SB3123 • 2026

RELATING TO PRIVATE SUPPORT OF EDUCATION.

Education

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: KOUCHI (Introduced by request of another party)
Last action: 2026-03-30
Official status: Act 002, on 03/27/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1102).
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

RELATING TO PRIVATE SUPPORT OF EDUCATION.

What This Bill Does

RELATING TO PRIVATE SUPPORT OF EDUCATION.
Educational Gifts; Donor-Conditioned Educational Awards; Conditional Gifts; School-Conditioned Enrollment; Contractual Relationships Clarifies that free tuition at private educational institutions or school-conditioned enrollment at private educational institutions where no tuition or other monetary consideration is required or paid by the recipient are to be considered conditional gifts that support educational advancements rather than contractual obligations unless the parties agree otherwise in writing.
(SD1)

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Amendments

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

SD1

Hawaii published version SD1

Plain English: SB3123 SD1 THE SENATE S.B.

SB3123 SD1 THE SENATE S.B.
NO.
3123 THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026 S.D.
1 STATE OF HAWAII A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PRIVATE SUPPORT OF EDUCATION .

Bill History

2026-03-30 H
Act 002, on 03/27/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1102).
2026-03-30 S
Act 002, 03/27/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1102).
2026-03-24 S
Enrolled to Governor.
2026-03-24 S
Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 448).
2026-03-24 H
Passed Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Garrett, Quinlan excused (2). Transmitted to Senate.
2026-03-23 H
Passed Second Reading; placed on the calendar for Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Cochran, Kong, Lowen, Perruso, Poepoe, Quinlan excused (6).
2026-03-23 H
Reported from JHA (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1322-26), recommending passage on Second Reading and placement on the calendar for Third Reading.
2026-03-18 H
The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes were as follows: 7 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Belatti, Kahaloa, Takayama, Garcia, Shimizu; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 3 Excused: Representative(s) Hashem, Sayama, Cochran.
2026-03-16 H
Bill scheduled to be heard by JHA on Wednesday, 03-18-26 2:00PM in House conference room 325 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
2026-03-10 H
Referred to JHA, referral sheet 15
2026-03-06 H
Pass First Reading
2026-03-05 H
Received from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 29) in amended form (SD 1).
2026-03-05 S
Passed Third Reading, as amended (SD 1). Ayes, 24; Aye(s) with reservations: Senator(s) San Buenaventura. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 1 (Senator(s) Ihara). Transmitted to House.
2026-02-25 S
48 Hrs. Notice 03-05-26.
2026-02-25 S
Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1).
2026-02-25 S
Reported from JDC/EDU (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 2718) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and placement on the calendar for Third Reading.
2026-02-12 S
The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in EDU were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Fukunaga, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: Senator(s) Kim, Kidani, Hashimoto ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.
2026-02-12 S
The committee(s) on JDC recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in JDC were as follows: 4 Aye(s): Senator(s) Rhoads, Gabbard, Awa; Aye(s) with reservations: Senator(s) San Buenaventura ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Chang.
2026-02-06 S
The committee(s) on JDC/EDU has scheduled a public hearing on 02-12-26 10:15AM; Conference Room 016 & Videoconference.
2026-02-02 S
Referred to JDC/EDU.
2026-01-28 S
Passed First Reading.
2026-01-28 S
Introduced.
2026-01-26 S
Pending Introduction.

Official Summary Text

RELATING TO PRIVATE SUPPORT OF EDUCATION.
Educational Gifts; Donor-Conditioned Educational Awards; Conditional Gifts; School-Conditioned Enrollment; Contractual Relationships
Clarifies that free tuition at private educational institutions or school-conditioned enrollment at private educational institutions where no tuition or other monetary consideration is required or paid by the recipient are to be considered conditional gifts that support educational advancements rather than contractual obligations unless the parties agree otherwise in writing. (SD1)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

SB3123

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

3123

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING
TO PRIVATE SUPPORT OF EDUCATION
.

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

����
SECTION 1.
�
The
legislature finds that conditional gifts made for purposes to support private
educational efforts, including both schooling and scholarships, promotes
learning, access, and academic advancement, and are not intended to create
contractual obligations.
�
Treating such
awards as contractual obligations may undermine donor intent, discourage
charitable giving, and create uncertainty and inconsistent legal treatment of
these awards.

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The legislature further finds that
donor-conditioned awards customarily include specified eligibility criteria, such
as academic performance minimums, standards of conduct, and enrollment status,
and require compliance with the donor's stated requirements for the
continuation of the award.

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The legislature further finds that
recognizing and providing guidance about the nature and benefits of these
conditional educational gifts is a public purpose, and will preserve and
promote donors' intentions, will encourage flexibility, innovation, and additional
philanthropic educational support across the State for students, and will
promote uniform statewide treatment.

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The legislature finds that private
pre-schools and private K-12 schools in Hawaii have long played an important
role in the community and that confirming that treating free education and
scholarships as
gifts
will encourage
private support for education.

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The legislature further finds that
establishing statewide uniformity in the treatment of private conditional gifts
will be beneficial and avoid potentially conflicting treatment for private
sponsors of educational programs.

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The legislature also finds that through this approach, students
in private pre-K and K-12 education institutions and students receiving
scholarships for such schooling will enjoy stronger support and be able to
benefit from these educational resources, opportunities, and activities without
the fear of legal penalties for any perceived contractual obligations to the
student or the institution.

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The purpose of the Act is to clarify and
establish uniformity regarding the relationship between private schools where
no tuition is required, students, and donors concerning educational awards
conditioned on donor-specified requirements, and to provide that such awards
are considered conditional gifts rather than contractual obligations.

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SECTION 2.
�

The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by
adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"
CHAPTER

EDUCATIONAL
GIFTS

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-1
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Donor-conditioned
educational awards; conditional gift.
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(a)
�
A donor-conditioned educational award for
attendance at a private pre-school, elementary, middle, or high school for
which no tuition or other monetary consideration is required or paid by the
recipient shall be considered to be a conditional gift and not a contract,
notwithstanding that the school operator may require the student or the
student's parents or guardians to:

����
(1)
�
Pay
for any optional extra-curricular benefits, goods, or services;

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(2)
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Permit
use of the student's name, image, likeness, or work product for non-commercial
purposes; or

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(3)
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Sign
waivers, consents, or similar agreements as a condition of participation in any
school-related activity.

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(b)
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A conditional gift under this section may be subject to reasonable
conditions, including eligibility criteria, academic performance minimums,
standards of conduct, enrollment status, or other donor-imposed or educational
institution requirements, and the continuation of the award shall be contingent
upon the satisfaction of those conditions.

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(c)
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The modification or termination of a
donor-conditioned educational award for failure to satisfy the applicable
conditions shall not give rise to a contractual claim; provided that the
conditions are applied in a manner consistent with the terms of the award and
applicable law.

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(d)
�
As used in this section,
"donor-conditioned educational award" means a scholarship, grant,
tuition waiver, or similar educational benefit funded in whole or in part by a
private donation, endowment, or charitable contribution and subject to donor-imposed
conditions.

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SECTION 3.
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This Act shall apply only to
donor-conditioned educational awards made on or after its effective date.

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SECTION 4.
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If any provision of this Act or the
application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the Act that can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end
the provisions of this Act are severable.

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SECTION 5.
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This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

BY REQUEST

Report Title:

Educational
Gifts; Donor-Conditioned Educational Awards; Conditional Gifts; Contractual
Relationships

Description:

Clarifies
that free tuition at private educational institutions are to be considered
conditional gifts that support educational advancements rather than contractual
obligations.

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