HB380 • 2026

RELATING TO THE REGULATION OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS.

Active

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

Sponsor: NAKAMURA (Introduced by request of another party)
Last action: 2025-12-08
Official status: Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill's effective date of July 1, 3000 is likely incorrect and should be corrected before the bill becomes law.

Changes to Tobacco Product Regulations

This bill removes state laws that declare the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic smoking devices a statewide concern and preempts local regulations on these items.

What This Bill Does

Removes existing law that declares the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic smoking devices a matter for the whole state to handle.
Gets rid of laws that prevent counties from making their own rules about selling these products.

Who It Names or Affects

Counties in Hawaii that want to make their own rules about selling cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic smoking devices.
People who sell or use these products may see changes depending on local regulations made by counties.

Terms To Know

Preemption: When a higher level of government (like the state) stops lower levels of government (like cities or counties) from making their own laws about something.
Electronic smoking devices: Devices like e-cigarettes that people use to inhale vapor containing nicotine and other chemicals.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what new local regulations counties might create.
It is unclear how this change will affect youth tobacco use in Hawaii.
This act takes effect on July 1, 3000, which seems to be a placeholder date and likely needs correction.

Amendments

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

HD1

Hawaii published version HD1

Plain English: This amendment removes state-level regulations that previously declared the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic smoking devices as a statewide concern and preempted local ordinances regulating these sales.

Repeals statutory language declaring cigarette, tobacco product, and electronic smoking device sales as a matter of statewide concern.
Removes preemption of all local regulations regarding the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic smoking devices.

The amendment's future effective date is set for July 1, 3000, which seems to be a placeholder or error in the text.
It does not specify new regulations replacing those that are repealed.

Bill History

2025-12-08 D
Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.
2025-02-14 H
Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN with Representative(s) Garcia voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Kong voting no (1) and Representative(s) Cochran, Matayoshi, Poepoe, Ward excused (4).
2025-02-14 H
Reported from JHA (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 747), recommending referral to FIN.
2025-02-13 H
The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes were as follows: 10 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Belatti, Hashem, Kahaloa, Perruso, Takayama, Todd, Shimizu; Ayes with reservations: Representative(s) Garcia; Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Cochran.
2025-02-10 H
Bill scheduled to be heard by JHA on Thursday, 02-13-25 2:00PM in House conference room 325 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
2025-02-04 H
Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on JHA with none voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Muraoka voting no (1) and Representative(s) Cochran, Kong, Ward excused (3).
2025-02-04 H
Reported from CPC (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 120) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to JHA.
2025-01-29 H
The committee on CPC recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 8 Ayes: Representative(s) Matayoshi, Chun, Ilagan, Ichiyama, Iwamoto, Marten, Tam, Pierick; Ayes with reservations: none; 1 Noes: Representative(s) Kong; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Lowen.
2025-01-27 H
Bill scheduled to be heard by CPC on Wednesday, 01-29-25 2:00PM in House conference room 329 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
2025-01-21 H
Referred to CPC, JHA, FIN, referral sheet 1
2025-01-17 H
Introduced and Pass First Reading.
2025-01-16 H
Pending introduction.

Official Summary Text

RELATING TO THE REGULATION OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS.
Hawaii State Association of Counties Package; Tobacco Products; Regulation
Repeals existing statutory language that: declares that the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic devices are a statewide concern; and preempts all local ordinances and regulations that regulate the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic devices. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HB380

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

380

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING
TO THE REGULATION OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS
.

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

����
SECTION 1.
�
The
legislature finds that tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable
death in the United States and in Hawaii.
�

Recent years have brought a precipitous increase in consumer sales of
electronic smoking devices, sometimes called "vapes", and one
inhalation of these products can contain many times more nicotine than a
conventional cigarette.
�
Electronic
smoking devices have played a major role in increased rates of youth nicotine
addiction, which had been previously on the decline.

����
This increased youth tobacco use prompted
Hawaii to adopt laws to increase the minimum smoking age to twenty-one years
old and treat electronic cigarettes in the same manner as the state treats
conventional cigarettes for purposes of clean indoor air laws.
�
The State and the County of Hawaii, County of
Maui, and City and County of Honolulu have also adopted policies to ban smoking,
including electronic cigarette use, at state and county beaches and parks.

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In 2018, in order to ensure uniform
regulations on tobacco

sales, the
legislature passed Act 206, Session Laws of Hawaii, which, in part, declared
the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic smoking devices a
matter of statewide concern, and nullified any existing local ordinances or
policies that restricted the sale of these products.
�
However, the legislature finds that since the Act's
passage, youth tobacco use has continued to increase to epidemic levels.
�
According to the 2019 Hawaii Youth Risk Behavior
Survey, thirty-one per cent of middle school students and forty-eight per cent
of public high school students had tried electronic smoking devices.
�
The 2019 Hawaii Youth Risk Behavior Survey
also indicates that eighteen per cent of middle school students and thirty-one
per cent of high school students currently vape.

����
The legislature further finds that in order
to end this youth vaping epidemic, the State must work in concert with youth,
parents, and educational institutions, and laws must be changed at all levels
of government to establish reasonable restrictions on the sale of and access to
these addictive products.

����
Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to repeal
existing statutory language that:

����
(1)
�
Declares
that the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic devices are a
statewide concern; and

����
(2)
�
Preempts
all local ordinances and regulations that regulate the sale of cigarettes,
tobacco products, and electronic devices.

����
SECTION
2
.
�
Section 328J-11.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes,
is repealed.

����
["
[�
328J-11.5]
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Statewide concern.
�
(a)
�
Sales of cigarettes,
tobacco products, and electronic smoking devices are a statewide concern.
�
It is the intent of the legislature to
regulate the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic smoking
devices in a uniform and exclusive manner.

����
(b)
�
All local
ordinances or regulations that regulate the sale of cigarettes, tobacco
products, and electronic smoking devices are preempted, and existing local laws
and regulations conflicting with this chapter are null and void.

����
(c)
�
Nothing in this
chapter shall be construed to limit a county's authority under section 328J-15.
"]

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SECTION 3.
�

Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.

����
SECTION 4.
�

This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

By Request

Report Title:

Hawaii
State Association of Counties Package; Tobacco Products

Description:

Repeals
existing statutory language that:
�
(1) declares
that the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic devices are a
statewide concern; and (2) preempts all local ordinances and regulations that
regulate the sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, and electronic devices.

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