STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1297

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2025

RE: S.B. No. 102

S.D. 2

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 Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred S.B. No. 102, S.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RESTAURANTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to prohibit third-party restaurant reservation services from listing, advertising, promoting, or selling restaurant reservations without the express consent of the restaurant, enforceable through a private cause of action for civil remedies.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Restaurant Association; Booking Holdings, Inc.; and OpenTable.

Your Committee finds that many restaurants partner with third-party restaurant reservation services to provide consumers with the convenience of planning dining experiences in advance. Your Committee further finds that reservation piracy – where third parties use predatory computer bots to make and sell reservations to consumers at high costs – have occurred in other jurisdictions. This practice negatively impacts restaurants by increasing the likelihood of no-shows and negatively impacts consumers by increasing the costs of the dining experience without increasing the value. This measure prohibits the practice of rendering reservation services without the express consent of the restaurant to render such services.

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 Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 102, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 102, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs.

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

____________________________

SCOT Z. MATAYOSHI, Chair