STAND. COM. REP. NO. 280-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: H.B. No. 1664

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 Labor, to which was referred H.B. No. 1664 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE HAWAII EMPLOYER-UNION HEALTH BENEFITS TRUST FUND,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Allow impasses and disputes relating to the amounts of State and county contributions to the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund to be resolved through arbitration; and

(2) Repeal the prohibition against strikes on contribution related issues.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaiʻi State Teachers Association; University of Hawaii Professional Assembly; United Public Workers, AFSCME Local 646, AFL-CIO; and Hawaii Government Employees Association, AFSCME Local 152, AFL-CIO. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of Budget and Finance and Office of Collective Bargaining. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Human Resources Development.

Your Committee finds that the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund is a key component of public employees' health coverage, and employer contributions form an important part of overall compensation. However, existing law removes disputes over these contribution amounts from binding arbitration and places them into a separate legislative recommendation process that also prohibits strikes, creating delays and limiting the effectiveness of impasse resolution. Your Committee believes that allowing these disputes to proceed through binding arbitration will streamline negotiations, resolve impasses more efficiently, and provide needed stability for both employers and employees.

Your Committee has amended this measure by changing the effective date to July 1, 3000, to encourage further discussion.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1664, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1664, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

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

____________________________

JACKSON D. SAYAMA, Chair