HB 1661 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO CAFETERIA PLANS.

Summary

Requires the maximum contribution and carryover amounts for a public service flexible spending account plan to be set annually in accordance with the maximum amounts allowed under section 125 of the Internal Revenue Service Code. Effective 7/1/2027. (CD1)

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

May 2026

House Passage

May 2026

Senate Passage

May 2026

Signed into Law

Jun 2026

Introduced Jan 20, 2026 Signed Jun 26, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB1661_HD1 → HB1661_SD1 · 2 edits

MINOR

The bill was revised from a House draft to a Senate draft, updating internal tracking numbers and dates. The primary substantive change clarifies that the maximum salary reduction amounts for the flexible spending account must align with limits allowed under Section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code as it operates within Hawaii under Chapter 235, rather than relying solely on federal IRS prescriptions.

Scope change

The scope of applicability remains the same for public service employees, but the legal standard for setting contribution limits is now explicitly tied to the state's specific implementation of federal tax code provisions.

REQUIREMENT

Updated the legal requirement for setting maximum contribution and carryover amounts to reference Section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code as it operates under Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 235.

TECHNICAL

Replaced House-specific metadata, including author names, revision numbers, and timestamps, with corresponding Senate draft information.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

May 6, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0).

lower

May 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed Final Reading, as amended (CD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . 0 No(es): none. 0 Excused: none.

upper

May 1, 2026

Introduced

48 Hrs. Notice (as amended CD 1) 05-06-26

upper

May 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Conference Committee as amended CD 1 (Conf. Com. Rep. No. 146-26).

upper

May 1, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Conference Committee (Conf Com. Rep. No. 146-26) as amended in (CD 1).

lower

May 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes of the Senate Conference Managers were as follows: 2 Aye(s): Senator(s) Elefante, Kim; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Fevella.

upper

May 1, 2026

Lower · Passed

The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. The votes were as follows: 3 Ayes: Representative(s) Sayama, Lee, M., Kapela; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Reyes Oda.

lower

May 1, 2026

Lower · Passed

Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Friday, 05-01-26 at 12:00PM in Conference Room 016.

lower

Apr 29, 2026

Lower · Passed

Bill scheduled for Conference Committee Meeting on Friday, 05-01-26 8:45AM in conference room 016.

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Amended

House disagrees with Senate amendment (s).

lower

Apr 10, 2026

Introduced

Returned from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 523) in amended form (SD 1).

lower

Apr 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report Adopted; Passed Third Reading. Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.

upper

Apr 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on WAM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in WAM were as follows: 12 Aye(s): Senator(s) Dela Cruz, Moriwaki, DeCoite, Elefante, Hashimoto, Inouye, Kanuha, Kidani, Kim, Richards, Wakai, Fevella; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Lee, C..

upper

Apr 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on WAM will hold a public decision making on 04-06-26 10:32AM; Conference Room 211 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referred to WAM.

upper

Mar 23, 2026

Committee

Reported from LBT (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3121) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.

upper

Mar 16, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on LBT recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in LBT were as follows: 4 Aye(s): Senator(s) Elefante, Lamosao, Ihara, Moriwaki; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Fevella.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on LBT has scheduled a public hearing on 03-16-26 3:00PM; Conference Room 225 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Committee

Referred to LBT, WAM.

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 34).

upper

Mar 5, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Perruso excused (1). Transmitted to Senate.

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes were as follows: 16 Ayes: Representative(s) Todd, Takenouchi, Hartsfield, Hussey, Keohokapu-Lee Loy, Kitagawa, Kusch, Lee, M., Miyake, Morikawa, Perruso, Templo, Yamashita, Alcos, Gedeon, Reyes Oda; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.

lower

Feb 17, 2026

Committee

Reported from LAB (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 276-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to FIN.

lower

Feb 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on LAB recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 6 Ayes: Representative(s) Sayama, Lee, M., Garrett, Kapela, Kong, Reyes Oda; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.

lower

Jan 26, 2026

Committee

Referred to LAB, FIN, referral sheet 1

lower

Jan 21, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

Jan 20, 2026

Introduced

Prefiled.

lower

11 primary · 0 co-sponsors