Transcript Highlights:

• The fees collected shall be deposited into a special account of the OHA special fund, and disbursements
• The fees collected shall be deposited into a special account of the OHA special fund, and disbursements
• The fees collected shall be deposited into a special account of the OHA special fund, and disbursements
• may be construed as a tax we request fee may be construed as a tax we request that<00:10:06.240>
• fee should be established<00:10:36.839> in established in established in statute<00:10:39.000

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The committee first took up SB 534, a measure concerning development in Kakaʻako Makai involving the Hawaii Community Development Authority and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. The chairs explained that the hearing was decision-making only and no testimony would be accepted, though members could ask clarifying questions. The chair outlined amendments to clarify HCDA’s approval process, require an environmental impact statement before residential development proposals are submitted, require Department of Health documentation on hazardous substances, and specify that only OHA-owned parcels would be eligible for certain residential development with a 400-foot height limit and maximum floor area ratio of 10.0. The amendments also addressed affordability, owner-occupancy, association fees, and a special fund, while noting Attorney General concerns that the fee could be construed as a tax and suggesting further review by Judiciary and Ways and Means. Members discussed the affordability threshold, with one senator suggesting 160% AMI instead of 140% due to high housing costs and concern that essential workers could be priced out. Others raised concerns about Native Hawaiian affordability, the long-term effect of perpetuity restrictions, and whether the process would protect OHA’s interests. An HCDA representative said 140% AMI was used in existing reserve housing rules and that lower thresholds could make development economically infeasible. OHA and other supporters said the proposal was still early in planning and emphasized the need for public hearings, community input, and compliance with environmental and remediation standards. The committees voted to pass SB 534 with amendments: Water and Land approved it 4-1, and Hawaiian Affairs also adopted the chair’s recommendation, with one member excused and one voting no. The meeting then moved to SB 3, relating to water resource management. The bill would authorize the Commission on Water Resource Management to retain independent legal counsel, create an executive director position, allow challenges to emergency orders under certain conditions, establish fines for water use offenses, and revise emergency and shortage declaration procedures; Red Hill-related provisions were noted as removed from this version. Testimony was largely supportive, including from DLNR, the Board of Water Supply, OHA, and Sierra Club, with OHA stressing the measure’s importance to Native Hawaiian water rights and past litigation. A Department of Hawaiian Home Lands representative supported the bill with amendments and recommended explicit language directing the commission chair or designee to advocate for water rights and reservations for homelands. The chair indicated the committees would use the prior Senate-passed version as the basis for further action, and the discussion then moved on to SB 130, a search-and-rescue reimbursement bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• in the state investment or state appropriation increased by $167 million, which was a 21.1% increase
• in the state investment or state appropriation increased by $167 million, which was a 21.1% increase
• in the state investment or state appropriation increased by $167 million, which was a 21.1% increase
• in the state investment or state appropriation increased by $167 million, which was a 21.1% increase
• and fee revenue.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• fees.
• Uh, you know, there's resort fees, you know, all of the other fees.
• You know, there's resort fees, you know, all of the other fees.
• <00:42:12.080> disclosure relying on pricing when fee disclosure relying on pricing when fee
• would actually increase would actually increase uh uh uh captive<00:47:23.760> insurance<

Bills: SB2607, SB2031, SB2043, SB2623, SB2876, SB2396, SB2964, SB2089

Keywords: landscape architecture, licensure, educational requirements, examination, professional standards, consumer protection, junk fees, live-event tickets, short-term lodging, transparency, pricing disclosure, deceptive practices, insurance, captives, regulations, policyholders, SB2623, Hawaii pharmacy law, Board of Pharmacy, registered pharmacy technician

Summary: The committee first heard HCR 168 and HR 158, which would create a temporary working group to study utility capacity, coastline infrastructure lifespan, and the costs of needed expansions. Public Utilities Commission staff said the commission was not the right entity to direct all of the work because it lacks authority over many affected agencies. Members discussed whether the study should be limited to a coastal area or broadened to the whole island, and in decision-making the committee amended the measure to focus on the County of Honolulu, correct references to the Public Utilities Commission, and revise the working group membership to include the PUC chair, legislative designees, and directors or designees from DLNR, DOT, HIEMA, and DCCA Consumer Advocacy. The committee then passed both resolutions with amendments; the vote was adopted unanimously, with some members excused. The committee next considered HCR 145 and HR 137, which would convene a working group on climate change impacts on insurance availability and affordability. The Insurance Division stood on its written comments, the Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Commission supported the intent, and the Attorney General opposed the measure, warning that a working group could create discoverable materials that might complicate the state’s climate litigation and noting a technical ambiguity in the reference to the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund administrator. After questions about discovery and the lawsuit, the committee amended the resolutions to replace the administrator reference with the chair of the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund Board of Directors, remove the Attorney General as convener while keeping the office as a member, and have the working group share findings and recommendations with the House CPC and Senate CPN committees instead of issuing a report. The committee passed the measures with amendments, with Rep. Martin voting with reservations. In the later agenda, the committee heard SB 2607, SD 1 on landscape architect licensure. The Board of Professional Engineers, Architects, Surveyors, and Landscape Architects supported the bill, explaining it modernizes licensure requirements to align with national standards and clarifies the profession’s design-focused role. The bill was discussed as distinguishing landscape architecture from groundskeeping and from civil engineering drainage work. No opposition was heard. The committee also heard SB 2031, SD 2 on consumer protection and price transparency for live ticket events and short-term lodging. The Office of Consumer Protection supported the bill, saying it largely mirrors an FTC rule requiring all-in pricing and would give the state enforcement authority and remedies. The Hawaii Financial Services Association opposed the bill as drafted and sought a limited exemption for credit card issuers relying on third-party hotel information, while the Hawaii Hotel Alliance supported the measure but asked for language deeming compliance with the federal rule sufficient for short-term lodging. Committee members questioned whether those proposed exemptions would conflict with federal law or weaken state enforcement, and the discussion focused on preemption, liability, and the value of state remedies such as restitution.

Transcript Highlights:

• Compacts by design increase access to health care.
• Another thing that I'll mention is the ability to levy fees against participating states.
• You pay a fee in a compact state, a remote state.
• Not the exams, but just the license fee. In Missouri, not the exams, but just the license fee.
• I'm not able to find any fees associated with exiting the compact unless you were to consider the fee

Keywords: 959, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• an increase. an increase.
• three, line three. these are the fees three, line three. these are the fees that<00:24:10.400>
• It's just I don't know that this fee increase would do what you're seeking to do there. >> I could follow
• :44:16.240> increase<00:44:16.720> would<00:44:17.920> do know that this fee increase
• would do know that this fee increase would do what<00:44:18.319> you're<00:44:18.560> seeking

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This simply makes a modest increase to the fees paid by the seed manufacturers to fund the work.
• Since that initial fee was created 53 years ago, inflation, of course, has increased and the number of
• Inflation, of course, has increased and the number of seed manufacturers has decreased.
• and has not been increased.
• In other words, it's an increase with the opportunity to be increased later as the need occurs.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And now we want to increase it by 100% to 20%. We have about 15%.
• To increase it by 100 percent, to 20 percent.
• And then we should have conversations about increasing and doubling it.
• Finally, it prohibits attorneys from charging an additional contingency fee or an administrative fee,
• management fee, or similar fee based on reducing or resolving a client's medical lien.

Summary: The Assembly convened after a quorum call, prayer, and Pledge of Allegiance, then handled a series of procedural motions to re-refer bills, suspend rules, and remove items from the consent calendar. The chamber also heard guest introductions recognizing family milestones, a youth leadership program from Assembly District 13, a delegation of Japanese business leaders, and a Michoacan delegation. Later, members adopted several resolutions and consent items, including California Craft Beer Week, the Freedom Flag as a 9/11 remembrance symbol, Probation Services Week, and California Wildfire Week, along with other consent-calendar measures. The main floor debate centered on SB 417, a $10 billion housing bond for the ballot, with supporters emphasizing the state’s housing shortage, homelessness crisis, and funding for multifamily housing, supportive housing, homeownership, farmworker housing, student housing, tribal housing, infrastructure, and preservation of existing affordable units. Opponents criticized the proposal as adding debt without enough reform and objected to the use of veterans in the measure’s messaging. The Assembly passed SB 417 on urgency and on the measure, 54-7, and sent it to the Senate. Members then adopted ACA 20, which would expand and modernize the state Rainy Day Fund by increasing its cap and changing deposit rules; it passed 54-8 and was transmitted to the Senate. The Assembly also approved SB 623, a transportation-related bill addressing rideshare safety and medical lien practices. Supporters said it would curb abusive billing, restrict attorney conflicts and kickbacks, require stronger background checks for TNC drivers, and allow women riders and drivers to request women-only matches. The measure passed unanimously, 67-0. Later, the House adopted ACA 21, which removes ACA 13 from the November ballot, by 62-0, and ACA 22, which amends a ballot measure affecting taxation and local fiscal resources, by 64-0. The session concluded with an adjournment in memory of Dr. Dorothy Viola Calvin, followed by announcements, recesses, and final adjournment until the next scheduled floor session.

Transcript Highlights:

• So I mean 16 authorizes fees if you have an election and 15 as amended in 2020 authorizes fees without
• There's a rule charge fees and taxes.
• Fees are not taxes.
• If that means that the fee for approving an application needs to be increased to reflect those costs,
• If that means that the fee for approving an application needs to be increased to reflect those costs,

Keywords: 916, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The internet company then pays a per pole engineering study fee.
• And then I guess number 4 would be you have annual rents that you need to pay or fees, ongoing fees.
• Are there, are there complaints related to the FCC fees?
• So it can handle the increasing bandwidth demands for our customers.
• But I mean, basically, we're seeing an increase, uh, here in Texas in El Paso, we've seen a major increase

Transcript Highlights:

• Do pass with author amendments to among other things modify regulatory fee and enforcement provisions
• Document processing fee increase, due passes amended to reduce the cap to $260 and repeal the authority
• SB345, Hurtado, fire training fees do pass out on an A roll call.
• SP763 Hurtado, conspiracy against trade, do pass as amended to strike the increase in jail terms.
• SB 54 Umberg, Court Fee Waivers. Do pass out on an a-roll call.

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Removing all vaccine requirements leaves students and employees with disabilities at risk, and increases
• 1, Article 2 of the Arizona Revised Statutes, relating to public records and a legislative records fee
• But this statute referenced in this bill allows the fee to be waived and it allows it to qualify for
• And on the one hand, it prohibits a legislator from being charged a fee for public records requests.
• Instead of promoting accountability, it really does open the door to misuse and will increase the cost

Keywords: 1182, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It's going to increase the cost of practicing law.
• <00:14:52.720> have<00:14:52.880> state increase the cost to have state increase the
• paying fees to lawyers.
• paying fees to lawyers.
• paying fees to lawyers.

Keywords: Call to Order 00:00 Roll Call 00:02 HB 526 Discussion 01:12 HB 526 Vote 37:51 HB 424 Discussion 41:41 HB 424 Vote 44:40 HB 459 Discussion 45:57 HB 459 Vote 47:26 Adjournment 48:21, 958, all

Summary: The committee took up House Bill 526, while House Bill 254 was removed from the agenda at the sponsor’s request. HB 526 would make bar membership and dues voluntary for Kentucky attorneys, and the sponsor argued it protects constitutional rights, prevents compelled association, and would not stop the Kentucky Supreme Court or Kentucky Bar Association from offering services such as CLE, ethics support, and lawyer assistance programs. He also argued Kentucky lawyers should not be forced to fund speech or activities they may disagree with, and urged passage of the bill. Representatives of the Kentucky Bar Association, including its president and the chair of the Young Lawyers Division, opposed the bill. They said the KBA is an arm of the Supreme Court rather than a private association, and that mandatory dues support nonpolitical services such as free continuing legal education, legal research, the Kentucky Lawyers Assistance Program, ethics guidance, mentorship, disaster relief work, and the Legal Food Frenzy. They warned that changing to a voluntary system would reduce infrastructure, increase costs for lawyers, and potentially shift more regulatory and service burdens to the Supreme Court. Members questioned whether the bill would actually prevent the KBA from continuing its programs and asked about other states’ bar structures. The sponsor and supporters pointed to Indiana and other states with voluntary bar membership, while KBA witnesses said Kentucky’s current system is efficient and constitutional and that many services are not truly free but are funded through dues. The discussion became heated at points over whether KBA testimony itself constituted political speech, and the chair intervened to keep the meeting moving. The transcript ends during member questions, with no final vote on HB 526 shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• So we did go back to our role process and increase fees and increase the number of staff.
• This is a 107% increase from fiscal year 2020.
• This is a 100%, 7% increase from fiscal year 2020.
• by an increase in hazardous substance tax revenue collected by the state.
• by an increase in hazardous substance tax revenue collected by the state.

Summary: The committee met on December 3, 2025, with a quorum present and approved the September 17 minutes. Members first voted to suspend the 2026 JLARC lodging tax expenditure report for one year, based on staff’s explanation that the report is self-reported, not verified, and less useful than State Auditor accountability audits; the motion passed. The committee also approved renaming the JLARC I-900 subcommittee to the “Committee to Hear SAO Performance Audits,” while keeping the opening script noting that the performance audit process exists under Initiative 900. The committee then heard follow-up updates on two prior performance audits. The Department of Health presented a draft strategic management plan in response to findings on hospital inspections, complaints, adverse event review, and hospital data access. JLARC staff reiterated that 72% of hospital inspections were late, that DOH did not verify third-party inspection standards or review adverse event reports, and that complaint data suggested possible language-access barriers. DOH said it concurred with the recommendations, had improved on-time inspection compliance to about 49%, planned annual updates starting in July 2026, and would work on accreditation oversight, complaint-language access, and data accessibility, though members pressed for firmer deadlines and questioned the three-year timeline for language access improvements. The Liquor and Cannabis Board also reported on its cannabis market study recommendation. JLARC staff said the agency’s data were incomplete and unreliable, limiting oversight of production, recalls, tax collection, and diversion. LCB said it had improved its current CCRS system but still relied on self-reported data, and it presented a decision package for a new traceability system estimated at about $9 million over three fiscal years. LCB described a plant-tagging and serialization approach tied to production, processing, testing, and retail, but acknowledged it did not currently have sufficient staff to fully implement the system without additional funding. The committee also received briefings on JLARC’s recommendation-tracking tools and the 2024 public records reporting summary, including a high-level review of agency response rates, request volumes, costs, and litigation. Finally, JLARC presented the proposed final report on the Office of Privacy and Data Protection, concluding that OPDP meets its statutory responsibilities and has high user satisfaction, but that its mandate should be updated to better match its current capacity and focus; the committee adopted the report for distribution. The meeting then moved into the 2025 tax preference performance reviews, where JLARC staff summarized nine reviews and noted that the Citizens Commission on Tax Preference and Performance Measurement endorsed all 17 legislative auditor recommendations, with comments on seven. Early reviews discussed included natural gas transportation fuel preferences, travel agent and tour operator B&O rates, nonprofit low-income housing development, multipurpose senior centers, disabled veteran adaptive housing, and trade convention attendance, with staff and commissioners generally recommending continuation of some preferences, modification of others, and improved objectives or performance measures where needed.

Transcript Highlights:

• requests this year are ceiling increases requests this year are ceiling increases for<00:02:53.440
• The rest of them are fringe benefits increase our ceiling to pay for increased fringe costs for these
• Is there any intent to increase?
• You collect fees.
• You collect fees.

Keywords: 912, senate, all

Summary: The Joint Committee on Ways and Means and Commerce and Consumer Protection heard the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs present its biennium budget request for fiscal years 2025 to 2027. Director Nainoa Ando said the department’s requests were primarily special-fund ceiling increases to meet operational needs. Major items included an additional $12 million to complete the King Kamehameha V Post Office building roof project after hidden deterioration and water intrusion were discovered, plus funding related to fringe benefits and central services assessments. The department also outlined requests for a new medical compact implementation cost, an auditor position, an engineer position, and a captive insurance IT modernization project. A significant portion of the discussion focused on the Office of Consumer Protection’s landlord-tenant call line and public service access. Senators raised concerns that callers often reach voicemail, are told to leave a message, and sometimes are referred to look up the law themselves. DCCA said the Oʻahu line is staffed by one full-time employee backed by two to three investigators, with one investigator each on Maui and Hawaiʻi Island, and that calls are tracked in a case management system. The department said it plans to add one more Oʻahu staff position through a transfer from another division and that a new call-center/web system with time tracking is expected to go live in the summer. Members also discussed a possible bill related to Pearson VUE nursing certification testing, with one senator describing the burden on neighbor-island nursing graduates who must travel to Honolulu for a one-hour test. The senator said she intended to introduce legislation after receiving no response to repeated outreach. DCCA did not take action on that proposal during the hearing. For the PUC-related requests, the department explained a one-time $1 million request for outside consulting tied to Maui wildfire-related filings, including wildfire safety mitigation and hazard mitigation plans, and a separate $900,000 request through the Consumer Advocacy Division to hire consultants for review and analysis. The committee also discussed a captive insurance IT modernization request, which DCCA said would replace manual and spreadsheet-based processes with a cloud-based system to better handle filings, payments, and workflow; no vote or final action was taken on the budget items during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• I mentioned the gas tax, but, you know, we did increase through the budget the new registration fee on
• In addition to the registration fees, the registrant shall pay all registration permit fees and municipal
• fees for each registration year.
• /c><00:20:23.520> registrant the registration fees, the registrant the registration fees, the
• shall pay all registration permit fees shall pay all registration permit fees and<00:20:26.480><

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:45:43.160> in anticipate um a large increase in anticipate um a large increase in premiums
• The members sign up in the beginning and pay an entrance fee of several $100,000 and pay a monthly fee
• The members sign up in the beginning and pay an entrance fee of several $100,000 and pay a monthly fee
• in the beginning and pay an entrance fee in the beginning and pay an entrance fee of<01:46:47.960
• <03:28:33.160> in providers from the major increases in providers from the major increases

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• It also increases attendance. I want to have you wrap up.
• I offered to negotiate the $72 fee. No response from Need Tags.
• AB 1190 puts a cap on the fees that can be charged.
• AB 1190 puts a cap on the fees that can be charged.
• AB 987 protects Californians against a growing issue of unreasonable toll fees.

Summary: The committee heard and advanced several transportation-related bills, beginning with AB 431 on advanced air mobility. The author and supporters from AUVSI, Joby Aviation, United Airlines, Wisk Aero, the City of Long Beach, and Archer said the bill would create a statewide plan and technical framework for eVTOL/advanced air mobility infrastructure, public outreach, and local implementation. No opposition testified, and the bill passed the committee as amended to Appropriations on a unanimous roll call. Members then took up AB 630 on abandoned or hazardous RVs. The author and supporters, including Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’s office, argued the bill would curb a cycle in which inoperable RVs are towed, auctioned cheaply, and returned to the streets by predatory buyers, while adding notice, recovery, and reporting requirements. Opponents from Western Center on Law and Poverty and ACLU California Action warned the bill would destroy RVs that serve as shelter for unhoused residents and could worsen homelessness. After discussion about the bill’s focus on dismantling rather than towing, the committee passed AB 630 as amended to Appropriations. The committee also approved AB 314, which would support transit-oriented development around planned and existing high-speed rail stations; AB 1223, which gives Sacramento County communities more flexibility to use local transportation revenues for related infrastructure supporting infill development; AB 1111, which adds flexibility to the zero-emission school bus transition for rural and disadvantaged districts; AB 1190, which caps fees charged by DMV business partners and requires clearer disclosure of the official DMV site; AB 987, which limits unreasonable towing fees and related charges; and AB 911, which creates a narrow exemption from Advanced Clean Fleets rules for telecommunications bucket trucks and sail-on-wheels used in emergencies. Most bills drew support from local governments, industry, or consumer groups, while AB 1111 and AB 911 drew opposition from clean transportation and environmental advocates concerned about weakening emissions goals. All of the bills were reported out as amended to the Committee on Appropriations, with recorded roll-call votes and several members adding their names as co-authors or supporters.

Transcript Highlights:

• The report said this is what we could safely increase it this year.
• We also have a total increase of $28.5 million to the miscellaneous agencies.
• Also, we have the state police total increase of about $15.9 million.
• Of that, $122 million is increased from last time.
• This is the one-time fees right here. Thank you. This is the one-time fees right here.

Summary: The House convened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, established a quorum, granted several leaves, and received gubernatorial approval notices for multiple fiscal-session measures. The chamber then referred House Bill 1034 back to the Joint Budget Committee so pay raises could be stripped out and cybersecurity/bank-fee funding handled later. House Bill 1103, increasing the homestead property tax credit by $75, passed 94-0. Members then considered several budget amendments and appropriations. Amendments to House Bills 1007, 1022, 1036, and 1064 were adopted, and Senate Bill 76, a $2 million appropriation for county extension office capital improvements, passed 87-7. A batch of appropriation bills passed, but several individual bills failed, including House Bills 1023, 1035, 1053, and 1066. House Bills 1089 and 1090, supplemental appropriations for pregnancy crisis centers and waste tire cleanup, both passed. House Bill 1093, a corrections reappropriation bill that excluded use of funds in Franklin County, also passed 94-0. The most extensive debate centered on House Bill 1100 Amendment 1, which set out the RSA and one-time funding package. Supporters described major allocations for corrections, state police, LEARNS Freedom Accounts, Medicaid, vehicle purchases, and a proposed $300 million economic-development site-preparation and road package tied to a confidential project. Opponents criticized the secrecy, size, and policy approach of the incentive, while supporters argued it could bring jobs and broader economic benefits. The amendment passed 54-36-3. The House also passed Senate Bills 8, 16, 30, 63, 67, and 73, while Senate Bills 41 and 59 failed, and Senate Bill 10 passed after being briefly set aside for clarification. The chamber adjourned to 1 p.m. the next day, with committee meetings announced for budget and house management.

Transcript Highlights:

• The last increase increase was in 2007.
• not residents would pay this higher fee. not residents would pay this higher fee.
• off the idea of increasing tolls. off the idea of increasing tolls.
• And also increased like a parking fee that can be charged if you're there and not charging.
• And also increased like a parking fee that can be charged if you're there and not charging.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• amendment, uh, is in regard to the fee amendment, uh, is in regard to the fee report.<00:09:12.160
• And you can see again that the data there has increasing trends.
• And you can see again that the data there has increasing trends.
• the data there um has increasing trends. the data there um has increasing trends.
• That's to say that all of these lakes are seeing increases in the amount of chloride in them.

Keywords: 927, senate, all