidate, to ensure that their home address is not publicly accessible. Requires every government agency to redact or otherwise remove home addresses from certain websites, databases, and printed documents or publications. Authorizes an individual to request disclosure of the home address, under certain circumstances. Allows a covered public servant or candidate to object to the disclosure of their home address.
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LAB, JHA |
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RELATING TO PUBLIC NOTICE. Allows government agencies to satisfy public notice requirements by posting notices on official state or county websites, while retaining publication as an option.
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LAB, JHA |
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RELATING TO WORKERS' COMPENSATION MEDICAL BENEFITS. Expands workers' compensation medical benefits for firefighters to include coverage for adenocarcinoma or mesothelioma of the respiratory system; cancer of the buccal cavity, cervix, colon, esophagus, ovary, pharynx, skin, female reproductive organs, including the uterus, endometrium, and fallopian tubes, and thyroid; and malignant melanoma. Specifies that an employer may prove that the cancer or disease was not associated with the firefighting duties to deny medical benefits under workers' compensation law.
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LAB, FIN |
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DECISION MAKING
The following measure(s) were previously heard on February 17, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. No public testimony will be accepted.
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RELATING TO RETIREMENT. Provides elective officers with the choice to be members of the Employees' Retirement System after each election. Repeals the condition that a choice to be excluded from the Employees' Retirement System is irrevocable and such choice may only be made once.
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LAB, FIN |
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DECISION MAKING TO FOLLOW
Persons wishing to offer comments should submit testimony at least 24 hours prior to the hearing. Testimony received after this time will be stamped late and left to the discretion of the chair to consider. While every effort will be made to incorporate all testimony received, materials received on the day of the hearing or improperly identified or directed, may not be processed.
Testimony submitted will be placed on the legislative website. This public posting of testimony on the website should be considered when including personal information in your testimony.
The chair may institute a per-testifier time limit.
Committees meeting in the morning must adjourn prior to the day's Floor Session. Therefore, due to time constraints, not all testifiers may be provided an opportunity to offer verbal comments. However, written submissions will be considered by the committee.
Please refrain from profanity or uncivil behavior. Violations may result in ejection from the hearing without the ability to rejoin.
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Click here for a complete list of House Guidelines for remote testimony.
FOR AMENDED NOTICES: Measures that have been deleted are stricken through and measures that have been added are bolded.
For more information, please contact the Committee Clerk at (808) 586-6900.
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________________________________________ Rep. Jackson D. Sayama Chair |