Committee advances multiple election, campaign finance and administrative measures; several constitutional amendments move forward to voters

The House Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs on March 12 moved a series of election, campaign finance and administrative measures forward to the next stages of the legislative process, adopting technical amendments or deferring bills as members raised legal and funding concerns.

The committee heard hours of public testimony — both in person and by Zoom — on constitutional amendments addressing money in politics and how blank ballots should be counted for legislature-proposed amendments, debated partial and comprehensive public campaign financing proposals, and considered bills on recount triggers, campaign childcare expenditures, foreign influence in campaign donations, and election-related intimidation. The panel also considered technical statutory corrections from the Legislative Reference Bureau and a correction to stadium-authority quorum language.

Why it matters: Several bills the committee advanced would alter how Hawaii handles elections and campaign money — including proposed constitutional changes that, if approved by voters, could have long-term legal implications. Other votes change administrative processes for recounts and enforcement of ethics rules, or adjust who may be included or excluded from ballots. Lawmakers and the attorney general flagged potential constitutional and enforcement questions during debate.

Votes at a glance (key actions taken by the committee):

- SB176 SD1 (recounts): Committee adopted recommendation to defer the effective date and move the bill toward conference committee. Voting recorded: Chair Tarnas (aye), Vice Chair Poipoi (aye), Rep. Belotti (aye), Rep. Peruso (aye), Rep. Takayama (aye), Rep. Todd (aye); Rep. Cochran, Rep. Hashem and Rep. Kahalua excused; Rep. Shimizu recorded “with reservations.” Recommendation adopted.

- SB1337 SD1 (stadium authority quorum/validation): Approved with technical correction (remove underlining of existing "nonvoting" language) and effective date changed to upon approval. Voting recorded: recommendation adopted; Rep. Garcia recorded a no vote.

- SB289 (ethics — administrative fines): Advanced as is. The committee adopted the recommendation.

- SB311 SD1 (proposed constitutional amendment excluding political expenditures from protected speech): Committee adopted amendments to delete timing language from the ballot question and to defer the effective date; technical edits sought. Voting recorded: recommendation adopted; Rep. Shimizu recorded a no; Rep. Garcia recorded a no.

- SB780 (candidate inclusion/exclusion process): Deferred after members expressed constitutional concerns about time limits for judicial disposition.

- SB1030 SD2 (election intimidation — carrying unconcealed firearm within 200 feet of voting sites): Committee adopted the recommendation with technical and AG-recommended amendments; voting recorded: recommendation adopted; Rep. Garcia recorded a no; Rep. Shimizu recorded reservations.

- SB1225 (constitutional amendment on counting blank/spoiled/overvotes for legislative amendments): Committee adopted changes to remove explanatory language from the ballot question and deferred the effective date; voting recorded: recommendation adopted; Rep. Garcia and Rep. Shimizu recorded no votes.

- SB1515 (on-call circuit judge for board of registration duties): Deferred on judiciary opposition.

- SB1202 (allow campaign funds to be used for candidate childcare): Advanced as is; committee adopted the recommendation. Voting recorded: recommendation adopted; Rep. Garcia and Rep. Shimizu recorded no votes.

- SB345 SD1 (partial public financing, Senate version): Committee replaced bill text with the House bill HD2 language as an HD1 and moved it to finance. Members and advocates debated expenditure limits and match ratios; committee adopted the HD1; Rep. Shimizu recorded reservations; Rep. Garcia recorded a no vote.

- SB1032 SD2 (prohibiting foreign entities/foreign-influenced entities from campaign contributions): Committee adopted AG and Campaign Spending Commission technical amendments and moved the bill forward. Rep. Shimizu recorded a no vote.

- SB51 SD1 (comprehensive public financing): Deferred pending cost and scope concerns; committee members expressed preference to advance the partial public financing vehicle in SB345.

- SB1508 SD1 (statutory revision omnibus): Adopted as presented; LRB reported review and AG concurrence.

What happens next: Many of the committee’s recommendations included deferring effective dates for ballot language and technical amendments, which moves bills to finance or to conference committees for further work. Bills that propose constitutional amendments will still need voter approval if they pass the Legislature and are placed on the ballot.

Details from testimony and technical notes: Committee members and testifiers repeatedly urged that ballot questions contain only the essential voter-facing question and that explanatory context be placed in the voter information pamphlet. The attorney general’s office advised the panel on legal issues for several measures and submitted suggested statutory fixes for SB1032 and related bills.

The committee’s transcript, submitted testimony totals and the committee’s roll-call statements form the record for each item; the committee convened in Conference Room 325 and heard extensive in-person and Zoom testimony on the measures listed above.

Ending: The committee recessed after completing decision-making on its agenda; several measures will return in conference committee or in finance with the technical edits the panel requested.