STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3246

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 1842

H.D. 2

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water, Land, Culture and the Arts, to which was referred H.B. No. 1842, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO GOVERNMENT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to amend Act 289, Session Laws of Hawaii 2025 (Act 289), to:

(1) Replace the Senior Residence at Iwilei parcel with the Westridge parcel;

(2) Change the transfer date for the Alii Tower parcel to December 31, 2026;

(3) Change the deadline for approval by the City and County of Honolulu to December 31, 2027; and

(4) Change the repeal date to January 1, 2028.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Accounting and General Services and Office of Planning and Sustainable Development.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of the Attorney General, Department of Land and Natural Resources, Office of the Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu, and HONCRE1 LLC.

Your Committee finds that Act 289 was enacted to address the State's pressing office space needs, reduce government reliance on private commercial office space, and mutually benefit the State and the City and County of Honolulu through the exchange of certain state properties for the fee simple interest in the parcel of land known as Alii Place. Nevertheless, further consideration of the parcels given in exchange for Alii Place revealed that replacing the Senior Residence at Iwilei parcel with the Westridge parcel is more advantageous for the County's Transit-Oriented Development while ensuring that essential services remain in Iwilei and future development can build to the planned density of Iwilei. By aligning state land assets with county transit goals, this measure facilitates a more sustainable, transit-friendly future for Oahu.

Your Committee notes the recommendation provided in testimony by the Department of the Attorney General that section 3 of Act 289 should be repealed to allow the Department of Land and Natural Resources to have statutory authority to manage the real property to be transferred to the State under the Act and that section 6 of Act 289 should be amended also for the sake of consistency. Amendments to this measure are therefore necessary to address these concerns.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Repealing section 3 of Act 289, Session Laws of Hawaii 2025; and

(2) Deleting language that would have reenacted section 171‑2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, in the form in which it read on the day before the effective date of this Act.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water, Land, Culture and the Arts that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1842, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1842, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Water, Land, Culture and the Arts,

________________________________

CHRIS LEE, Chair