RELATING TO CHILD CARE.

Children

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor: MARTEN, IWAMOTO, KITAGAWA, LAMOSAO, MATAYOSHI, OLDS, PERRUSO, POEPOE, TAM, TODD
Last action: 2025-12-08
Official status: Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill does not specify the exact number of centers that must participate in each county.

Child Care Classroom Contracts Pilot Program

This bill establishes a pilot program where the Department of Human Services will contract with licensed child care centers to provide stable funding for infant, toddler, and group child care services.

What This Bill Does

Establishes a pilot program that requires the Department of Human Services to make contracts with licensed child care center providers who serve children from six weeks to five years old in licensed infant and toddler child care centers and group child care centers.
Requires these contracts to be at least one full classroom in size and last for at least twelve months, but can be extended during the pilot period.
Sets up a process where the department must report annually on how well the program is working and its effects on child care providers and families.

Who It Names or Affects

Licensed infant and toddler child care centers
Group child care centers that meet certain criteria

Terms To Know

Pilot Program: A small-scale trial of a new program to test its effectiveness before full implementation.
Contract: An agreement between two parties that outlines the terms and conditions for providing services or products.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify how many child care centers will be part of the pilot program.
It is unclear what criteria group child care centers must meet to participate in the program.
The effectiveness of the program and its impact on families and providers are yet to be determined.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HD1

Hawaii published version HD1

Plain English: This amendment establishes a pilot program where the Department of Human Services will contract directly with child care centers to provide subsidies for families eligible for federal child care assistance, aiming to stabilize funding for these centers.

The Department of Human Services must establish and implement a child care classroom contracts pilot program by July 1, 2026.
Contracts are required to be at least one year long and can cover classrooms in licensed infant and toddler or group child care centers serving eligible families.
Annual interim reports on the program's progress will be submitted to the legislature starting from 2026.

The amendment text does not specify how funding for the pilot program will be secured, which is an important detail left unclear.

Bill History

2025-12-08 D
Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.
2025-02-13 H
Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN with none voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Pierick voting no (1) and Representative(s) Cochran, Kitagawa, Ward excused (3).
2025-02-13 H
Reported from EDN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 563), recommending referral to FIN.
2025-02-11 H
The committee on EDN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes were as follows: 11 Ayes: Representative(s) Woodson, La Chica, Amato, Evslin, Garrett, Kapela, Kila, Olds, Sayama, Muraoka, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and Excused: none.
2025-02-07 H
Bill scheduled to be heard by EDN on Tuesday, 02-11-25 2:01PM in House conference room 309 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
2025-02-04 H
Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on EDN with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Cochran, Kong, Ward excused (3).
2025-02-04 H
Reported from HSH (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 57) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to EDN.
2025-01-30 H
The committee on HSH recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 9 Ayes: Representative(s) Marten, Olds, Amato, Chun, Keohokapu-Lee Loy, Takayama, Takenouchi, Alcos, Garcia; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and Excused: none.
2025-01-27 H
Bill scheduled to be heard by HSH on Thursday, 01-30-25 9:35AM in House conference room 329 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
2025-01-21 H
Referred to HSH, EDN, FIN, referral sheet 1
2025-01-17 H
Introduced and Pass First Reading.
2025-01-16 H
Pending introduction.

Official Summary Text

RELATING TO CHILD CARE.
Department of Human Services; Child Care Classroom Contracts Pilot Program; Report
Establishes a child care classroom contracts pilot program to require the Department of Human Services to contract directly with child care center providers in licensed infant and toddler child care centers and group child care centers that meet certain criteria. Requires reports to the Legislature. Sunsets the pilot program on 6/30/2028. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HB241

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

241

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to child care
.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

����
SECTION
1.
�
The legislature finds that in the
first quarter of fiscal year 2022-2023, more than fifteen thousand families
with children under the age of thirteen received subsidies from the child care
connection Hawaii program to help them afford child care services.
�
The legislature further finds that child care
center providers can be faced with disruptions in services and possible closure
when their operating costs are funded by tuition fees because their revenues
depend upon ever-changing enrollment figures rather than a stable source of
funding.

����
Accordingly,
the purpose of this Act is to establish a child care classroom contracts pilot
program to develop and implement procedures to subsidize child care by
contracting for classrooms in licensed infant and toddler child care centers or
group child care centers.

����
SECTION
2.
�
(a)
�

The department of human services shall establish and implement a child
care classroom contracts pilot program no later than July 1, 2026.

����
(b)
�
The department of human services shall
contract directly with licensed infant and toddler child care center and group
child care center providers that serve:

����
(1)
�
Children six weeks to five years of age; and

����
(2)
�
Families who are eligible for a federally
funded child care subsidy through the department of human services.

����
(c)
�
The pilot program shall meet the following
requirements:

����
(1)
�
The pilot program shall provide contracts for
at least one full classroom at one licensed infant and toddler child care
center and two licensed group child care centers per county; and

����
(2)
�
Contracts with child care center providers
shall be a minimum of twelve months and may be extended for the length of the
pilot period.

����
(d)
�
The department of human services may contract
with a service provider in accordance with chapter 103F, Hawaii Revised
Statutes, to operate the child care classroom contracts pilot program.

����
(e)
�
The pilot program shall cease to exist on
June 30, 2028.

����
SECTION
3.
�
(a)
�

The department of human services shall submit annual interim reports on
the development and implementation of the child care classroom contracts pilot
program, including impacts to child care provider stability, family
satisfaction, and any proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than
twenty days prior to the convening of the regular sessions of 2026, 2027, and
2028.

����
(b)
�
The department of human services shall submit
a final report on the child care classroom contracts pilot program, including
impacts to child care provider stability, family satisfaction, and any proposed
legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the
convening of the regular session of 2029.

����
SECTION 4.
�
This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2025.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

Department
of Human Services; Child Care Classroom Contracts Pilot Program; Report

Description:

Establishes
a child care classroom contracts pilot program to require the Department of
Human Services to contract directly with child care center providers in
licensed infant and toddler child care centers and group child care centers
that meet certain criteria.
�
Requires
reports to the Legislature.
�
Sunsets the
pilot program on 6/30/2028.

The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.