HB1199 would expand and formalize the duties of Hawaii’s Office of the Legislative Analyst by requiring it to prepare fiscal notes for every fiscal bill before a committee can vote on the measure. The bill states that fiscal notes should, where possible, quantify the bill’s effect in dollar terms, identify affected statutes, estimate revenue or expenditure changes for the state and counties, describe assumptions and long-range implications, and note costs that can be absorbed without additional funding. It also requires that fiscal notes be attached to standing committee reports and made publicly available.
The measure also revises the structure and administration of the Office of the Legislative Analyst. It shifts appointment and removal authority for the legislative analyst to the legislature acting by majority vote in joint session, sets the analyst’s salary equal to the director of the Legislative Reference Bureau, authorizes a first assistant and other staff, and requires state, county, University of Hawaii, and other public agencies to provide information needed to prepare fiscal notes. The bill includes an unspecified general fund appropriation for fiscal years 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 to support the office’s operations and equipment, and it would take effect on July 1, 2025.
Impact
If enacted, HB1199 would amend Chapter 21F of the Hawaii Revised Statutes to make fiscal-note preparation a formal statutory requirement for fiscal bills and to expand the legislative analyst’s authority to obtain budgetary and program information from executive, judicial, county, and related public entities. It would also create a new statutory process requiring committees to have a completed fiscal note before disposing of a fiscal bill, increasing the procedural role of fiscal analysis in the legislative process. The bill would additionally require a state appropriation to fund the office’s enhanced responsibilities.
Sentiment
The bill’s stated purpose and description suggest a generally favorable policy goal centered on transparency, informed voting, and stronger fiscal oversight. Because there were no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, there is no direct evidence of debate or formal support/opposition in the available context. The bill text itself frames the measure as a corrective to Hawaii’s current lack of mandatory fiscal notes.
Contention
The main likely point of contention is the added procedural burden and potential delay created by requiring a fiscal note before a committee may act on a fiscal bill. Another possible issue is the expanded workload and authority of the Office of the Legislative Analyst, including mandatory cooperation from multiple agencies and counties and the need for additional staffing and funding. The unspecified appropriation amount may also raise budget concerns, especially because the bill would impose a new statewide process without identifying the exact cost.
A resolution to direct the Clerk of the House of Representatives to only present to the Governor enrolled House bills finally passed by both houses of the One Hundred Third Legislature.
Relating to nonsubstantive additions to, revisions of, and corrections in enacted codes, to the nonsubstantive codification or disposition of various laws omitted from enacted codes, and to conforming codifications enacted by the 88th Legislature to other Acts of that legislature.