Senator Mike Gabbard's Bills

Here is a brief summary of some of the legislation that I have been
working on. To find updated information, more details, and the
status of these bills, see Bill Status and Documents.

If you have any suggestions or feedback on these bills
or ideas for future legislation, I’d love to hear from you!
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24th Legislative Session 2008

25th Legislative Session 2009

25th Legislative Session 2010

25th Legislative Session   2010

To find updated information, more details, and the
status of these bills, see Bill Status and Documents.

Energy and Environment Related Bills

SB 2233- Energy Efficiency Retrofitting for State Agencies

• The Department of Accounting and General Services (DAGS) is currently involved in a big project to retrofit many of the state buildings to make them more energy efficient and save taxpayer money.
• However, DAGS is concerned that the current law states that they "may" continue to receive the same amount of funding to meet their energy needs as they did before the retrofits went into effect.
• DAGS wants the law to be changed to make it so they "shall" receive the same amount of money.

SB 2230- Tire Inflation Devices at Gas Stations

• This bill would require that all gas stations provide free tire pressure gauges and working tire inflation devices to enable motorists to maintain properly inflated tires by Jan.1, 2011.
• If all of the 1.2 million registered vehicles in the state maintained proper tire pressure, it would decrease oil consumption by hundreds of thousands barrels of oil.

SB 2333- Net Energy Metering

• The purpose of the bill is to ensure that net energy metering can continue even after the feed-in tariff system is in place.
• Net energy metering is a system whereby a homeowner can zero out their electricity bill through renewable energy, such as PV and solar water heating.

SB 2357- Renewable Portfolio Standard for Gas Company
PASSED INTO LAW

Under this bill, the Gas Company would have to have 25% of its gas be from renewable sources by 2020 and 40% by 2030.

SB 2235- Photovoltaic-Ready (PV) Homes

The bill would require developers to incorporate design elements and minimum equipment installation to make all new single-family homes photovoltaic-ready by 2012.

SB 2554- Net Zero Energy Capable Homes

• This bill would require all new single-family homes to be net zero energy capable by 2015.
• Net zero energy capable means that the home would be built in a way to make it practical for the homeowner to be able to produce as much energy as he consumes, thus making his electricity bill zero.

SB 2234- General Excise Tax Exemption for Renewable Energy

This bill would exempt the sale or leasing of renewable energy systems from the general excise tax from 2011 to 2015.

SB 2232- Biofuel Tax Credit

This bill would expand the ethanol facility tax credit to include biofuels, such as biodiesel

SB 2231- General Excise Tax Exemption for Electric Vehicles
PASSED INTO LAW

This bill would exempt the sale or leasing of electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging systems from the general excise tax from 2010 to 2020.

SB 2361- Telephone Directory Distribution

This bill would require telephone directories to only be distributed to persons who have signed a written authorization to receive a directory.

SB 2359- Bottled Water Ban

• It’s important for the state to lead by example, so this bill would prohibit state agencies from using public money to purchase single-serving bottled water.
• There would be an exemption for public safety emergencies.
• This policy is already in place in cities such as San Francisco and Seattle.

SB 2236- Invasive Species Fee

• Currently, shippers are required to pay a $1 fee on every container of freight.
• This $1 fee is called the inspection , quarantine, and eradication service fee and is directed toward fighting invasive species
• This bill would require companies to pay a $100 fine per 1,000 pounds of freight that they fail to pay the fee on

SB 2330- Shark Tours

The purpose of this bill to shut down the two existing shark tours on the North Shore and prevent new ones from coming online

SB 2331- Biofuels and Renewable Portfolio Standards

• This bill would require that 2% of the utility's (HECO) renewable portfolio standard be from biofuel or from agricultural producers (biomass) by 2015.
• This bill would only apply to locally produced biofuels.

SB 2332- On-Bill Financing for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

• This bill directs the Public Utilities Commission to enact an on-bill financing program so that people can more easily purchase energy efficient or renewable energy devices through their electric utility bill.
• The devices would include: an energy efficient refrigerator, a solar water heater, a PV system, or any other device that the PUC designates.

SB 2362- Public Service Announcements for Monk Seals

• The purpose of the bill is to improve outreach to Hawai'i residents and visitors regarding the importance of the Hawaiian monk seal and other endangered Hawaiian flora and fauna.
• The bill directs the Department of Land and Natural Resources to work in collaboration with the Department of Transportation and the Hawai'i Tourism Authority to develop and air public service announcements on commercial passenger air flights to the state.

SB 2363- Airport Kiosks Focusing on Monk Seals

This bill requires the Department of Land and Natural Resources to work in cooperation with the Department of Transportation to establish and maintain kiosks dedicated to conservation information in each state-owned airport.

SB 2228- Plug-in Electric Vehicle Rental Tax Exemption

• Right now, car rental companies have to pay a $3 rental motor vehicle surcharge tax on every vehicle that they rent.
• This bill would exempt car companies from paying the tax when they rent plug-in electric vehicles.

SB 466 - Leaf Blower Limitations
PASSED INTO LAW

This bill limits the hours that a leaf blower can be used in a residential area and also establishes fines for violation. This is a quality of life issue for many people around the state who suffer from the loud noise and pollution this lawn equipment creates.

SB 2818- Environmental Review Process Revisions

• In 2008, the Legislature appropriated $300,000 so that a team of professors at the University of Hawai'i could do a study and make recommendations on how the state can improve its environmental review process, which includes environmental assessments (EAs) and environmental impact statements (EISs).
• Our environmental review system has been in need of an over hall for a very long time.
• Manini projects, like driveways, have been caught up in the costly environmental review process when they really shouldn't have been.
• At the same time, larger projects that do have a greater environmental impact, such as the Superferry, have escaped scrutiny.

SB 2558- Fossil Fuel Ban

This bill would not allow any new fossil fuel plants or expansions of existing ones larger than 2MW, unless the utility (HECO) can demonstrate how their project will fit into the state's plan to have 40% of its electricity needs met by renewable energy by 2030.

SB 2224- Financial Disclosure for Key Energy Personnel in State Government

• The purpose of this bill is to bring transparency to the decisions that are being made by key state officials on billions of dollars in projects related to renewable energy – such as the interisland cable which will bring wind power from Lanai and Molokai to Oahu.
• The bill would require that the financial disclosure statements of the Executive Director of the Division of Consumer Advocacy within the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, the commissioners of the Public Utilities Commission, and the members of the Board of Land and Natural Resources be considered public and be made available for inspection and duplication.

SB 2563- State "Lead by Example" Energy Efficiency Initiative
PASSED INTO LAW

The bill requires the state to have 30% of its fuel needs met by alternative fuels, such as biodiesel, by 2030.

SB 2865- Property Assessed Clean Energy Bond Financing Program

The purpose of this bill is to make it easier for homeowners and businesses to purchase renewable energy systems, such as solar water heaters, solar PV systems, small wind systems, and biogas systems.

SB 2557- Density Bonus for Green Buildings

The purpose of the bill is to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy by requiring the counties and state agencies to allow commercial developers who choose to incorporate qualifying green practices (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design - LEED silver or higher) into their projects to qualify for a density bonus.

SB 2360- Deposit Beverage Container Program – Wine and Hard Liquor

This bill would add hard liquor and wine to the deposit beverage container program

SB 2420- Deposit Beverage Container Program – Energy Drinks

This bill would add dietary supplements drinks (Energy drinks) to the deposit beverage container program

SB 2358- Hybrid Vehicle Bill

This bill allows hybrid vehicles and energy efficient vehicles including plug-in hybrids to use HOV lanes regardless of number of people in vehicle

SB 2552- Public Access on Beaches

• Some owners of beach front property are allowing vegetation to grow beyond their property line toward the beach
• This is causing problems for beach goers who feel their right to have free and open access to the beaches is being infringed upon
• The bill would require the Department of Land and Natural Resources to maintain the public transit along beach corridors.

SB 2421- Renewable Energy Projects in Conservation Districts

In an effort to move the development of renewable energy, this bill would allow wind turbines, wind farms, solar energy facilities, or low-impact hydropower facilities in conservation districts

SB 2423- Renewable Energy – Condominiums

• Presently, condo owners have the right to install renewable energy systems (solar, wind) on their property
• However, the board of directors of condos don't have the right to install renewable energy systems on common elements of their facilities
• This bill would allow board of directors to install renewable energy systems on the common elements of their buildings

SB 2555- Electricity Aggregation

• One proven strategy for government agencies to control their electricity costs is to combine their electricity consumption across various facilities, buildings, and agencies into blocks of bulk electricity purchases; this practice is known as "aggregation".
• This bill requires the Public Utilities Commission to adopt rules that will enable government entities to purchase electricity in bulk electrical loads

SB 2556- Renewable Portfolio Standard – Distributed Energy

This bill would allow the electrical utilities starting in 2015 to count customer-sited, grid-connected renewable energy generation (PV or small wind on a person's home or business) toward reaching this goal

SB 2562- Recycling Redemption Centers at Big Box Stores

This bill would require retailers with stores over 75,000 square feet to operate recycling redemption centers where people can return their bottles/cans.

SB 2559- Plastic Bag Ban

This bill would prohibit stores with annual gross sales of over $300,000 to distribute non-biodegradable plastic shopping bags, beginning January 1, 2012.

SB 2560- Plastic Bag Fee

This bill would require retailers with annual gross sales of more than $500,000 to charge customers 15 cents for every non-reusable shopping bag they receive from the store

SB 2817- Right to Solar – Condos
PASSED INTO LAW

• This bill is needed because some condo associations put up roadblocks in front of people who want to install solar water heaters and PV panels on their condos
• This bill would make it so a condo association couldn't make a decision which would cause the solar energy device to be 25% less efficient or make the installation, maintenance, or removal of the device 15% more expensive.

SB 2864- Enterprise Zones – Renewable Energy

• This bill would make the development or production of renewable energy to the list of eligible business activities which qualify for state enterprise zone benefits.
• It would include renewable energy from the sun, falling water, biogas, geothermal, ocean water, currents and waves, biomass, biofuels, and hydrogen.

SB 2551- Net Zero Energy Building Permitting

• Net zero energy buildings are designed to consume net zero energy use (produce as much energy as they consume) and produce zero carbon emissions.
• This bill requires priority state and county permitting for buildings that consume zero net energy and have no carbon emissions.

Judiciary/Public Safety Related Bills

SB 2365- Consumer Fireworks Ban

This bill would impose a total ban on consumer fireworks except for religious and cultural purposes.

SB 2550- Novelty Fireworks Ban

• This bill would ban the importing, storing, selling, purchase, or possession of consumer novelty fireworks.
• The bill would allow professionals to get a permit to do novelty fireworks displays.

SB 2553- Novelty Fireworks Regulation

• This bill would require the counties to issue permits to people who purchase novelty fireworks.
• The permit holder would be issued a card with a magnetic strip (like a gift card) to purchase his $100 worth of novelty fireworks.

SB 2422- Fireworks Shipments

• The purpose of this bill is to lessen the problem of the illegal importation of fireworks
• The bill would require shippers to notify the Fire Chief when they are transporting fireworks which are intended for sale in that county.

SB 2227- Retirement Benefits for Widowed Spouses

This bill would allow surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiaries of a police officer, fire fighter, deputy sheriff, or public safety officer who died in the line of duty to remarry, marry, or enter into a new reciprocal beneficiary relationship and continue to receive pension and other retirement benefits arising from their former spouse's employment.

SB 2329- Association Documents at Reasonable Costs

This bill would require homeowner associations to make those association documents available to owners and prospective buyers in hard copy for a reasonable fee (not more than 20 cents per page) or in electronic form through a website maintained by the property management company.

SB 2226- Silver Alert Program

This bill would set up a new "Silver alert" program to issue an emergency alert when there is a missing senior citizen.

SB 2561- Spray Paint Can Restrictions

• This bill is intended to help reduce the problem of graffiti.
• The bill would make it so a person must be 18 in order to purchase spray paint.

SB 2225- Nonjudicial Foreclosure Power for Community Associations

• The bill would also allow community associations to do nonjudicial foreclosures.
• This means that the community association could foreclose on someone's home if the homeowner was failing to pay "common expenses."

SB 2424- Pedestrian Safety – Stronger Penalties for Negligent Homicide

The purpose of the bill is to stiffen the penalties against those who negligently kill pedestrians while driving

Health Related Bills

SB 2328- Mesothelioma Day

This bill would recognize September 26th of each year as Mesothelioma Awareness Day and encourage those at risk to receive proper screening for the disease.

Consumer Protection Related Bills

SB 2364- Insurance Fraud Protection

• The purpose of this bill is to better protect people from insurance fraud by incorporating provisions from the National Conference of Insurance Legislators' model insurance fraud act into state law.
• The bill would require individuals and businesses to cooperate and provide all necessary information to detect, prosecute, and prevent insurance fraud.

SB 2229- Uninsured Motorist Bill

This bill prohibits uninsured, intoxicated, or individuals committing a felony from recovering non-economic damages (pain and suffering) when they're involved in car accidents. This type of system is commonly referred to as “no pay no play”.

Economic Development Related Bills

SB 2355- UH West Oahu – Digital Media Enterprise Subzones

• Specifically, this bill establishes digital media enterprise subzones as unspecified geographic areas surrounding University of Hawaii campuses that are also designated as enterprise zones
• The bill also establishes tax benefits for digital media infrastructure development and operation and local workforce employment

Ways and Means Related Bills

SB 2866- Special Purpose Revenue Bond Reorganization

• Special Purpose Revenue bonds (SBRBs) allow private entities, such as private schools and renewable energy companies, to fund construction projects by utilizing the bond issuing capabilities of the state.
• This bill would make each company get pre-authorization certification from the state's Department of Budget and Finance at least 3 months before they are requesting a SPRB bill at the Legislature
• This information could then be used by lawmakers in deciding whether they should move forward with the SPRB legislation

Transportation Related Bills

SB 2899- Motorcycle Helmets

This bill would require that all people wear helmets when they ride a motorcycle or motor scooter in the state.

Energy and Environment Related Resos

2010-0134- Non-GMO Project

This resolution requests that the Department of Agriculture facilitate increased cooperation between agricultural producers and retailers to address consumer concerns, including whether a product is contaminated by genetically modified organisms.

SB 2354- CIP Bill

This bill includes all the capital improvement projects for Senate District 19 (schools and roads) that Senator Gabbard is requesting

25th Legislative Session   2009

Energy and Environment Related Bills

To find updated information, more details, and the
status of these bills, see Bill Status and Documents.

SB 1671- Prohibiting New Fossil Fuel Power Plants

This bill would align state energy policy with Hawaii's preferred clean energy and sustainable future by prohibiting new or expanded fossil fuel power plants beginning July 1, 2009.

SB 1675- Expanding Net Energy Metering Program

This bill would increase the consumer capacity limit on net metering, eliminate the total capacity limit on net metering, and permit existing net metered customers to remain with the program once a feed-in tariff or other tariff structures are implemented.

SB 1174- Adopting "Clean Car" Standards

This bill would require the state to adopt the California "Clean Car" standards to foster purchase of fuel efficient vehicles. The law would require automakers to cut emissions by nearly a third by 2016-the equivalent of boosting the average fuel economy of cars and light trucks to 35 miles per gallon from the current average of 27.

SB 390- Making Changes to the Solar Water Heating Mandate

Last year a bill was enacted to mandate that all new homes built after January 1, 2010 have solar water heaters installed. However, there were a few problems with the law that this new bill seeks to correct. One of the main things is bill would do is to make it clear that the state tax credits that apply to solar water heaters would still be allowed for existing homes that were built before 2010.

SB 295- Hybrid Vehicle Bill

This bill allows hybrid vehicles to use HOV lanes regardless of number of people in vehicle.

SB 464- Expanding the Renewable Energy Technology Income Tax Credit
PASSED INTO LAW

The current Renewable Energy Technology Income Tax Credit (RETITC) has several flaws that make it difficult to use. This bill addresses these flaws by doing four things making the credit easier for investors to monetize by making it refundable at a lower rate.

SB 461- De-linking Price of Renewable Energy Generation from the Price of Fossil Fuel Generation

The Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is currently working on the implementation of a feed-in tariff. A feed-in tariff will allow renewable energy producers to be paid for renewable energy that they generate that is over and above what they consume. It is hoped that the rate for renewable energy will be higher than the rate for fossil-fuel based energy production in order to encourage renewables.

SB 237- Requiring Labeling of Genetically Engineered

This bill would prohibit the sale of genetically engineered fish unless it is labeled.

SB 238- Genetic Engineering Labeling Bill

This bill requires the labeling of any genetically engineered whole food (fruits and vegetables – papaya, squash, and sweet corn) that is sold in the State of Hawaii and intended for human consumption.

SB 239- Genetic Engineering Farmer Notification Bill

This bill sets up a notification process for farmers, which requires those producing and researching genetic engineering crops to report the location of their farm/research site to the Department of Agriculture.

SB 245- Banning Plastic Shopping Bags

This bill would encourage the use of reusable bags and better protect the environment.

SB 244- Refund/Store Credit for Not Using Plastic Bags

This bill would require retail establishments to give customers a refund or credit for complimentary plastic bags that they don't use, starting January 1, 2011.

SB 701- Prohibiting New Landfills on the Leeward Coast

This bill would prohibit new landfills to be established along the Leeward Coast, including Nanakuli, Waianae, Maili, Makaha, and Makua.

SB 246- Establishing a Lead Acid Battery/Tire Deposit Program

This bill would establish a lead acid battery and tire deposit program. Customers would pay a fee when they purchase a lead acid battery or tires. When they return their used batteries/tires to the place they purchased, customers would receive a refund.

SB 243- Requiring Recycling Redemption Centers at Big Box Stores

This bill would require retailers with stores over 75,000 square feet to operate recycling redemption centers where people can return their bottles/cans.

SB 241- Mandating "Cool Roofs"

A cool roof is a special roofing material for use in warmer climates that significantly reduces heat absorption due to two special qualities: high solar reflectance (reflects light) and high thermal emmittance (heat absorbed by roof goes back into the atmosphere). This bill would mandate the use of cool roofs on all new residential and commercial construction beginning in 2011.

SB 1260- Removing Cap on Air Pollution Fees
PASSED INTO LAW

This bill would make it so those companies that emit more than four thousand tons of air pollution a year would be charged a fee. Right now, polluters are charged fees for air pollution up to 4,000 tons but don't have to pay anything after 4,000 tons.

SB 466- Regulating Leaf Blower Emissions/Noise
PASSED INTO LAW

This bill would make it unlawful for any person to use or operate any leaf blower in such a manner as to blow, dispel or make airborne, dust, leaves, grass cuttings, paper, trash or any other type of unattached debris or material, beyond the parcel boundaries of the parcel being cleaned, unless the consent of the adjoining owner or person in possession is obtained.

SB 242, SB 391, SB 392- Assisting Honolulu Seawater Air Conditioning, LLC

Honolulu Seawater Air Conditioning, LLC is working on a project to provide air conditioning for downtown buildings, such as the State Capitol, by using cold, deep seawater. The first bill would allow the company to qualify for state enterprise zone benefits (tax breaks). The second bill would extend the time that they can use a $38 million Special Purpose Revenue Bonds (SPRBs) that they received from the state in 2004, from 2009 to 2014. The third bill would authorize the issuance of another $30 million SPRB for their project.

SB 393- Issuing SPRB for One Planet Pacific Energy

One Planet Pacific Energy plans to construct a 500 ton per day gasification facility to convert solid waste into synthetic gas, utilizing material solid waste from the construction and solid waste landfill located in Nanakuli. This bill would authorize the issuance of $35 million in SPRBs for this project.

SB 1259- Limiting Liability for Hazardous Substances
PASSED INTO LAW

This bill would make it so a person cannot be held liable for the clean-up of hazardous materials from a neighboring property.

SB 1066- Making Changes to the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii (NELHA)
PASSED INTO LAW

This bill addresses some of his concerns by moving NELHA from the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT) to the Department of Budget and Finance. By moving NELHA from DBEDT, it would remove a layer of bureaucracy that they now have to go through.

SB 1065- Allowing NELHA to Sell Electricity to it Tenants
PASSED INTO LAW

NELHA generates renewable electricity from photovoltaic panels. Right now, NELHA has to sell this power to the Hawaiian Electric Light Co. (HELCO) and then the power is sold back to NELHA’s tenants at a higher rate. This bill would allow NELHA to sell power directly to its tenants at a lower rate.

Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative Bills

SB 1258- Renewable Energy

This bill codifies the Renewable Portfolio Standard- 40% renewable energy by 2030, not allowing additional fossil fuel based generation, but allowing exemption for up to 2 MW (megawatts) for Distributed Generation stand-by. It also intends to raise the net metering system-wide cap to 15% and may allow movement of the existing net metering customers to the time-of-use rates/feed-in-tariff system.

SB 1173- Energy Efficiency

This bill sets a Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard goal of 4300 GW (gigawatt) reduction by 2030 and directs the PUC to set interim targets.

Judiciary and Government Operations Related Bills

SB 232- Banning Consumption of Companion Animals

This bill would make it an offense of cruelty to animals to possess, sell, purchase, give away, receive, import, or export any live companion animal for the purpose of using any portion of the animal for human food.

SB 233- Regulating Animal Shelter Agencies to Better Protect Stray Animals

This bill prohibits animals from being adopted out unneutered and sets holding periods for animals and animal care standards at pounds.

SB 234- Sexual Assault Bill

This bill holds rapists strictly liable for sexual assaults against people who are mentally defective.

SB 235- DNA Testing of Criminals Bill

This bill requires police to do DNA testing of criminals who commit serious crimes.

SB 236- Castle Doctrine Bill

This bill removes the requirement that a person has to retreat when an individual is defending himself and his family in cases of self-defense.

SB 462- Repealing Social Security Number Requirement for Voter Registration

This bill would repeal Hawaii’s full SSN provision and to allow a resident to register with only the last 4-digits of their SSN, their driver’s license number, or State ID number.

SB 1175- Civil Liability Bill

This bill limits the civil liability of property owners, tenants, and household members to persons injured or killed on a premises during the commission of a felony or violent crime.

SB 1176- Stiffening Penalties for Owners with Dangerous Dogs

This bill would make it unlawful for the owner of a dangerous dog to allow it to roam outside of the owner's property without the owner's supervision. If a dangerous dog bites a person causing injury requiring medical treatment, the owner shall be guilty of a class C felony, shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of one year, and shall be fined $5,000. The dangerous dog shall be destroyed.

SB 1257- Dismissing Contract Complaints with Errors of Less than 1%

This bill would make it so a bid complaint is dismissed if the error in the bid is less than 1% of the bid amount.

Commerce and Consumer Protection Related Bills

SB 240- Requiring HECO to Invest in Grid Infrastructure

This bill would direct the Public Utilities Commission to require that each electric utility to invest in expanding, upgrading, improving, or hardening its grid infrastructure, including but not limited to transmission lines a sum of money that equal or exceeds an unspecified percent of its net income before deducting this investment.

SB 459- Expanding Public Access to Public Utilities Commission (PUC) Proceedings

This bill would require the PUC to provide the public with reasonable notice of regulatory proceedings by posting the information on their website.

Water, Land, Agriculture, and Hawaiian Affairs Related Bills

SB 247- Banning Certain Lay Gill Nets

This bill would ban the possession or use of lay gill nets in the state.

SB 463- Tracking Pesticide Use

The purpose of this bill is to reduce the negative impacts of pesticides through an accurate and detailed collection of pesticide use data that will allow for adequate and scientific assessments of potential health problems related to pesticide exposure. This bill requires the Department of Agriculture to publish an annual report of the pesticide use in the state, including investigations of health related complaints by the Department of Health.

Economic Development and Taxation

SB 248- Auctioning Naming Rights for Aloha Stadium

This bill directs the Department of Accounting and General Services to auction the naming rights of Aloha Stadium for 10-year terms.

SB 255- Telework Tax Credit Bill

This bill will implement a statewide telecommuting income tax credit to help alleviate Hawaii's high costs for transportation-related expenses to work, to reduce Hawaii's dependence on fossil fuel, to reduce traffic congestion on Hawaii's roadways, and to provide the workers of Hawaii with an opportunity to spend more time either working from home or with their families, rather than in traffic.

SB 256- Establishing a Telework Task Force

This bill would establish a temporary telework task force to develop a comprehensive plan to encourage and expand telework opportunities in both the private and public sectors.

 

 

Transportation, International and Intergovernmental Affairs

SB 249- Prohibiting Cell Phone Use/Texting/Emailing While Driving Bill

This bill prohibits cell phone use while driving except with a hands-free device and texting/emailing while driving.

SB 250- Texting/Emailing Bill

This bill would prohibit texting or emailing while driving.

SB 251- Highway Patrol Bill

This bill allows counties to establish highway patrols and use money from uncontested traffic fines to fund the programs.

SB 253- Returning County Surcharge on Excise Tax to County

This bill would allow the county to retain all of the funds from the surcharge and then reimburse the state for the actual expenses it incurs in administering the tax.

SB 296- Impounding Uninsured Vehicles

This bill would allow the police to impound vehicles for the following reasons: a person has been fined three or more times for driving without a valid safety check, driving without a license, or driving without a valid insurance card/policy.

SB 1064- Prohibiting Sales of "Old" Tires

This bill would prohibit the sale of any new and unused tire that is older than 6 years old from the manufacturing date.

Human Services Related Bills

SB 252- Regulating Food Stamps and Rental Assistance Payments

This bill would prohibit EBT (electronic food stamps) from being used to purchase alcohol or tobacco products. The bill would also establish a system where rental assistance payments are made directly to the landlord.

SB 1177- Requiring Reporting of Drug/Alcohol Abuse of Pregnant

This bill would require medical professionals and law enforcement to report possible drug and alcohol abuse of pregnant women to the Department of Human Services.

Health Related Bills

SB 254- Providing Tax Credit for Life Saving Health-Maintenance Equipment

This bill would allow up to a $200 refundable tax credit for the actual cost of a new generator or rechargeable battery that is used to power a person's life saving or critical health maintenance equipment at home.

SB 1261- Hospital Acquired Infection Prevention and Disclosure Bill

This bill requires hospitals and medical facilities to collect and report information on hospital-acquired infections, including methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus infections, to the Department of Health.

SB 257- Right of Conscience Bill

This bill protects the right of all healthcare providers to decline performing medical services, including abortions, artificial birth control, artificial insemination, assisted reproduction, human cloning, euthanasia, human embryonic stem cell research, fetal experimentation, physician assisted suicide, and sterilization, which violate their conscience.

 

 

Education and Housing Related Bills

SB 297- Creating Positions at Kapolei High School for Navy JROTC Program

This bill would provide funds (amount to be determined) for two instructor positions for the Navy JROTC program at Kapolei High School.

 

 

Higher Education Related Bills

SB 460- Auctioning Naming Rights for UH-West Oahu Buildings

This bill directs the University of Hawaii to auction the names of the major buildings and facilities at the new UH-West Oahu campus for 10-year terms.

Labor Related Bills

SB 465- Creating Criminal Offense for Accepting/Trafficking in Fake IDs for Employment

This bill would create a criminal offense (Class C felony) for accepting false identification documents for employment purposes or for trafficking in personal identifying information for employment purposes.

SB 1063- Excluding Self-Employed Individuals from Workers' Compensation

This bill would exclude self-employed individuals and their families from the scope of the workers' compensation laws.

SB 1067- Prohibiting Employers from Hiring Unauthorized Aliens

This bill would prohibit employers from employing unauthorized aliens.

Resolutions 2009-0108

Management Audit of Biosafety Program Resolution

This resolution requests that the Legislative Reference Bureau (LRB) conduct a comprehensive management audit of the Institutional Biosafety Committee at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and the Department of Agriculture's recordkeeping system to help ensure that the citizens and visitors of Hawaii are protected from pathogens that are imported to Hawaii for research purposes.

24th Legislative Session   2008

This bill would prevent a property owner from being held liable for civil damages for any injuries that a criminal suffers in the commission of a violent crime. The bill would help protect innocent homeowners from being sued for protecting themselves and their families.

 

This bill would make violations on public lands a petty misdemeanor. Currently, there is a big problem with ATVs and other vehicles illegally driving on our beaches – putting the safety of people at risk and also causing environmental damage. The bill would allow the Department of Land and Natural Resources' Enforcement Division to issue criminal citations, make arrests, and confiscate vehicles.

This bill would hold rapists strictly liable for sexual assaults against people who are intellectually disabled. Currently, the law requires the perpetrator to be in "full knowledge" that he is raping a intellectually disabled person. Among adults who are developmentally disabled, as many as eighty-three per cent of the females and thirty-two per cent of the males are victims of sexual assault.

The bill would require retailers/pharmacies to keep a pseudoephedrine log in an electronic format. Pseudoephedrine happens to be a primary ingredient in making “ice”. The bill would make it easier to track people who are going store to store purchasing pseudoephedrine to make “ice”.

This resolution requests that the Legislative Reference Bureau (LRB) conduct a comprehensive management audit of the Institutional Biosafety Committee at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and the Department of Agriculture's recordkeeping system to help ensure that the citizens and visitors of Hawaii are protected from pathogens that are imported to Hawaii for research purposes.

This resolution requests that the Legislative Reference Bureau (LRB) prepare a report on the advisability and feasibility of establishing certificate, undergraduate, and graduate degree programs within the University of Hawaii for the study of Sports and Entertainment Management.