STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1472-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: S.B. No. 2695

S.D. 1

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 Transportation, to which was referred S.B. No. 2695, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PEDESTRIAN SAFETY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Clarify driver obligations at crosswalks and establish a clear and enforceable duty to stop and remain stopped for pedestrians;

(2) Strengthen penalties for violations, particularly in school zones; and

(3) Expand the offense of negligent injury in the second degree to include bodily injury to a vulnerable user by the operation of a vehicle in a negligent manner.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Transportation; Department of Health; Oahu Metropolitan Planning Organization; Keiki Injury Prevention Coalition; Hawaiʻi Bicycling League; National Federation of the Blind of Hawaii; and five individuals.

Your Committee finds that many pedestrian injuries and fatalities occur while individuals are lawfully crossing the roadway in marked or unmarked crosswalks, including in residential neighborhoods and near schools. Although existing law requires drivers to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks, the statute does not clearly specify when a driver's duty to stop is triggered or how long a driver must remain stopped, which can create confusion for motorists and challenges for enforcement. By clarifying a driver's duty to stop and remain stopped for pedestrians in crosswalks, strengthening penalties for violations, and expanding the offense of negligent injury in the second degree to include bodily injury to vulnerable roadway users, this measure supports the State's broader efforts to improve pedestrian safety and reduce traffic-related injuries and fatalities.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Inserting a savings clause;

(2) Deleting the severability clause;

(3) Changing the effective date to July 1, 3000, to encourage further discussion; 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 Transportation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2695, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2695, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs.

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

____________________________

DARIUS KILA, Chair