STAND. COM. REP. NO. 581-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: H.B. No. 2254

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 Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 2254 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO COURT-ORDERED PAYMENTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Require the Judiciary to contract with a collection agency or licensed attorney to collect delinquent court-ordered fees, fines, sanctions, and court costs;

(2) Clarify the collection and prioritization of court-ordered fees, fines, and restitution; and

(3) Establish procedures for proof of compliance hearings and consequences for nonpayment.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of the Attorney General. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Office of the Public Defender and one individual. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Judiciary.

Your Committee finds that the Hawaii Supreme Court's interpretation of section 706‑644, Hawaii Revised Statutes, limits a court's ability to conduct compliance hearings for restitution payments when a defendant is not on probation and has not defaulted, thereby reducing judicial oversight and placing additional burdens on crime victims seeking enforcement. Your Committee further finds that this measure restores and clarifies the court's authority to monitor and enforce court-ordered restitution, establishes clearer procedures for proof of compliance hearings and collections, and strengthens victims' ability to receive restitution without requiring them to pursue separate civil actions.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Deleting, for purposes of triggering the mandatory setting of a compliance hearing, the condition precedent that a defendant has not yet paid all restitution in full;

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

(3) 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 Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2254, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2254, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

DAVID A. TARNAS, Chair