STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1355

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2025

RE: S.B. No. 942

S.D. 1

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 Housing, to which was referred S.B. No. 942, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RENTAL APPLICATIONS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to prohibit a landlord from rejecting a rental application solely due to an applicant's inability to provide a recent paycheck under certain circumstances.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from AARP Hawaiʻi and two individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Hawaii Association of REALTORS.

Your Committee finds that retirees, the self-employed, and those with alternative income sources such as pensions, savings, or investments may have difficulty providing a paystub to prove sufficient income to pay rent. This measure ensures landlords can still assess a tenant's financial capability by allowing verification of unearned income or liquid assets, striking a balance between protecting tenants from unnecessary discrimination and safeguarding landlords' ability to evaluate financial stability.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Specifying that a landlord may require evidence dated within ninety days, rather than thirty days, of the date of the application of rent; and

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

Your Committee respectfully requests that your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, should it deliberate on this matter, engage with stakeholders to assess whether a ninety-day requirement provides a sufficient and equitable timeframe for the landlord and applicant, ensuring that the interests of both parties are fairly represented.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 942, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 942, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce.

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

____________________________

LUKE A. EVSLIN, Chair