HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
THE THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION OF 2026
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Rep. Jackson D. Sayama, Chair |
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Rep. Mike Lee, Vice Chair |
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Rep. Andrew Takuya Garrett |
Rep. Sam Satoru Kong |
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Rep. Jeanne Kapela |
Rep. Julie Reyes Oda |
NOTICE OF HEARING
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DATE: |
Tuesday, March 17, 2026 |
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TIME: |
9:30 AM |
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PLACE: |
VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE Conference Room 309 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
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RELATING TO LAW ENFORCEMENT. Establishes the Kupaa Retention Bonus Program to be administered by the Department of Law Enforcement to provide $15,000 retention bonuses to eligible sworn law enforcement officers that have worked a minimum of two thousand hours during the preceding fiscal year, subject to collective bargaining negotiations. Requires the Department of Law Enforcement to report to the Legislature on the effectiveness of the Kupaa Retention Bonus Program. Appropriates funds for the Kupaa Retention Bonus Program. Sunsets 6/30/2028. (SD1)
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LAB, JHA, FIN |
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RELATING TO THE STATE FIRE COUNCIL. Replaces the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations with the Department of Law Enforcement as the department responsible for budgeting administrative staffing for the State Fire Council.
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LAB, JHA, FIN |
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RELATING TO GOVERNMENT. Allows a retirant to be employed without reenrollment in the Employees' Retirement System and without loss or interruption of retirement benefits if the retirant is employed as a law enforcement officer stationed at a public school as a school resource officer or investigator in positions identified by the Department of the Attorney General or Department of Law Enforcement or other law enforcement agency as a labor shortage or difficult-to-fill positions, subject to certain conditions. Requires the Director of Human Resources of the appropriate state jurisdiction or the human resources management chief executive of each county to include in their annual reports to the Legislature, details on the employment of retirants as school resource officers or investigators. Effective 1/1/2077. (SD1)
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO REVOLVING DOOR RESTRICTIONS FOR STATE EMPLOYEES. Prohibits new state employees from taking official action on matters they worked on before state employment. Prohibits former permanent employees of the Office of the Governor and Office of the Lieutenant Governor from representing persons or businesses for a period of 12 months after termination from state employment.
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LAB, JHA |
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RELATING TO THE CHIEF ELECTIONS OFFICER. Specifies that the Chief Election office who passes the standard state probationary period may only be terminated for cause.
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LAB, JHA |
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RELATING TO TAXATION. Requires the Director of Taxation to appoint a legal, tax, or accounting professional as an Administrative Rules Officer. Authorizes the Administrative Rules Officer to appoint individuals with suitable experience as Administrative Rules Specialists.
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO PUBLIC NOTICE. Establishes the Electronic Posting Pilot Project for any county with a population between one hundred thousand and 175,000, to be administered by the county clerk of each participating county. Allows county agencies to satisfy county-wide public notice requirements by posting notices on official county websites, while retaining publication as an option. Requires a report to the Legislature. Effective 1/1/2525. (SD1)
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LAB, JHA |
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MAKING EMERGENCY APPROPRIATIONS FOR PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT COST ITEMS. Makes emergency appropriations for collective bargaining cost items for the members of Bargaining Units (1) and (10) and their excluded counterparts to resolve issues related to temporary hazard pay for fiscal year 2025-2026. Effective 1/1/2077. (SD1)
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO THE EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM'S EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS FOR NORMAL COST AND ACCRUED LIABILITY. Increases employer contribution rate for normal cost and accrued liability for police officers, firefighters, and corrections officers to ensure that the amortization period for the unfunded accrued liability of the State's Employees' Retirement System does not exceed the maximum funding period. Effective 1/1/2077. (SD1)
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO THE EXEMPTION FROM CIVIL SERVICE OF EXECUTIVE PERSONNEL OF THE EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM. Allows the Board of Trustees of the Employees' Retirement System, through its Executive Director, to appoint specified executive personnel positions of the Employees' Retirement System of the State of Hawaii and exempts these positions from the State's civil service requirements. Effective 1/1/2077. (SD1)
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LAB, FIN |
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RELATING TO HEALTH CARE PLANS FOR WORKERS. Requires the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, in consultation with the Insurance Commissioner, to establish and implement a five-year voluntary Nontraditional Workforce Portable Health Care Benefit Plan Pilot Program that offers high deductible health plans or catastrophic health plans to nontraditional workers who are ineligible for health benefits provided by the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund or prepaid health care plans under the Prepaid Health Care Act. Requires reports to the Legislature. Appropriates funds. Effective 1/1/2077. (SD1)
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LAB, CPC, FIN |
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RELATING TO COUNTY LABOR STANDARDS. Authorizes the counties to require contractors to disclose information regarding their employees' wages, benefits, hours, and employment status and deny, revoke, or suspend a building permit application for violating laws relating to wages, benefits, hours, and employment status, under certain conditions. Establishes a process by which an owner or developer may replace a noncompliant contractor and transfer the building permit to the replacement contractor. Effective 3/22/2075. (SD1)
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LAB, JHA |
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RELATING TO PETITIONS TO TEMPORARILY RESTRAIN AND ENJOIN HARASSMENT OF AN EMPLOYEE. Establishes a two-year pilot project to authorize public employers to petition for temporary restraining orders and injunctions against employment-related harassment of certain public employees. Appropriates funds. Effective 1/1/2077. Sunsets 6/30/2028. (SD2)
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LAB, JHA, FIN |
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RELATING TO THE LAW ENFORCEMENT STANDARDS BOARD. Exempts certain positions of the Law Enforcement Standards Board from the State's Civil Service Law and collective bargaining requirements. Effective 1/1/2077. (SD1)
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LAB, JHA, FIN |
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DECISION MAKING TO FOLLOW
Persons wishing to offer comments should submit testimony at least 24 hours prior to the hearing. Testimony received after this time will be stamped late and left to the discretion of the chair to consider. While every effort will be made to incorporate all testimony received, materials received on the day of the hearing or improperly identified or directed, may not be processed.
Testimony submitted will be placed on the legislative website. This public posting of testimony on the website should be considered when including personal information in your testimony.
The chair may institute a per-testifier time limit.
Committees meeting in the morning must adjourn prior to the day's Floor Session. Therefore, due to time constraints, not all testifiers may be provided an opportunity to offer verbal comments. However, written submissions will be considered by the committee.
Please refrain from profanity or uncivil behavior. Violations may result in ejection from the hearing without the ability to rejoin.
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Click here for a complete list of House Guidelines for remote testimony.
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) 586-6900.
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________________________________________ Rep. Jackson D. Sayama Chair |