RELATING TO COMMUTING.

Budget Education Energy Labor Taxes

Active

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

Sponsor: GRANDINETTI, BELATTI, IWAMOTO, KILA, KUSCH, LA CHICA, MARTEN, 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 what kind of benefits will be offered to employees.

Commuting Choice Benefit Program for State Employees

This bill requires the Director of Human Resources Development to create a program that gives state employees benefits for different ways they can get to work, like walking, biking, or using public transportation.

What This Bill Does

Requires the Director of Human Resources Development to develop and implement a comprehensive Commuting Choice Benefit Program in consultation with other relevant commissions and departments.
The program must include options such as walking, rolling using a wheelchair or mobility aid, car sharing, biking, and using public transportation.
Encourages healthy, safe, economically sound, and environmentally sustainable commuting modes for all state employees regardless of mode of transportation.
Requires the Director to submit a report on progress toward implementing the program to the Legislature no later than forty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2026.

Who It Names or Affects

All state employees in Hawaii

Terms To Know

Commuting Choice Benefit Program: A program that gives state workers benefits for different ways they can get to work, like walking, biking, or using public transportation.
Pre-tax payroll deductions: Money taken out of an employee's paycheck before taxes are calculated, often used for things like parking or commuting expenses.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what kind of benefits will be offered to employees.
It is unclear how much funding has been allocated for this program.
The effective date listed in the bill (7/1/3000) seems incorrect 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 requires the development and implementation of a commuting choice benefit program for all state employees, offering various transportation options and financial incentives to reduce single-occupant vehicle use.

Requires the Director of Human Resources Development to create a comprehensive commuting choice benefit program in collaboration with other departments.
Establishes volunteer employee transportation coordinators at each worksite to assist with education and outreach.
Offers fully subsidized public transit and bikeshare passes as benefits for state employees.
Develops a parking opt-out program where employees can choose not to use a parking stall and receive financial incentives.

The amendment text does not specify the exact amount of funding or number of full-time equivalent positions to be appropriated, leaving these details unclear.

Bill History

2025-12-08 D
Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.
2025-02-06 H
Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on LAB with none voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Garcia, Pierick voting no (2) and Representative(s) Ward excused (1).
2025-02-06 H
Reported from EEP (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 223) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to LAB.
2025-02-04 H
The committee on EEP recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 5 Ayes: Representative(s) Lowen, Perruso, Kahaloa, Kusch, Quinlan; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Ward.
2025-01-28 H
Bill scheduled to be heard by EEP on Tuesday, 02-04-25 9:00AM in House conference room 325 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
2025-01-21 H
Referred to EEP, LAB, FIN, referral sheet 2
2025-01-21 H
Introduced and Pass First Reading.
2025-01-17 H
Pending introduction.

Official Summary Text

RELATING TO COMMUTING.
DHRD; Transportation; Commuting; State Employees; Plan; Commuting Choice Benefit Program; Report; Appropriation; Positions
Requires the Director of Human Resources Development, in consultation with the Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Commission, Hawaii State Energy Office, and Department of Accounting and General Services, to develop and implement a comprehensive Commuting Choice Benefit Program for all state employees regardless of mode of transportation. Requires a report to the Legislature. Appropriates funds. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HB461

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

461

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

Relating
to commuting
.

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

����
SECTION 1.
�
The
legislature finds that the State's policy of providing highly subsidized
parking for state employees limits the employees' choices, does not reduce
traffic congestion or greenhouse gas emissions, and contradicts state policies
to encourage alternative modes of transportation.
�
According to the department of accounting and
general services, four thousand and seventy-six subsidized parking stalls are
made available to state employees on O
�
ahu, not including stalls
located at the university of Hawai
�
i or the department of
education buildings.
�
An additional two
hundred forty-three are made available on Hawai
�
i
island, two hundred seventy-eight on Maui, and one hundred fifty-one on Kaua
�
i.

����
The legislature further finds that for many
years the State has offered the limited option to employees to pay for monthly
parking privileges at the department of accounting and general services'
controlled lot located at or near the employee's workplace through pre-tax
payroll deductions.
�
In addition to the
savings for purchasing parking pre-tax, the parking privileges are offered at a
rate of approximately one-third of the public rate.
�
For example, employee parking rates in the
Honolulu downtown area range from $20 to $60 per month before any pre-tax
savings, which is a fraction of the cost to park in a nearby private lot.

����
Comparatively, the cost of a monthly adult
bus pass on O
�
ahu is $80 and the State
does not provide a comparable bus pass benefit to its employees nor offer to
all employees the ability to purchase a bus pass on a pre-tax basis.
�
State employees who travel to work by
bicycle, foot, wheelchair or other mobility aid, or private car sharing also do
not receive any transportation benefit or support even though their commuting
modes reduce the number of cars driven in the State and parked in state lots.

����
The legislature also finds that other
jurisdictions, such as Washington, D.C., have enacted equitable transportation
benefits laws and policies.
�
Various
options, such as offering an equivalent transportation benefit that employees
could select to apply to the cost of their preferred mode of transportation,
could be implemented to increase parity.

����
Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to
require the director of human resources development, in consultation with the
Hawai
�
i climate change mitigation and adaptation
commission, state energy office, and department of accounting and general
services, to develop and implement a commuting choice benefit program for all
state employees regardless of mode of transportation.

����
SECTION 2.
�

(a)
�
The director of human
resources development, in consultation with the Hawai
ʻ
i
climate change mitigation and adaptation commission, state energy office, and
department of accounting and general services, shall develop and implement a
comprehensive commuting choice benefit program for all state employees
regardless of mode of transportation.
�

The program shall include walking, rolling using a wheelchair or other
mobility aid, car sharing, biking, and using public transportation, and shall
encourage the use of healthy, safe, economically sound, and environmentally
sustainable commuting modes.

����
(b)
�
The
director of human resources development shall submit a report on the progress
made toward implementing the program to the legislature no later than forty
days prior to the convening of the regular session of
2026.

����
SECTION 3.
�

This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

DHRD;
Transportation; Commuting; State Employees; Plan; Commuting Choice Benefit
Program; Report

Description:

Requires the Director of Human Resources
Development, in consultation with the Hawaii Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation
Commission, State Energy Office, and Department of Accounting and General Services,
to develop and implement a comprehensive Commuting Choice Benefit Program for
all state employees regardless of mode of transportation.
�
Requires a report to the Legislature.

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