STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1824-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: S.B. No. 2521

S.D. 1

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 Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 2521, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EMERGENCY SERVICES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Exempt emergency medical services personnel from commercial driver's license requirements; and

(2) Amend the definition of "authorized emergency vehicle" under the State Traffic Code to:

(A) Replace "ambulances" with "emergency medical services vehicles"; and

(B) Include disaster response and recovery vehicles and Department of Health vehicles.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Health; Honolulu Emergency Services Department; Department of Human Resources of the City and County of Honolulu; and United Public Workers, AFSCME Local 646, AFL-CIO.

Your Committee finds that emergency medical services personnel perform essential public safety functions and frequently operate vehicles that are classified as commercial motor vehicles during emergency responses. Your Committee further finds that requiring these personnel to obtain commercial driver's licenses creates unnecessary administrative burdens and does not reflect the specialized training they receive or the vehicles used in modern emergency operations. This measure addresses these concerns by exempting qualified emergency medical services personnel from commercial driver's license requirements and updating statutory definitions to better align with current emergency response practices.

Your Committee has amended this measure by 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 S.B. No. 2521, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2521, S.D. 1, H.D. 2.

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

____________________________

DAVID A. TARNAS, Chair