Requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to incorporate into their assessment process the possession of dam liability insurance or the active seeking of dam liability insurance by private dam owners, as part of their valid mitigation measures, in conjunction with approved modifications or repairs. Prohibits the DLNR from classifying a dam as high hazard based only on its engineering risk assessment results. Authorizes the DLNR to relax any restrictions and stringent standards on a dam or appurtenance upon verification of certain insurance coverage. Authorizes the DLNR to consider a dam, reservoir, or appurtenance is safe absent certain documents. Shifts the burden of proof to the DLNR to find that a dam is categorized as high-hazard. Establishes additional requirements for the DLNR and Board of Land and Natural Resources regarding the Dam and Appurtenance Improvement or Removal Grant Program.
Sponsored bills
Requires health insurers, mutual benefit societies, and health maintenance organizations to provide coverage for full-arch dental implants that are medically necessary.
Requires the Department of Education to establish a statewide Environmental Stewardship Curricula Plan for public schools for certain students. Beginning with the 2027-2028 school year, requires public schools to offer an environmental stewardship course for certain students. Requires the Department of Education to establish and administer sustainability programs, including recycling and composting programs, to be implemented at public schools. Beginning 7/1/27, prohibits the use or distribution of single-use plastic utensils, trays, straws, and other disposable plastic food service products in public school cafeterias. Beginning 7/1/28, requires each public school to have at least one operational refillable water bottle filling station accessible to students and staff. Requires reports to the Board of Education and the Legislature. Appropriates funds.
Maddy summarySB 2162 would allow large landowners to request permission from the Land Use Commission to build elderly housing on specific parts of agricultural land. This bill directly affects large landowners who currently cannot develop housing on agricultural parcels and the Land Use Commission, which would review such requests. The key mechanism is a new petition process enabling these landowners to seek approval for elderly housing projects on agricultural land, changing current land-use restrictions. It is a procedural bill focused on modifying land-use rules, not on funding or direct housing construction.
Requires government entities in the State that issue building permits to implement SolarAPP+ or a functionally equivalent online automated permitting platform that verifies code compliance and issues permits to licensed contractors for solar distributed energy resource systems in real-time by 1/1/2027. Requires government entities in the State that issue building permits in areas served by an investor-owned electric utility to adopt a self-certification process for solar distributed energy resource systems that are not SolarAPP+ compatible.
By 1/1/2027, requires all law enforcement agencies in the State to maintain a policy on the visible identification of law enforcement officers. Requires law enforcement agencies to maintain confidential, accurate records documenting each officer's adherence to the agency's visible identification policy. Prohibits state and county law enforcement agencies from assisting any law enforcement operation conducted by a federal law enforcement agency that fails or refuses to maintain a policy on the visible identification of law enforcement officers that meets the standards of state law. By 1/1/2027, requires state and county law enforcement agencies to maintain a policy on the minimum requirements to cooperate with a federal law enforcement agency enforcing federal immigration laws in the State.
Requires the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation to compile, maintain, and publish on its website a public inventory of underutilized public properties suitable for affordable rental housing development. Requires the HHFDC to provide legal and administrative assistance to requesting county agencies and eligible developers to accelerate the development of affordable rental housing projects. Establishes eligibility requirements for developers and rental housing projects seeking interim financing from the HHFDC. Establishes the Affordable Rental Supply Revolving Fund to be administered by the HHFDC to provide interim financing for eligible developers of approved rental housing projects. Establishes the Affordable Homeownership Program within the HHFDC to provide second mortgages to homebuyers under certain conditions. Establishes eligibility requirements for a homebuyer seeking a second mortgage from the HHFDC. Establishes the Affordable Homeownership Assistance Revolving Fund to be administered by the HHFDC. Appropriates funds.
Requires the Department of Education, in consultation with the Department of Health, to develop and distribute to each public middle and high school in the State guidelines for the establishment and operation of safe spaces for students to access telehealth services on school property during normal school hours. Requires each public middle and high school to establish and maintain a safe space for students according to the guidelines.
Establishes as a deceptive trade practice the advertising, displaying, or offering of a price for goods or services that does not include all mandatory fees or charges, with certain exceptions.
Maddy summaryHawaii's SB 2202 establishes a comprehensive program to address the state's shortage of school bus drivers by creating financial incentives and support systems for recruitment and retention. The bill authorizes grants to help candidates cover the costs of obtaining commercial driver's licenses and learner's permits, funded through a new special account that accepts legislative appropriations and federal grants. It also introduces a repayment signing bonus structure where new hires receive $1,000 upon hiring, with additional payments at six months and one year of service, though drivers who leave before completing three years must repay the initial bonus. Furthermore, the Department of Education is required to launch a three-year outreach program featuring recruitment campaigns and workforce development partnerships, while submitting quarterly reports to the legislature on driver vacancies, wages, and program expenditures.