STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1470-26

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2026

RE: S.B. No. 2811

S.D. 2

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 Labor, to which was referred S.B. No. 2811, S.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO STATE BUILDING PROJECTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to temporarily establish, and appropriate funds for, the State Building Permit Process Task Force to evaluate the challenges, opportunities, and legislative actions necessary to create a State Building Permit Review Office for state projects located on state‑owned lands.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Accounting and General Services; Hawaii Public Housing Authority; and Hawaiʻi Community Development Authority.

Your Committee finds that state construction projects located on state‑owned lands are often subject to fragmented and time‑consuming permitting processes involving multiple county and state agencies, resulting in delays, increased costs, and postponed delivery of critical public facilities and housing. The absence of a centralized, coordinated permit review process for state projects creates inefficiencies, limits accountability, and complicates interagency coordination, particularly for large‑scale infrastructure and affordable housing developments. This measure aims to improve efficiency, enhance coordination, and support the timely completion of state projects while maintaining applicable legal and accessibility standards.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying the membership of the task force;

(2) Deleting language that would have required the members of the task force to be appointed no later than August 15, 2026;

(3) Removing unnecessary language exempting task force members from the State Ethics Code, as the State Ethics Commission's longstanding practice is to exclude the activities of task force members from the general provisions of the Code;

(4) Changing the effective date to July 1, 3000, to encourage further discussion; and

(5) 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 Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2811, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2811, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

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

____________________________

JACKSON D. SAYAMA, Chair