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Committee advances background-check bill after contested debate over FBI fingerprinting
Summary
House Bill 25-76 was advanced as a house draft with amendments removing an FBI-fingerprint mandate after extended testimony from the Attorney General, Department of Health, hospital systems and provider groups about federal requirements and operational hardship.
The House Committee on Health voted to keep House Bill 25-76 alive as a house draft after a prolonged and at times contentious hearing over whether state law should continue to require FBI fingerprint checks for health‑care workers.
Phil Higdon from the Attorney General's office warned that access to arrest and conviction information for non‑criminal‑justice agencies requires FBI CJIS review of the statute; if the statute is changed, agencies risk losing access to arrest records and other details until FBI review completes. Paula Serio of the Department of Health cited a 2023 Office of Inspector General (OIG) audit and asserted that federal requirements for some nursing facilities necessitate comprehensive fingerprint checks to meet CMS standards (citing 42 CFR and CMS state-operations guidance).
Hospital systems, the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, and other providers said they support robust background checks but argued the current FBI-fingerprint requirement is operationally burdensome, costly and broad in scope. Hawaii Pacific Health warned that some components of the workforce (including cafeteria staff and prospective employees) could be inappropriately swept into fingerprinting requirements. Providers urged further dialogue and technical fixes.
After discussion, the chair moved to advance the bill as a house draft removing the fingerprint requirement per amendments suggested by the Healthcare Association; the committee adopted the recommended approach while noting several members' reservations.
