HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

THE THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE

REGULAR SESSION OF 2026

 

COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES & HOMELESSNESS

Rep. Lisa Marten, Chair

Rep. Ikaika Olds, Vice Chair

 

Rep. Terez Amato

Rep. Jenna Takenouchi

Rep. Daisy Hartsfield

Rep. David Alcos III

Rep. Sue L. Keohokapu-Lee Loy

Rep. Diamond Garcia

Rep. Gregg Takayama

 

 

 

NOTICE OF HEARING

 

DATE:

Tuesday, February 17, 2026

TIME:

9:30 AM

PLACE:

VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE

Conference Room 329

State Capitol

415 South Beretania Street

 

 

 

Click here to submit testimony and to testify remotely or in person.

 

A live stream link of all House Standing Committee meetings will be available online

shortly before the scheduled start time.

 

Click here for the live stream of this meeting via YouTube.

 

 

 

A G E N D A

 

HB 2116, HD1

(HSCR183-26)

Status

RELATING TO GRANTS.

Appropriates funds to the Office of Community Services (OCS) to award grants to certain nonprofit organizations.  Establishes an evaluation and selection committee to oversee the awarding of grants.  Requires an applicant for a grant to provide certain documentation on activities that qualify for community engagement hours to qualify for the grant.  Appropriates funds for positions in OCS and for the Department of the Attorney General to assist OCS in reviewing contracts and monitoring costs.  Effective 7/1/3000.  (HD1)

 

LAB, HSH, FIN

HB 1879, HD1

(HSCR128-26)

Status

RELATING TO PUBLIC TRANSIT.

Establishes within the Department of Transportation a subsidized youth transit program, to be coordinated with the counties.  Authorizes the Department to adopt rules, expand eligibility, and consult with the Department of Education on best practices, under certain conditions.  Establishes the subsidized youth transit program special fund.  Requires biannual evaluations of the new program and special fund.  Allocates funds from the environmental response, energy, and food security tax to the subsidized youth transit program special fund.  Appropriates funds into and out of the subsidized youth transit program special fund.  Requires reports to the Legislature.  Effective 7/1/3000.  (HD1)

 

TRN, HSH, FIN

HB 2214

Status

RELATING TO TAX CREDITS.

Establishes a refundable diaper income tax credit.

 

HSH, FIN

HB 2310

Status

MAKING AN EMERGENCY APPROPRIATION TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES.

Provides an emergency appropriation to the Department of Human Services to replace general fund appropriations redirected to provide emergency food assistance during the 2025 federal government shutdown.

 

HSH, FIN

HB 2168, HD1

(HSCR77-26)

Status

RELATING TO THE EDUCATION OF STUDENTS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.

Requires the Department of Education to establish a program for the support of students experiencing homelessness.  Requires the Department to designate a state coordinator position and state navigator positions to implement the program.  Effective 7/1/3000.  (HD1)

 

EDN, HSH, FIN

HB 2427, HD1

(HSCR72-26)

Status

RELATING TO UNACCOMPANIED HOMELESS YOUTH.

Entitles unaccompanied homeless youth, including runaway youth, with the rights, as provided by the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, to immediate enrollment in school, full participation in school activities, and access to comparable school and educational services provided to other students.  Establishes a student-centered, safety-first protocol for unaccompanied homeless youth enrolling in or attending school.  Effective 7/1/3000.  (HD1)

 

EDN, HSH, FIN

HB 2560, HD1

(HSCR69-26)

Status

RELATING TO HOMELESSNESS.

Establishes a two-year-pilot program within the Department of Human Services to provide temporary financial stabilization assistance to families with students identified as experiencing homelessness.  Funds the program through the Department of Human Services using allowable Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds.  Requires Department of Education Complex Area Community Homeless Concerns Liaison to make approved purchases.  Effective 7/1/3000.  (HD1)

 

EDN, HSH, FIN

HB 1596, HD1

(HSCR123-26)

Status

RELATING TO STUDENT BASIC NEEDS SUPPORT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII.

Establishes a Basic Needs Pilot Program at a single campus of the University of Hawaii system.  Authorizes the establishment of a Housing Stability Pilot Project at that campus.  Appropriates funds.  Effective 7/1/3000.  Sunsets 6/30/2028.  (HD1)

 

HED, HSH, FIN

HB 2197

Status

RELATING TO PROPERTY.

Specifies a process by which property owners may utilize law enforcement officers to remove unauthorized individuals from dwellings.  Establishes the criminal offenses of squatting and fraudulent sale or lease of residential real property.  Classifies the type of property damage typically inflicted by squatters as a form of criminal property damage in the second degree.  Classifies the falsification of documentation typically performed by squatters as a form of unsworn falsification to authorities.

 

HSH, JHA

HB 2498, HD1

(HSCR198-26)

Status

RELATING TO CARE HOMES.

Requires and appropriates funds for the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to establish a Central Oahu Care Home Community Resilience Pilot Program to assist eligible care home facilities to implement structural and operational resilience improvements.  Requires a report to the Legislature.  Repeals on June 30, 2031.  Effective 7/1/3000.  (HD1)

 

PBS, HSH, FIN

 

DECISION MAKING

The following measure(s) were previously heard on 2/12/2026 at 10:30 AM.  No public testimony will be accepted.

 

HB 2167

Status

RELATING TO YOUTH HOMELESSNESS.

Requires the Office of Youth Services to establish a two-year Youth Housing Stability Assistance Pilot Program to award funds to certain nonprofit organizations and government agencies to support eligible youth with financial assistance.  Appropriates funds.

 

HSH, FIN

 

 

 

 

 

DECISION MAKING TO FOLLOW

 

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FOR AMENDED NOTICES:  Measures that have been deleted are stricken through and measures that have been added are bolded.

 

For more information, please contact the Committee Clerk at (808) 586-9453.

 

 

 

 

 

________________________________________

Rep. Lisa Marten

Chair