Committee directs Legislative Reference Bureau to review Hawaii Revised Statutes for gender-neutral language; passes resolutions with amendments

The Senate Committee on Judiciary passed SCR 179 and SR 149 with amendments directing the Legislative Reference Bureau (LRB) to conduct a comprehensive review of the Hawaii Revised Statutes for gender-neutral language and to consult with specified stakeholders.

Michael Goloj Jr., vice chair of the Hawaii State LGBTQ+ Commission, testified in support and said the commission is willing to lead the effort but had originally requested that the Attorney General lead the review. Yasmin Chaney, executive director of the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women, also testified in support and asked for additional time and a date to dissolve the proposed work group. Several other community members, including Marissa Miller Danta and Holly Jill Zeblon, a social work student, provided testimony urging the legislature to update statutes so they reflect nonbinary and gender-neutral identities.

Committee amendments assign the LRB as the lead agency for the comprehensive statutory review and require LRB to consult with the Hawaii State LGBTQ+ Commission, the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women, the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission, the University of Hawaii Richardson School of Law, Lambda Law, and the Hawaii LGBT Legal Associates. The committee set a timeframe of 18 months for the review, with an interim report due to the 2026 legislature and a final report to the 2027 legislature; reports are to be submitted 40 days before the start of the respective sessions.

On the vote the committee adopted the amendments and passed the paired resolutions. The chair noted an excused absence for Senator Gabbard.