STAND. COM. REP. NO. 606-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: H.B. No. 2427

H.D. 2

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Madame:

Your Committee on Human Services & Homelessness, to which was referred H.B. No. 2427, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO UNACCOMPANIED HOMELESS YOUTH,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Entitle unaccompanied homeless youth, including runaway youth, with the rights, as provided by the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, to immediate enrollment in school, full participation in school activities, and access to comparable school and educational services provided to other students; and

(2) Establish a student-centered, safety-first protocol for unaccompanied homeless youth enrolling in or attending school.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Education; 50501 Hawaii; General Strike Hawaii; and eight individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of the Attorney General and Office of Youth Services.

Your Committee finds that clarifying enrollment rights and establishing a student-centered, safety-first protocol will help ensure that these vulnerable students receive immediate educational access and appropriate support. This measure is intended to align state policy with the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 (McKinney-Vento Act) and strengthens procedures to safeguard the wellbeing and educational stability of unaccompanied homeless youth.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Amending the definition of "unaccompanied homeless youth" to explicitly incorporate wording from the McKinney-Vento Act;

(2) Requiring the Complex Area Homeless Liaison to be notified first in cases of unaccompanied homeless youth and the Office of Youth Services to be notified in cases where the unaccompanied homeless youth is a runaway youth;

(3) Specifying that if immunization records are unavailable, unaccompanied homeless youth may attend school on a provisional basis, while the school's assigned Complex Area Homeless Liaison works with the Department of Health to meet associated provisional attendance documentation requirements; and

(4) 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 Human Services & Homelessness that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2427, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2427, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Human Services & Homelessness,

____________________________

LISA MARTEN, Chair