SB 971 Hawaii Senate · 2025 Regular Session

RELATING TO TRAFFIC.

Summary

Provides that if a law enforcement officer lawfully stops a motor vehicle and the operator is cited for driving without a valid license, the officer shall not permit the operator to resume the use of the motor vehicle. Requires the motor vehicle to be moved by a licensed driver or towed at the owner's expense. Provides that the cited operator is responsible for arranging the operator's transportation from the scene of the stop. Effective 7/1/2050. (SD2)

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2025

Senate Passage

Mar 2025

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 17, 2025 Last action Mar 6, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB971_SD1 → SB971_SD2 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill text was reformatted from a document markup format to a clean text format, with minor corrections to section headers and numbering. The substantive policy content regarding unlicensed driver enforcement remains identical between versions.

TECHNICAL

Changed document version identifier from S.D. 1 to S.D. 2 in the header

Removed document metadata and markup artifacts (like '2025-1600 SB971 SDl SMA.docx' and page numbers) that were embedded in the original text

Cleaned up formatting inconsistencies in section headers and removed special characters used in document markup

Added metadata fields (dates, revision numbers, template information) that were present in the new version but not in the original

Corrected minor formatting issues in the description section to improve readability

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 6, 2025

Committee

Referred to TRN, JHA, referral sheet 19

lower

Mar 4, 2025

Introduced

Received from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 232) in amended form (SD 2).

lower

Mar 4, 2025

Upper · Passed

Report Adopted; Passed Third Reading, as amended (SD 2). Ayes, 24; Aye(s) with reservations: none. Noes, 1 (Senator(s) Awa). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.

upper

Feb 21, 2025

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in JDC were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Rhoads, Chang, San Buenaventura; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 1 No(es): Senator(s) Awa; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Gabbard.

upper

Feb 18, 2025

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC will hold a public decision making on 02-21-25 10:20AM; Conference Room 016 & Videoconference.

upper

Feb 12, 2025

Committee

Reported from TCA/PSM (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 385) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to JDC.

upper

Feb 10, 2025

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on PSM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in PSM were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Elefante, Wakai, Fukunaga, Rhoads, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Feb 10, 2025

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on TCA recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in TCA were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Lee, C., Inouye, Elefante, Kanuha, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Feb 6, 2025

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on TCA/PSM has scheduled a public hearing on 02-10-25 3:15PM; Conference Room 225 & Videoconference.

upper

Jan 23, 2025

Committee

Referred to TCA/PSM, JDC.

upper

Jan 17, 2025

Introduced

Introduced.

upper

5 primary · 3 co-sponsors