STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2265

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 3055

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Labor and Technology, to which was referred S.B. No. 3055 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO FALSE IMPERSONATION OF UNION REPRESENTATIVES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to prohibit a person from falsely impersonating an employee organization representative and establish a cause of action and penalties for violations.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Government Employees Association, AFSCME Local 152, AFL-CIO; Hawaii State AFL-CIO; United Public Workers, AFSCME Local 646, AFL-CIO; University of Hawaii Professional Assembly; and Pride at Work‑Hawai'i.

Your Committee finds that individuals who fraudulently present themselves as union representatives can cause significant harm by spreading misinformation, creating confusion regarding representation rights, and potentially disrupting labor negotiations. This measure prohibits such deceitful conduct and holds violators accountable to protect the integrity of the collective bargaining process and ensure that public employees are not misled by unauthorized actors.

Your Committee acknowledges testimony by the University of Hawaii Professional Assembly that the definition of "falsely impersonate an employee organization representative" is overly broad, specifically, that the inclusion of "material omission" without a clear requirement of malicious intent could inadvertently penalize employee representatives who make an honest mistake. Therefore, amendments to this measure are necessary to address this concern.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by clarifying the definition of "falsely impersonate an employee organization representative" specifying that a specific intent to deceive is required for a material omission to constitute false impersonation.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Labor and Technology that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 3055, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3055, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

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

________________________________

BRANDON J.C. ELEFANTE, Chair