HB 2494 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM.

Summary

Establishes factors under which officers may arrest and detain persons without a warrant for petty misdemeanors and violations, and requires officers to document the justification for the arrests. Amends the circumstances under which officers may issue citations in lieu of arrest. Requires officers to issue citations in lieu of arrest for certain petty misdemeanors and violations, unless public safety or flight risks are present or the alleged offense involves operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant or the abuse of family or household members. Requires the Judiciary to promulgate a standardized citation form and updates the required information for citations. Requires citations be visible on an offender's criminal record. Requires the Criminal Justice Research Institute to submit reports. Effective 3/22/2075. (SD1)

Issues: ✓ Criminal Justice

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Governor

Introduced Jan 28, 2026 Last action Mar 30, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2494_HD1 → HB2494_SD1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill version updates the effective date of the legislation from July 1, 3000, to March 22, 2075, and adds a requirement that citations be visible on an offender's criminal record. It also refines the legislative findings to better align with the 2018 task force recommendations and adjusts the statutory language regarding police discretion and citation forms.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on misdemeanor and petty misdemeanor offenses, but the addition of the criminal record visibility requirement expands the long-term administrative impact on offenders.

TIMELINE

The effective date of the Act was changed from July 1, 3000, to March 22, 2075.

REQUIREMENT

A new requirement mandates that citations issued under this section must be visible on an offender's criminal record.

The deadline for the judiciary to promulgate a standardized citation form was moved from July 1, 2027, to January 1, 2028.

DEFINITION

Legislative findings were updated to clarify that the Act does not address felonies and to explicitly reference the 2018 criminal pretrial task force recommendations.

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 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Committee

Reported from JDC (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3287) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.

upper

Mar 24, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in JDC were as follows: 4 Aye(s): Senator(s) Rhoads, Gabbard, Chang, San Buenaventura; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 1 No(es): Senator(s) Awa; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC has scheduled a public hearing on 03-24-26 9:45AM; Conference Room 016 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 17, 2026

Committee

Re-Referred to JDC, WAM.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Referred to PSM, JDC/WAM.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 429).

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Third Reading with Representative(s) La Chica, Reyes Oda voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Alcos, Chun, Garcia, Gedeon, Hartsfield, Kila, Kitagawa, Kong, Lee, M., Matayoshi, Matsumoto, Muraoka, Olds, Pierick, Shimizu, Takenouchi, Tam, Templo voting no (18) and none excused (0). 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: 7 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Belatti, Hashem, Kahaloa, Sayama, Takayama; Ayes with reservations: none; 2 Noes: Representative(s) Garcia, Shimizu; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Cochran.

lower

Feb 2, 2026

Committee

Referred to JHA, referral sheet 6

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors