STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3080

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2730

S.D. 2

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. 2730, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Establish factors under which officers may arrest and detain persons without a warrant for petty misdemeanors and violations, and require officers to document the justification for the arrests;

(2) Amend the circumstances under which officers may issue citations in lieu of arrest;

(3) Require officers to issue citations in lieu of arrest for certain petty misdemeanors and violations; and

(4) Require the Judiciary to promulgate a standardized citation form and update the required information for citations.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Libertarian Party of Hawaii, ACLU Hawaiʻi, and one individual.

Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of the Attorney General, Office of the Prosecuting Attorney of the County of Hawaii, Department of the Prosecuting Attorney of the County of Maui, Hawaiʻi Police Department, Maui Police Department, Kauaʻi Police Department, and two individuals.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Judiciary.

Your Committee finds that arrest is among the most serious forms of government intervention and can bring immediate and lasting consequences, including loss of employment, housing instability, family disruption, and increased likelihood of deeper justice system involvement. These consequences may occur even when an individual is presumed innocent and ultimately not convicted. This measure will reduce unnecessary detention while maintaining accountability by reinforcing the use of citations in lieu of arrest as the default response for low-level offenses but preserving law enforcement discretion to arrest when necessary to protect public safety or ensure court appearance.

Your Committee notes that this measure proposes to amend the citation form in section 803-6(e)(3), Hawaii Revised Statutes, by removing the last four digits of the offender's social security numbers in a citation. Your Committee further notes that this may contribute to identification issues in court and the charging of subsequent cases involving the same offender. Therefore, amendments to this measure are necessary to ensure the proper identification of offenders.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Restoring language that requires citations to include the last four digits of the offender's social security number, if available;

(2) Requiring citations be visible on the offender's criminal record; and

(3) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

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. 2730, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2730, S.D. 2.

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

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KARL RHOADS, Chair