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SB3242 • 2026

RELATING TO ENCAMPMENTS.

RELATING TO ENCAMPMENTS.

Education
Active

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

Sponsor
DECORTE, AWA, CHANG, FEVELLA, Richards, San Buenaventura
Last action
2026-02-02
Official status
Referred to HHS/EDU/PSM, JDC.
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 ENCAMPMENTS.

RELATING TO ENCAMPMENTS.

What This Bill Does

  • RELATING TO ENCAMPMENTS.
  • Encampments; Buffer Zone; Schools; Prohibition Prohibits the erection, placement, construction, or maintenance of an encampment within one hundred feet from the property line of a pre-K-12 public or private school or school facility on public or private property.

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.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-02 S

    Referred to HHS/EDU/PSM, JDC.

  2. 2026-01-28 S

    Passed First Reading.

  3. 2026-01-28 S

    Introduced.

Official Summary Text

RELATING TO ENCAMPMENTS.
Encampments; Buffer Zone; Schools; Prohibition
Prohibits the erection, placement, construction, or maintenance of an encampment within one hundred feet from the property line of a pre-K-12 public or private school or school facility on public or private property.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
SB3242

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

3242

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING
TO ENCAMPMENTS
.

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

����
SECTION 1.
�
The
legislature finds that encampments, including tents, makeshift shelters, and
other temporary structures used for habitation, create a complex and pressing
problem when close to school grounds.
�

When close to schools, these encampments can threaten the safety,
health, and overall well-being of students, school staff, and surrounding
communities.
�
Encampments can introduce
environmental hazards, obstruct public access, and pose public safety concerns.

����
The purpose of this Act is to
prohibit the erection, placement, construction, or
maintenance of an encampment within one hundred feet from the property line of
a pre-K-12 public or private school or school facility on public or private
property.

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SECTION 2.
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The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to be
appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"
Chapter

school
encampment buffer zone
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-1
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Definitions.
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As used in this chapter:

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"Buffer
zone" means one hundred feet from the property line of a pre-K-12 public
or private school or school facility on public or private property.

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"Encampment"
means a tent, makeshift shelter, or any other temporary structure used for
habitation.

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� -2
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Buffer zone; schools.
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(a)
�
No person shall erect, place,
construct, or maintain an encampment within a buffer zone of a pre-K-12 public
or private school or school facility.

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(b)
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Any person who violates subsection (a) shall
be subject to immediate removal and may be subject to a fine not to exceed $200.

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(c)
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Nothing in this section shall preclude a
person from being charged with a trespassing violation pursuant to chapter 708
or any other violation.

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(d)
�
The department of education, charter schools,
and private schools may collaborate with law enforcement officers to identify
and remove encampments within the buffer zone.

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(e)
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Law enforcement personnel enforcing this section shall

provide information related to temporary
housing and

homelessness assistance programs to
individuals displaced from encampments.

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(f)
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Law enforcement personnel shall take the
personal belongings of individuals displaced from encampments into custody and
store them at the police station or other designated location, to be returned
to the individual upon release from custody."

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SECTION 3.
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This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

Encampments;
Buffer Zone; Schools; Prohibition

Description:

Prohibits the erection, placement, construction, or
maintenance of an encampment within one hundred feet from the property line of
a pre-K-12 public or private school or school facility on public or private
property.
�

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