Conference conferees approve North Shore beach‑management draft; most other bills deferred

A joint House and Senate conference committee meeting on April 23 in Conference Room 229 approved the conference draft of House Bill 3 (HD 2 SD 1), a measure on beach management for the North Shore of Oʻahu, while deferring consideration of the bulk of other bills on the agenda to later meetings.

Why it matters: The committee vote advances changes to the beach‑management measure, including a clarified effective date and an extended reporting deadline; conferees also noted the bill carries a related appropriation that has not been fully spent. Several other bills — spanning procurement, education, University of Hawaiʻi bonding, agriculture and climate resilience — were carried over to subsequent conference meetings with new dates and times set.

Conferees approved the HB 3 conference draft on a voice vote. House conferees recorded affirmative votes from Rep. Lehi and Rep. Souza and other house members; senate conferees recorded affirmative votes from Sen. Kim and Sen. Hashimoto and other senate members. The committee did not record any no votes on the conference draft during the meeting.

Committee members said the CD1 for HB 3…