STAND. COM. REP. NO. 381

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2025

RE: H.B. No. 229

H.D. 1

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Madame:

Your Committee on Transportation, to which was referred H.B. No. 229 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TRANSPORTATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish a statewide speed restriction for motor vehicles with three or more axles or motor vehicles weighing more than ten thousand pounds.

Your Committee did not receive any written testimony on this measure.

Your Committee finds that large vehicles, particularly those with three or more axles or weighing over ten thousand pounds, pose a unique risk to road safety due to their size and the difficulty they present in maneuvering at high speeds. Your Committee further finds that data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows a two percent increase in fatalities and a 3.7 percent increase in injuries from crashes involving large trucks between 2021 and 2022. This measure establishes appropriate speed limits for such vehicles, ensuring that they operate within a safe range that reduces the likelihood of accidents and enhances overall traffic flow and safety.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Establishing exemptions from this measure under certain circumstances;

(2) Establishing a minimum fine of $150 for a first offense and a maximum fine of $350 for a subsequent offense within a two-year period;

(3) Specifying that this measure applies only to a county with a population of five hundred thousand or more and authorizing a county with a population of less than five hundred thousand to adopt an ordinance adopting the provisions of this measure;

(4) Changing the effective date to July 1, 3000, to encourage further discussion; and

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

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Transportation that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 229, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 229, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Transportation,

____________________________

DARIUS KILA, Chair