RELATING TO HUMAN SERVICES.

SB2669

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

2669

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to human services
.

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

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SECTION 1.
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The legislature finds that Hawaii's residents
often face significant challenges meeting the requirements to apply for and
verify eligibility for state managed social assistance programs, such as food
or housing assistance or assistance for elderly or disabled persons.
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These individuals often must provide the same
information multiple times for different programs and must repeat this process
at regular intervals.
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Some programs have
different benefit eligibility requirements, which can cause confusion for
persons applying for multiple programs at the same time.

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Recent changes to federal
requirements for some federal social assistance programs, such increases in the
frequency of eligibility verification and the introduction of new eligibility
requirements, are expected to increase the challenges Hawaii's residents face
in accessing benefits and the administrative burden on the agencies providing
these services to Hawaii's residents.
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One
particular challenge is the new medicaid eligibility requirement to document
"community engagement" in the form of proof of work, training, or
volunteer activities of up to eighty hours a month.

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The legislature further finds that
the office of enterprise technology services has the ability to procure master
data management, data governance, and data lakehouse tools.
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With these tools, the office of enterprise
technology services can create a Hawaii benefits hub, which can act as a
central portal to assist residents applying for state managed benefits.
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The Hawaii benefits hub can be established
through a combination of:

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(1)
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Master data
management to understand applicants holistically across social assistance
programs;

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(2)
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Data governance to
protect applicant privacy and ensure compliance with all applicable federal and
state laws and regulations;

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(3)
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A data lakehouse that
will allow applicants to share data between different social assistance
programs and provide proactive reminders and alerts for residents about their
benefit eligibility; and

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(4)
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A central data
integration platform that can collect working and volunteering hours from
applicants, employers, and nonprofit organizations.

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The legislature additionally finds
that establishing a Hawaii benefits hub will greatly improve the ability of
Hawaii's residents to access state managed social assistance benefit programs
and ensure they are aware of, and can meet, all eligibility requirements for
the benefits they are applying for.
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The
Hawaii benefits hub can act as a single point of entry for residents to
identify which services they are eligible for, provide the information needed
for all participating benefit programs, and receive alerts and recommended
actions to remain eligible for their benefits.
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The Hawaii benefits hub will also reduce administrative burdens for
agencies managing social assistance programs by being a central repository for
eligibility data, which will reduce redundant costs and ensure the consistency
of data provided to all participating agencies.

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Accordingly, the purpose of this Act
is to require and appropriate funds for the office of enterprise technology
services to establish a Hawaii benefits hub.

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SECTION 2.
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Chapter 27, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to part VII to be appropriately designated and
to read as follows:

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"
�27-
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Hawaii
benefits hub; established; requirements.
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(a)
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There is establish
with the office of enterprise technology services a Hawaii benefits hub to act
as a central repository for the needs and credentials of Hawaii's residents
applying to state managed social assistance benefit programs and as a central
registry for qualified volunteer and educational programs that meet social
assistance benefit program community engagement requirements.
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The Hawaii benefits hub shall provide
applicants with:

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(1)
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Real-time
information on current eligibility and verification requirements for state
managed social assistance programs; and

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(2)
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A user
interface, such as an application or webpage, that will allow applicants to
enter information to apply for state managed social assistance programs.

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(b)
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In establishing the Hawaii benefits hub, the
office of enterprise technology services shall purchase or develop the
following:

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(1)
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A data
governance tool to ensure data quality and privacy protection with secured,
controlled data sharing;

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(2)
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A data
management platform to request and manage data from employers, educational
institutions, non-profit organizations, and federal and state agencies and
provide adjustments to any eligibility or verification requirements for state
managed social assistance programs;

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(3)
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A data
interface tool to link all systems and applications for the purpose of data
transfer; and

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(4)
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A data science
tool with machine learning or artificial intelligence capabilities to predict
applicant needs, alert applicants to potential loss of benefits, and provide
applicants with information on the nearest available opportunity to satisfy any
community engagement or other benefit eligibility requirements.

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(c)
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Every employer, educational institution,
nonprofit organization, and state agency shall, upon request from the Hawaii
benefits hub, provide the Hawaii benefits hub with information on an
applicant's wages and hours worked.
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Data
provided by an employer, educational institution, nonprofit organization, and
state agency shall be provided in real time, if practicable, or within one
business day of the request if the provision of data in real time is impracticable.
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Every employer, educational institution,
nonprofit organization, and state agency shall comply with all applicable
federal and state laws and regulations when sharing data with the Hawaii
benefits hub.
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SECTION
3.
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There is appropriated out of the
general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $4,250,000 or so much
thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2026-2027 for the establishment of
the Hawaii benefits hub, to be allocated as follows:

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(1)
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$2,000,000 for a consultant to implement the
Hawaii benefits hub system;

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(2)
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$500,000 to establish:

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(A)
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One full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) permanent project
manager;

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(B)
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One full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) permanent data
architect;

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(C)
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One full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) permanent data
engineer; and

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(D)
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One full-time equivalent (1.0 FTE) permanent data
frontend developer;

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(3)
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$250,000 for data and artificial intelligence
governing tools;

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(4)
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$500,000 for computing and storage capacity;

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(5)
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$500,000 for an integration platform; and

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(6)
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$500,000 for a user interface.

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The sum
appropriated shall be expended by the office of enterprise technology services
for the purposes of this Act.

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SECTION
4.
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New statutory material is
underscored.

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SECTION 5.
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This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2026.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

Office of
Enterprise Technology Services; Hawaii Benefits Hub; Social Assistance
Programs; Appropriation

Description:

Establishes
the Hawaii Benefits Hub within the Office of Enterprise Technology
Services.
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Appropriates funds.

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