HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	176
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

REQUESTING THAT THE HAWAII STATE OFFICE OF ELECTIONS CONVENE A WORKING GROUP ON AUTOMATIC VOTER REGISTRATION.

WHEREAS, the legislature finds that every eligible person should be able to register to vote in a convenient and secure way that is beneficial to new voters and administrators alike; and

WHEREAS, key voter registration improvements can ensure state election systems are secure and efficient, safeguard votes, and save money; and

WHEREAS, in the 2024 primary election, for example, our state experienced its lowest turnout in 65 years, with only 32.1 percent of registered voters filling out a ballot; and

WHEREAS, to improve statewide voter turnout, we must enact measures that strengthen the right to vote; and

WHEREAS, in 2021, Hawaii established automatic voter registration to increase the State's historically low voter participation rates; and

WHEREAS, the automatic voter registration system established by the legislature was an opt-in system that places the responsibility for registration on the part of individual voters, which fails to fully include the total potential population of new voters; and

WHEREAS, changing the state's automatic voter registration system from an opt-in to an opt-out model would maximize democratic participation by making voter registration as streamlined as possible; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the Senate concurring, that the Hawaii State Office of Elections is requested to convene a working group on automatic voter registration; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to make recommendations regarding changing the state's automatic voter registration initiative to be an opt-out program; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to consist of the following members:

(1) The Chief Election Officer for the Hawaii State Office of Elections or the Chief Election Officer's designee, who is requested to serve as the working group's Chairperson;

(2) The Director of the Honolulu Department of Customer Services or the director's designee;

(3) A representative from Common Cause Hawaii;

(4) A representative from the League of Women Voters;

(5) A representative from the Institute for Responsive Government; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2026; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chief Elections Officer for the Hawaii State Office of Elections and the Director of the Honolulu Department of Customer Services.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Requesting that the Hawaii State Office of Elections convene a working group on automatic voter registration.