CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 128-24

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2024

RE: H.B. No. 1640

H.D. 1

S.D. 1

C.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2024

State of Hawaii

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2024

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the House of Representatives to the amendments proposed by the Senate in H.B. No. 1640, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

The purpose of this measure is to:

(1) Require that within thirty days of receipt of a written request from the exclusive representative to negotiate, and at times allowed under the collective bargaining agreement, the employer shall negotiate the repricing of classes within a bargaining unit; and

(2) Provide that if an employer fails to timely initiate a negotiation or the parties cannot reach an agreement within ninety days after the exclusive representative's written request to negotiate or by January 31 of a year in which the agreement is due to expire, whichever is earlier, an impasse exists and certain impasse procedures shall apply.

Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by:

(1) Increasing the timeframe in which impasse procedures shall apply from ninety to one hundred fifty days;

(2) Specifying that no more than fifteen repricing impasse procedures shall be active at any time, under certain conditions;

(3) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2024;

(4) Inserting a sunset date of June 30, 2029, and specifying that any negotiations on repricing that started prior to the sunset date may continue after the sunset date; and

(5) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

Your Committee on Conference has specifically excluded collective bargaining agreement impasse procedures from the fifteen active impasse procedure maximum in this measure. Only repricing impasse procedures shall count toward the fifteen maximum amount.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1640, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1640, H.D. 1, S.D. 1, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

____________________________ HENRY J.C. AQUINO Chair	____________________________ SCOT Z. MATAYOSHI Co-Chair
____________________________ SHARON MORIWAKI Co-Chair	____________________________ ANDREW GARRETT Co-Chair
____________________________ KARL RHOADS Co-Chair