Starting July 1, 2029, Hawaii counties must prove that their rules requiring developers to build affordable homes are financially possible and legally sound before enforcing them.
Hawaii2026Enacted
HB1741
New Rules for County Housing Mandates
Last scannedAug 24, 2026, 11:30 PM
In one sentence
This law treats county requirements for affordable housing as fees and requires counties to prove these rules are fair, necessary, and financially possible before enforcing them on standard homes.
What it does
- Treats county inclusionary mandates as a type of development fee called a housing affordability impact fee.
- Requires counties to create a study showing how affordable housing requirements affect building costs and market prices for different home types like single-family, duplexes, townhomes, condos, and apartments.
- Stops counties from enforcing new or changed rules on standard homes unless they prove the rule will not raise prices or stop construction.
- Allows fees only on luxury projects or those getting special permission to build larger, if a study shows the fee matches the project's impact.
- Makes old affordable housing mandates unenforceable until counties finish the required new studies.
Who it affects
- County governments that create rules for building homes
- Developers of residential and mixed-use buildings
Limits and unknowns
- The law does not apply to resort or vacation rental construction.
- It does not limit the actions of the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation or the Hawaii Community Development Authority.
- The specific effective date for when these rules start is listed as blank in the provided text.
Plain language
Terms to know
- Inclusionary mandate
- A rule requiring developers to include affordable units or pay fees when building new homes.
- Essential nexus and rough proportionality
- Legal tests proving a fee is directly linked to the specific problems caused by a project and costs no more than needed to fix them.
- Needs assessment study
- A detailed report analyzing building costs, market prices, and whether affordable housing rules are financially possible for different types of homes.
Official record
Sources
Official summary
RELATING TO HOUSING. Inclusionary Mandate; Housing Affordability Impact Fee; Needs Assessment Study; Essential Nexus; Rough Proportionality; Financial Feasibility Deems a county inclusionary mandate as a form of development exaction and treats the mandate as a housing affordability impact fee. Provides parameters for a county's adoption or amendment of an inclusionary mandate for residential or mixed-use development. Establishes additional components for a needs assessment study for a county-imposed inclusionary mandate. Conditions the adoption or amendment of a county inclusionary mandate for residential or mixed-use development on written findings of essential nexus and rough proportionality and a determination of financial feasibility. (CD1)
Official activity
Bill history
- Act 211, on 07/08/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1313).H
- Act 211, 07/08/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1313).S
- Received notice of passage on Final Reading in House (Hse. Com. No. 888).S
- Transmitted to Governor.H
- Received notice of Final Reading (Sen. Com. No. 816).H
- Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1 with Representative(s) Shimizu voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Cochran, Grandinetti voting no (2) and none excused (0).H
- Passed Final Reading, as amended (CD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none).S
- 48 Hrs. Notice (as amended CD 1) 05-06-26S
- Reported from Conference Committee as amended CD 1 (Conf. Com. Rep. No. 131-26).S
- Forty-eight (48) hours notice Wednesday, 05-06-26.H
- Reported from Conference Committee (Conf Com. Rep. No. 131-26) as amended in (CD 1).H
- The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. The votes were as follows: 4 Ayes: Representative(s) Evslin, Hashem, Tarnas, Miyake; Ayes with reservations: none; 1 Noes: Representative(s) Cochran; and 0 Excused: none.H
- The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes of the Senate Conference Managers were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Wakai, Chang, Hashimoto; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.S
- Conference committee meeting to reconvene on 05-01-26 10:10AM; Conference Room 224.S
- Conference committee meeting to reconvene on 04-30-26 10:10AM; Conference Room 224.S
- Conference committee meeting to reconvene on 04-29-26 10:10AM; Conference Room 224.S
- Bill scheduled for Conference Committee Meeting on Tuesday, 04-28-26 10:11AM in conference room 224.H
- Received notice of Senate conferees (Sen. Com. No. 759).H
- Senate Conferees Appointed: Wakai Chair; Chang, Hashimoto Co-Chairs.S
- Received notice of appointment of House conferees (Hse. Com. No. 786).S
Changes
Amendments
4 stored
This amendment requires Hawaii counties to prove with a detailed study that housing mandates do not raise prices or stop construction before enforcing them on standard homes, while allowing stricter rules only for luxury projects or those receiving special government approvals.
This amendment requires Hawaii counties to prove with a detailed study that housing rules requiring affordable units will not raise prices or stop construction before they can be enforced.
This amendment requires Hawaiian counties to prove that rules forcing developers to build affordable housing are financially feasible and legally justified before they can be enforced.