STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1599

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.R. No. 103

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection, to which was referred S.R. No. 103 entitled:

"SENATE RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO CONVENE A WORKING GROUP TO DEVELOP LANDLORD-TENANT CODE IMPROVEMENTS TO INCREASE THE SUPPLY OF HOUSING IN HAWAII,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to request the Attorney General to convene a working group to research landlord-tenant issues specific to increasing the supply of rental housing and improving landlord-tenant interactions.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of the Attorney General.

Your Committee finds that tenants struggling to afford making their rental payments face uncertainty regarding their options and available protections under existing law. Meanwhile, housing providers who have tenants not paying rent or violating other provisions of their rental agreements must undergo a lengthy and time-consuming court process to seek remedy. This could discourage property owners from offering or continuing to offer rental housing in the future. Your Committee further finds that establishing a working group would be beneficial by helping to explore possible solutions, such as early mediation and alternative dispute resolution methods that are more accessible to tenants. Therefore, this measure requests the establishment of a working group to explore these issues to help the State work towards promoting a fair and efficient conflict resolution process between renters and housing providers.

Your Committee, however, notes concerns raised in testimony that the topics to be researched by the working group extend beyond the Department of the Attorney General's legal role and areas of subject matter specialization. Amendments to this measure are therefore necessary to ensure that the scope and membership of the working group focus on the real estate and financial aspects of rental housing issues.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Requesting the Judiciary, rather than the Attorney General, to convene a working group to research landlord-tenant issues specific to increasing the supply of rental housing and improving landlord-tenant interactions;

(2) Requesting the Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court, or their designee, to serve as chairperson of the working group;

(3) Requesting the Executive Director of the Office of Consumer Protection and the Attorney General, or their designees, to serve as members of the working group;

(4) Amending its title accordingly;

(5) Amending the list of individuals to whom certified copies of this measure is requested to be transmitted; and

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

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of S.R. No. 103, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as S.R. No. 103, S.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection,

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JARRETT KEOHOKALOLE, Chair