Law Center testimony for the current legislative session will be posted here.  For testimony during prior sessions or work in other contexts, see the following links:

2023 Legislative Session

  • S.B. 210: Establishes a Criminal Justice Data Sharing Working Group to make recommendations for a statewide criminal justice data repository. Takes effect 3/22/2075. (SD2)
  • S.B. 233: Specifies that boards subject to the open meetings law shall allow oral testimony on any agenda item at the beginning of the board’s agenda or meeting, provided that oral testimony shall not be limited to the beginning of a board’s agenda. Specifies an exception for the legislative body of each county.
  • S.B. 455: Extends the term of the Oversight Coordinator for the Hawaiʻi Correctional System Oversight Commission and requires the Oversight Coordinator be subject to the advice and consent of the Senate. Specifies that the Commission shall take measures as necessary to maintain confidentiality in investigations. Broadens the Oversight Coordinator’s power to make inquiries, obtain information, and inspect the premises of agencies and correctional facilities. Takes effect 1/1/2050. (SD1)
  • S.B. 576: Requires reports of official out-of-state and intra-state travel by state employees, officers, or other representatives of state departments or agencies, including the Judiciary and University of Hawaiʻi, to be made available for public review on the Comptroller’s website. Appropriates moneys. Effective 7/1/2112. (SD3)
  • S.B. 719: Gives the Office of Information Practices the discretion to resolve disputes about open records or open meetings either through an opinion or, when the opinion would likely be in favor of the agency, through informal written guidance. Appropriates funding for the Office of Information Practices to hire two new full-time positions for a Legal Assistant and Attorney.
  • S.B. 767: Prohibits the Governor or a Mayor from suspending requests for public records or vital statistics during a declared state of emergency. Allows for a reasonable delay in an agency’s response to a request as a result of extenuating circumstances.
  • S.B. 871: Repeals the Board of Directors of the Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corporation and requires the Corporation to employ an Executive Director to be nominated by the Governor, subject to the advice and consent of the Senate. Makes conforming amendments.
  • S.B. 991: Imposes a cap on costs charged to reproduce certain government records. Waives reproduction costs charged for the first one hundred pages if disclosure serves the public interest. Waives costs charged to duplicate certain government records in an electronic format. Imposes a cap on costs charged to search for, review, and segregate records. Provides for a waiver of fees when a record’s disclosure serves the public interest.
  • S.B. 1123: Exempts members of a county council from the limitation on the number of members that may attend an informational meeting or presentation on matters relating to official county council business for purposes of permitted interactions. Clarifies that such meetings shall be meetings that are open to the public.
  • S.B. 1159: Clarifies when the identity of a police officer, who has been suspended or discharged following a misconduct incident, is to be disclosed in a county police department’s annual report to the legislature.
  • S.B. 1231: Establishes the Digital Equity Grant Program to award grants to applicants to deploy digital equity projects to covered populations in the State. Appropriates funds.
  • S.B. 1253: Allows the Office of Information Practices to resolve open meeting and open record complaints through either a legal determination on whether a violation occurred or written guidance on the relevant legal requirements.
  • S.B. 1513: Requires a Public Agency Board to report any discussion or final action taken during an executive meeting; provided that such disclosure is not inconsistent with the purpose of convening the executive meeting, but giving the Board discretion to maintain confidentiality.
  • S.B. 1564: Allows a requestor of a public record to receive the public record in the format of their choice; provided that the format that is being requested is available.
  • H.B. 100: Establishes a criminal justice data sharing working group to make recommendations for a statewide criminal justice data repository.
  • H.B. 522: Removes the ability of the governor or a mayor to suspend electronic media transmission during a state of emergency. Effective 6/30/3000. (HD1)
  • H.B. 563: Exempts members of a county council from the limitation on the number of members that may attend an informational meeting or presentation on matters relating to official county council business for purposes of permitted interactions. Clarifies that such meetings shall be meetings that are open to the public.
  • H.B. 712: Exempts licensing boards under DCCA from the requirement that board meetings be recorded. Encourages boards to maintain recordings of board meetings on the board’s website regardless of whether the written minutes of the meeting have been posted. Requires boards to provide the state archives with a copy of any recording of a board meeting before removing the recording from the board’s website. Requires the written minutes of board meetings to include a link to the electronic audio or video recording, if available online. Effective 10/1/2023. (HD1)
  • H.B. 719: Beginning 7/1/2024, imposes a cap on charges for the reproduction of certain government records; waives the cost of duplication of government records provided to requestors in an electronic format; imposes a cap on charges for searching for, reviewing, and segregating records; and provides for a waiver of fees when the public interest is served by a record’s disclosure. Appropriates funds for positions in the office of information practices. Effective 6/30/3000. (HD1)
  • H.B. 823: Expands the scope of reports on correctional facility and community correctional center deaths that are submitted to the governor and legislature.  Requires certain reports to be published on the department of corrections and rehabilitation website.  Mandates public access to other information reported.  (HD2)
  • H.B. 880: Requires each county police department to collect, report, and publicly publish certain data regarding police stops, arrests, uses of force, and trends. Effective 12/1/23.
  • H.B. 1038: Establishes a Targeted Violence Prevention program within the state Office of Homeland Security. Mandates reporting by state and county government agencies regarding specific enumerated activity. Establishes the all-threats or all-hazards statewide reporting and analysis system. Mandates reporting by state and county government agencies regarding specific enumerated activity. Creates two new analyst position and appropriates money for the program.
  • H.B. 1132: Extends the term of the Oversight Coordinator for the Hawaiʻi Correctional System Oversight Commission. Specifies that the Commission shall take measures as necessary to maintain confidentiality in investigations. Broadens the Oversight Coordinator’s power to make inquiries, obtain information, and inspect the premises of agencies and correctional facilities.
  • H.B. 1157: Allows the office of information practices to issue written guidance to resolve disputes under the State’s Uniform Information Practices Act and sunshine law. Appropriates funds for two new permanent positions in the office of information practices.
  • H.B. 1375: Establishes the powers, duties, and responsibilities of the destination management agency, including its director and commission. Establishes the tourism special fund and county assistance special fund, to receive allocations from transient accommodations tax revenue. Repeals the Hawaiʻi tourism authority. Effective 6/30/3000. (HD1)
  • H.B. 1386: In addition to the chairperson, allows no more than two members of the board of land and natural resources to determine items that shall be placed on a meeting agenda and to submit those items to the chairperson for placement on an agenda. Makes a discussion between the two members for purposes of determining items to be scheduled on a meeting agenda a permitted interaction under the Sunshine Law; provided that the discussion is limited to selecting agenda items and no commitment relating to a vote on any matter is made or sought.
  • H.B. 1408: Establishes the Digital Equity Grant Program to award grants to applicants to deploy digital equity projects to covered populations in the State. Appropriates funds.