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Senate committees pass fireworks, airport and emergency measures; defer building-code, disaster-preparedness and spray-paint bills
Summary
On Feb. 10, joint Senate committees advanced several bills with amendments — including fireworks restrictions and emergency-airlift provisions — and deferred three measures for further work, citing outstanding stakeholder concerns and the suspension of the State Building Code Council.
The Senate committees on Transportation and Culture and the Arts and on Public Safety and Military Affairs met Feb. 10 at the State Capitol and moved a package of bills: they deferred three measures for further work, and passed several others with amendments, including changes requested by the attorney general.
Why it matters: The votes affect statewide building-code authority, disaster-preparedness rules, consumer-fireworks penalties and emergency air service planning for smaller islands — policy areas that intersect public safety, local government authority and state emergency response capabilities.
The committees deferred three measures pending further consultation. SB1540 (building codes), SB626 (disaster preparedness and large trees along evacuation routes) and SB692 (retail regulation of spray paint) were each deferred to allow additional stakeholder discussions and technical review; committee chairs cited the suspension of the State Building Code Council and other outstanding implementation questions.
Votes at a glance - SB1540 (building codes): Deferred indefinitely. Reason: members and several testifiers, including the IBEW and building-industry representatives, asked for more time to reconcile county/state roles given the current suspension of the State Building Code Council. - SB626 (disaster preparedness — large trees on evacuation routes): Deferred. Committee said additional coordination with DOT and HI‑EMA (Hawaii Emergency Management Agency) was needed. - SB692 (spray paint sales regulation): Deferred. Retailers testified about cost and identity-recording burdens; committee opted to defer for more stakeholder input. - SB999 (consumer fireworks): Passed with amendments. The committees removed multiple sections, adjusted civil-penalty amounts (raising some fines to $1,000), redirected forfeiture proceeds to the general fund, accepted an attorney general amendment and added an appropriation for community-safety education. Committee members recorded affirmative votes for the chair and multiple senators; one recorded “no” vote was entered during the roll call in the transcript; the chair’s recommendation to pass with amendments was adopted. - SB971 (traffic): Passed with amendments; committees moved the bill forward with a defective date and referral to the Judiciary Committee for further technical work and stakeholder meetings. - SB1102 (aircraft-rescue firefighting unit): Passed with amendments to create conversation around selection of the position and to allow further bargaining/implementation discussion. - SB141 (annual disaster drill day): Passed with amendments; effective date changed to 07/01/2025. - SB1570 (emergency declaration when air service to Molokai or Lāna‘i is unavailable; Molokai runway planning): Passed with amendments, including adoption of changes recommended by the attorney general, a technical defective date, and an appropriation placeholder for community-safety education programs.
What committees said and next steps: Committee chairs repeatedly emphasized the desire to convene stakeholders before finalizing statutory language — particularly on bills touching county authority (SB1540), airport infrastructure and procurement (SB1570), and regulatory burdens on small retailers (SB692). Several bills were moved forward with a defective (placeholder) effective date and with instructions to revise technical language and accept conforming attorney general edits. Where the transcript records roll-call-style statements, committees tallied and recorded members’ votes and adopted the chairs’ recommendations.
Context and implementation notes: Committees accepted the attorney general’s legal edits on several bills and added or modified appropriations and penalty amounts. For items involving airport infrastructure and emergency lift to smaller islands, DOT testified it is pursuing a procurement for an open-ended charter contract to be available for emergencies and other priority needs; DOT also explained that runway expansion on Molokai would require substantial state funding, TSA screening changes and a multi-year planning and construction timeline.
Ending note: Deferred measures are expected to return after additional stakeholder consultation; bills passed with amendments proceed through the legislative process with the changes adopted by the committees.
