House approves dozens of bills on consent calendar; members record multiple no votes

The Hawaii House of Representatives on May 5 approved a large group of bills on the consent calendar, moving numerous standing committee reports and accompanying house bills forward by voice vote while several representatives recorded reservations or no votes.

Floor manager Representative Morikawa moved to suspend the rules to consider certain house bills for third reading on the consent calendar; Representative Garcia seconded and the motion carried. Morikawa later read the measures and said the majority members voted aye with enumerated exceptions listed aloud by bill and representative. Minority floor leader Representative Garcia likewise read minority exceptions, naming specific STANCOM report numbers, bill numbers and members who recorded no votes.

Why it matters: the consent calendar expedites passage of noncontroversial measures so the House can focus floor time on debated bills. The roll call read by Morikawa and Garcia shows widespread agreement on many items while documenting individual dissent that will remain part of the public record.

What passed and notable recorded no votes: the clerk and floor managers reported that multiple STANCOM reports (listed on pages cited in the House record) and their accompanying bills passed third reading by consent. Morikawa identified specific reports and one or more representatives who voted no on each (for example, STANCOM 770–26, HB 1612 HD1: Representative Iwamoto voted no). Garcia read the minority exceptions across the consent package, including no votes on bills listed on pages 2, 7, 11, 13 and 14 of the floor record; the House transcript records which representatives flagged reservations or no votes for the journal.

Votes and procedure: many items were passed by voice vote. Where no recorded roll-call totals were provided on the floor, the House manager read exceptions and the clerk confirmed passage. The journal days 6–16 were also approved earlier in the session after a voice vote.

Next steps: most bills carried forward by the consent calendar will proceed to the Senate or to subsequent floor action as specified by the legislative process; the transcript shows numerous items moved to third reading or placed on calendars for future consideration. The House adjourned until 12:00 noon the following day.