Prohibits nonresident aliens and businesses and trusts that are significantly controlled by nonresident aliens from acquiring certain residential property in the State, except as otherwise provided by law.
Establishes the Hawaii start-up business loan program. Establishes the Hawaii start-up business loan program special fund. Requires DBEDT to submit an annual report to the Legislature regarding the program. Appropriates funds.
Repeals statutory requirements for certain housing projects to be eligible for loans from the Rental Housing Revolving Fund. Repeals certain statutory provisions for grants to developers for rental units eligible to be financed in part or in whole by the RHRF. Repeals statutory language requiring the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation to establish an application process for RHRF allocation that prioritized projects meeting certain requirements. Renames the Rental Housing Revolving Fund to the State Housing Revolving Fund (SHRF). Clarifies eligible applicants of the SHRF. Authorizes the HHFDC to use funds from the SHRF for broader housing projects. Establishes the Housing Efficiency and Innovation Subaccount within the SHRF. Authorizes the HHFDC to transfer funds between the Housing Efficiency and Innovation Subaccount and the RHRF without legislative approval. Amends the criteria and eligibility requirements for applicant developers seeking assistance from the SHRF. Requires the HHDFC to maximize the amount of housing built that utilizes loans from the SHRF by prioritizing projects with the shortest projected loan repayment terms that produce the highest number of units, per dollar, per year. Repeals all other priorities and preferences for projects utilizing the RHRF. Establishes a working group to revise the State's Qualified Allocation Plan, the prioritization of the SHRF, and the terms of loans. Requires a report to the Legislature. Allocates ten per cent of conveyance tax collections to the DURF. Removes the annual cap on conveyance taxes paid into the SHRF.
Maddy summarySB 214 eliminates the "tip credit," a provision allowing employers to count tips toward meeting minimum wage requirements for tipped workers. This directly affects workers in service industries like restaurants and bars who rely on tips, requiring employers to pay the full minimum wage upfront instead of offsetting it with tip earnings. The bill implements this change gradually through a phased approach over time, as specified in the legislation. It represents a concrete policy shift in how tipped wages are calculated under state law.
Establishes the State Permitting Office within the Department of Transportation to process building and infrastructure permits for construction of state-owned buildings, state roads and highways, and other construction on state lands. Appropriates moneys.
Requires the counties, before implementing any new mass transit fare or increasing any existing fare, to first seek revenues from alternative sources, including transit-based advertisements. Requires a county that decides, after seeking alternative revenue sources, to implement a new or increased mass transit fare to submit a justification report to the Department of Transportation. Requires the Department of Transportation to reject or approve the proposed new mass transit fare or fare increase within 30 days of receiving a county's justification report.
Maddy summarySB 186 removes existing inspection requirements for motor carrier vehicles operating in the state. This bill directly affects commercial trucking companies and other businesses that operate large vehicles for transportation. The key provision is the repeal of current inspection mandates, which would eliminate a specific regulatory burden for these operators. The bill is currently in early stages, having been introduced on January 13, 2025.
Requires the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation (HHFDC) to consider as a preference under chapter 201H, HRS, the proximity between the housing location and the applicant's place of employment; whether the applicant is a state or county employee; and whether the applicant is a returning resident that left the State to attend a university, college, or trade school and has graduated within the past two years. Requires, for any project developed or administered by the HHFDC under chapter 201, HRS, the HHFDC to set aside as a matter of preference an undetermined per cent of available units for state or county employees, when feasible. Requires HHFDC to determine the order of preferences and rank applicants accordingly, select applicants based on application date within the pool of similarly ranked applicants, and validate the preference status of applicants before occupancy of a unit. Authorizes HHFDC to adopt rules to establish additional eligibility criteria.
Allows a retirant to be employed without reenrollment in the Employees' Retirement System and without loss or interruption of retirement benefits if the retirant is employed as a school resource officer or investigator in positions identified by the Department of Education or the Department of the Attorney General, respectively, as a labor shortage or difficult-to-fill positions, subject to certain conditions. Requires the Director of Human Resources of the appropriate state jurisdiction or the human resources management chief executive of each county to include in their annual reports to the Legislature, details on the employment of retirants as school resource officers or investigators.
Requires the Land Use Commission to reclassify lands that are designated for urban growth under a county general plan or county development plan as being in the urban district at the request of the county.
