STAND. COM. REP. NO. 986

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 157

S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Judiciary and Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 157, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ANTITRUST,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to prevent artificially inflated rental prices by prohibiting the use of algorithmic price-setting in Hawaii's rental market.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaiʻi Civil Rights Commission.

Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of the Attorney General.

Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Hawaiʻi Association of REALTORS, TechNet, and Maui Chamber of Commerce.

Your Committees find that the State is in the midst of an affordable housing crisis, with the highest median rent in the nation. Your Committees also find that landlords of residential housing use property management software to raise rental housing prices, which may have contributed to recent increases in the State. Landlords engaging with the property management software supply real-time prices and additional lease information to companies managing the software, who proceed to use algorithms to fix rental prices. As a result, competition decreases and rental prices typically increase. This measure will help to address the cost of housing in the State by deterring monopolies or near-monopolies and promoting fair competition in the State's housing market.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Deleting language that would have prohibited a rental property owner, or any agent, representative, or subcontractor thereof, to subscribe to, contract with, or otherwise exchange any form of consideration in return for the use of services of a coordinator;

(2) Prohibiting a coordinator from performing coordinating functions; and

(3) Clarifying that a coordinator is prohibited from facilitating an agreement among rental property owners that restricts competition with respect to the pricing, lease terms, or ideal occupancy levels for residential dwelling units.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Judiciary and Ways and Means that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 157, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 157, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Judiciary and Ways and Means,

________________________________ DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair

________________________________ KARL RHOADS, Chair