STAND. COM. REP. NO. 279

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2025

RE: H.B. No. 1425

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 Legislative Management, to which was referred H.B. No. 1425 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE LEGISLATURE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish and appropriate funds for a temporary working group to study the feasibility of transitioning the Hawaii State Legislature's Regular Session from one that meets for three and a half months, from mid‑January to early May, to one that meets on a year-round basis.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Green Party of Hawaiʻi; Hawaiʻi Alliance for Progressive Action; and numerous individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from one individual. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Legislative Reference Bureau.

Your Committee finds that the existing limitation in the Hawaii State Constitution restricts the Legislature from being in Regular Session for more than sixty days each year. That span of time generally lasts about three and a half months. The constitutional limitation of meeting for only sixty days each year in combination with the practical aspect of working within tight legislative filing deadlines often leads to rushed decision-making and limited community engagement. Transitioning to a year-round legislature could foster a more deliberate and inclusive legislative process, allowing for better-crafted legislation, more robust community involvement, and quicker responses to emergencies like natural disasters. However, this shift would require careful consideration of the financial and logistical implications, which have not yet been fully explored. Therefore, this measure establishes a temporary working group to study the feasibility of transitioning the Hawaii State Legislature to a year-round schedule, ensuring a thoughtful and well-balanced approach to this potential change.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

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

(2) 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 Legislative Management that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1425, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1425, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Legislative Management,

____________________________

DANIEL HOLT, Chair