REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.

HCR82

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.C.R. NO.

82

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND
ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING
SOLUTIONS
.

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WHEREAS, Hawaii
continues to face urgent housing shortages, compounded by high construction
costs, labor constraints, and limited buildable land; and

����
WHEREAS, the
current State Building Code requires all new housing to comply with
comprehensive standards, including energy-efficient windows, permanent
insulation, and individual kitchens and bathrooms, which are appropriate for
conventional housing but effectively prohibit low-cost, rapid-deployment
housing solutions, such as single-wall plantation homes, Quonset huts, kauhale,
and prefabricated accessory dwelling units (ADUs); and

����
WHEREAS, under
gubernatorial emergency proclamations, temporary exemptions from full building
code requirements have enabled innovative supportive housing models, including
kauhale villages and the rapid deployment of prefabricated ADUs following the August
2023 Maui wildfires; and

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WHEREAS, however,
these solutions disappear when the emergency proclamations expire, leaving the
State without durable tools to provide affordable and emergency housing; and

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WHEREAS, section
107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, expressly authorizes the State Building
Code Council to adopt provisions based on nationally published codes or
standards, including mechanical standards, hurricane-resistant standards, flood
and tsunami standards, and other loss mitigation standards; and

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WHEREAS, establishing
a new category of basic shelter standards will enable the adoption of minimum
standards that ensure housing is safe, sanitary, and structurally sound, while also
allowing greater flexibility than full building code requirements; and

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WHEREAS, adopting
basic shelter standards would also provide a lawful framework for dignified,
low-cost housing solutions, and restricting the use of basic shelter standards to
projects built or conveyed by government agencies or nonprofit organizations
would prevent speculative or profit-driven misuse; now, therefore,

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BE IT
RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the
State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, the Senate concurring, that the State
Building Code Council is requested to develop and adopt basic shelter standards
to enable low-cost, rapid-deployment housing solutions; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to adopt, amend, or
update the State Building Code pursuant to its authority under section
107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, to establish a Basic Shelter Appendix; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consider the
following suitable reference standards for the new Basic Shelter Appendix:

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(1)
�
United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) Housing Quality Standards (24 C.F.R. 982.401) and HUD Minimum
Property Standards;

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(2)
�
International Code Council Off-Site
Construction Standards (ICC/MBI 1200, 1205, and 1210), including provisions for
mechanical, electrical, plumbing, energy efficiency, and water conservation;
and

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(3)
�
Federal Emergency Management Agency and
international humanitarian shelter standards, which are recognized benchmarks
for emergency and supportive housing; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consult with
county building officials, housing advocates, nonprofit organizations, and
industry stakeholders to ensure that the new basic shelter standards reflect
Hawaii's climate, cultural context, and resilience needs; and

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BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to
the Comptroller, Chair of the State Building Code Council, Director of the
Hawaii County Department of Public Works, Director of the Department of
Planning and Permitting of the City and County of Honolulu, County Engineer of
the Kauai County Department of Public Works, and Director of the Maui County
Department of Public Works.

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:
�

State
Building Code; State Building Code Council; Basic Shelter Standards; Supportive
Housing Models