STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3082

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2145

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 2145 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RECORDINGS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Establish the right of a person to record law enforcement activities; and

(2) Establish a private right of action for any violation of the right to record law enforcement activities.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from ACLU Hawaiʻi; League of Women Voters of Hawaii; Imua Alliance; Roots Reborn; UNITE HERE! Local 5; Hawaiʻi Coalition for Immigrant Rights; Fujiwara & Rosenbaum, LLLC; and fifty-six individuals.

Your Committee finds that for a democratic system to function, community members must be able to document the actions of public officials, especially law enforcement officers, and hold them accountable when those actions violate individual rights and liberties. Your Committee also finds that courts across the country have repeatedly recognized the right to film law enforcement activities in public as a right protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. Your Committee further finds that a recent increase in federal immigration enforcement has heightened the risks of violence and intimidation by federal law enforcement officers against not just immigrants, who may have limited English language proficiency and minimal familiarity with the full extent of their legal rights, but also U.S. citizens, through both detention and physical harm, including fatalities. In many of these incidents, bystander video recordings have provided the public with critical information and promoted accountability. This measure affirms constitutional protections, provides remedies for violations, reinforces transparency and accountability, and serves as a deterrent against future abuses of authority by law enforcement officers.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2145 and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

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

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KARL RHOADS, Chair