House Committee on Tourism advances bill ending HTA CEO retirement exemption

The House Committee on Tourism voted to pass Senate Bill 1536 SD2 on March 11, 2025, moving to repeal the exemption that excludes the president and chief executive officer of the Hawaii Tourism Authority from the State Employees' Retirement System.

The committee—s action, carried by the chair and vice chair and multiple representatives, adopted the chair—s recommendation to pass the measure with amendments as an HD 1 and to defer the effective date so further conference conversations can occur. Chair Tam and Vice Chair Templo recorded aye votes; Representatives Holt, Hussey, Iligan, Todd and Matsumoto also voted aye.

Caroline Anderson, interim chief administrative officer of the Hawaii Tourism Authority, testified in support and said, “We stand on our written testimony.” Daniel Naho, the HTA interim president and CEO, was noted as unable to attend. No in-person or Zoom opponents spoke during the hearing segment for this bill; the committee recorded written testimony supporting the measure from the Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism (DBEDT).

The bill, as described at the hearing, repeals the HTA president and CEO's exemption from the State Employees' Retirement System; committee staff recommended passage with amendments to create an HD 1 and to defer the timeline to allow further discussion in conference. The committee—s motion did not record a named mover or seconder in the transcript.

The committee's action advances the bill to the next stage for conference and amendment; staff signaled the intent to discuss implementation details during conference negotiations.