HB 2091 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO PETITIONS TO TEMPORARILY RESTRAIN AND ENJOIN HARASSMENT OF AN EMPLOYEE.

Summary

Establishes a two-year pilot project to authorize public employers to petition for temporary restraining orders and injunctions against employment-related harassment of certain public employees. Appropriates funds. Sunsets 6/30/2028. Effective 7/1/3000. (SD1)

Issues: ✓ Labor & Employment

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Apr 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Governor

Introduced Jan 23, 2026 Last action Apr 8, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2091_HD2 → HB2091_SD1 · 6 edits

MODERATE

This bill updates the legislative metadata to reflect its progression from the House to the Senate, including new sponsor names and revised dates. Substantively, it clarifies the legal reasoning for allowing public employees to hire private lawyers for harassment cases, ensuring the Attorney General's office avoids conflicts of interest. The bill also refines definitions of 'public servants' and adds specific instructions on how petitions must be filed and identified.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on allowing public employers to seek restraining orders for employee harassment, but the text now explicitly clarifies that the Attorney General cannot represent employees in their personal capacity to avoid conflicts of interest.

TECHNICAL

Updated bill metadata including sponsor names, bill numbers, and version dates to reflect Senate processing.

REQUIREMENT

Revised the legislative findings to explicitly state that requiring the Attorney General to represent employees creates conflicts of interest, justifying the use of private counsel.

Updated the petition filing requirements to mandate that the petitioner be identified as the specific branch, department, or agency.

DEFINITION

Clarified the definition of 'public servant of the State' to exclude individuals not expressly listed in the statute.

ENFORCEMENT

Added the 'Administrative Director of the Courts' to the list of public officials who can be sued if they wrongly decline to file a harassment petition.

FISCAL

Adjusted the funding description to explicitly link the appropriation to the new two-year pilot project established by the Act.

HB2091_HD1 → HB2091_HD2 · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was revised to clarify that it establishes a two-year pilot project ending in 2028, rather than a permanent expansion. The most significant change is the shift from requiring the Attorney General to represent public employees to allowing public employers to hire private attorneys for these cases, addressing potential conflicts of interest. The bill also updates the definition of 'public servant' to include a broader range of executive branch employees and removes references to 'unlawful violence' from the harassment protections.

Scope change

The bill's scope is now explicitly limited to a two-year pilot project that expires on June 30, 2028, instead of being a permanent law. Additionally, the definition of 'public servant' was expanded to include more executive branch officers and employees, while the specific protections were narrowed to focus on harassment rather than including unlawful violence.

TIMELINE

The bill is now explicitly defined as a two-year pilot project that will sunset on June 30, 2028, rather than a permanent statute.

ELIGIBILITY

The definition of 'public servant' was expanded to include various officers and employees of the executive branch, legislative branch, and judicial branch, as well as political subdivisions.

REQUIREMENT

Public employers are now authorized to retain private attorneys to represent public employees in harassment cases, replacing the previous requirement for the Attorney General to provide representation.

DEFINITION

The specific definition and protections related to 'unlawful violence' were removed from the harassment section, narrowing the focus to harassment only.

ENFORCEMENT

The Attorney General is no longer required to represent public employers or employees in these cases, and the judiciary is now permitted to use its own funds to hire private counsel for judicial employees.

SCOPE

The legislative findings were updated to remove specific examples of harassment against public officials and to clarify that the Attorney General's role in civil litigation may create conflicts of interest.

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

Apr 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC/WAM will hold a public decision making on 04-08-26 10:15AM; Conference Room 211 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referred to JDC/WAM.

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Committee

Reported from LBT (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3217) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to JDC/WAM.

upper

Mar 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on LBT recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in LBT were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Elefante, Lamosao, Ihara, Moriwaki, Fevella; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Mar 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on LBT added the measure to the public hearing scheduled on 03-18-26 3:00PM; CR 225 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Referred to LBT, JDC/WAM.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 351).

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Third Reading as amended in HD 2 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Kong, Pierick excused (2). Transmitted to Senate.

lower

Mar 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 9 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Belatti, Hashem, Kahaloa, Sayama, Takayama, Garcia, Shimizu; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Cochran.

lower

Feb 19, 2026

Committee

Reported from LAB (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 483-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to JHA.

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on LAB recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 6 Ayes: Representative(s) Sayama, Lee, M., Garrett, Kapela, Kong, Reyes Oda; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Committee

Referred to LAB, JHA, referral sheet 3

lower

Jan 26, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

Jan 23, 2026

Introduced

Pending introduction.

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors