SB 3249 Hawaii Senate · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO PROCUREMENT PROTESTS.

Summary

Requires the forfeiture of half of the cash or protest bond for review of procurement-related disputes if the initiating party does not prevail in an administrative proceeding and the Office of Administrative Hearings finds that the appeal was made in bad faith. Effective 1/1/2525. (SD1)

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 28, 2026 Last action Mar 12, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

SB3249 → SB3249_SD1 · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was amended to change the penalty for unsuccessful procurement protests from a full forfeiture of the bond to a forfeiture of only half the bond. This change also adds a specific condition requiring the Office of Administrative Hearings to find the appeal was made in bad faith before the forfeiture occurs. Additionally, the bill's effective date was moved from immediate approval to January 1, 2525.

Scope change

The scope of the penalty was narrowed by introducing a 'bad faith' requirement for forfeiture, meaning the full penalty no longer applies in all cases where a party loses.

REQUIREMENT

The requirement for forfeiture was changed from automatic to conditional, now requiring a finding of bad faith by the Office of Administrative Hearings.

The financial penalty was reduced from 100% forfeiture of the cash or protest bond to 50% forfeiture.

TIMELINE

The effective date of the Act was changed from upon approval to January 1, 2525.

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 12, 2026

Committee

Referred to FIN, referral sheet 17

lower

Mar 10, 2026

Introduced

Received from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 389) in amended form (SD 1).

lower

Mar 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report Adopted; Passed Third Reading. Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: Senator(s) Elefante. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.

upper

Mar 5, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in JDC were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Rhoads, Gabbard, Chang, Awa; Aye(s) with reservations: Senator(s) San Buenaventura ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Feb 25, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC will hold a public decision making on 03-05-26 10:01AM; Conference Room 016 & Videoconference.

upper

Feb 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Feb 20, 2026

Committee

Reported from GVO (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 2571) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to JDC.

upper

Feb 12, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on GVO recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in GVO were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) McKelvey, Gabbard, Hashimoto, Moriwaki, Awa; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Feb 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on GVO has scheduled a public hearing on 02-10-26 3:10PM; Conference Room 225 & Videoconference.

upper

Feb 2, 2026

Committee

Referred to GVO, JDC.

upper

Jan 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced.

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors