HB 2172 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT OF RETIRANTS.

Summary

Establishes a five-year pilot program to authorize the Department of Education to rehire retired teachers and educational officers for hard-to-staff positions. Sunsets 6/30/2031. Effective 7/1/3000. (SD1)

Issues: ✓ Education

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Governor

Introduced Jan 26, 2026 Last action Mar 30, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2172_HD2 → HB2172_SD1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill updates the pilot program for rehiring retired teachers in hard-to-staff areas by requiring two career fairs and active advertising before hiring, clarifying that rehired retirees receive entry-level salaries and lose typical active employee benefits, and extending the definition of 'retirant' to include those hired after June 30, 2026. These changes aim to ensure fair recruitment practices while managing pension liabilities and salary expectations for returning educators.

Scope change

The scope of eligibility was narrowed by adding specific recruitment requirements (two career fairs and active advertising) and clarifying that rehired retirees are treated differently regarding salary and benefits compared to active employees.

REQUIREMENT

Added a requirement that departments must conduct two career fairs and actively advertise positions for a minimum period before rehiring retirees.

Replaced the specific dollar amount for certain differentials with a reference to the department's established criteria for unlicensed emergency hires.

ELIGIBILITY

Clarified that retirees rehired after June 30, 2026, must receive entry-level salaries and are not eligible for standard active employee benefits.

DEFINITION

Updated the definition of 'retirant' to explicitly include individuals hired after June 30, 2026, ensuring they fall under the new salary and benefit rules.

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

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Committee

Reported from EDU (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3387) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.

upper

Mar 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in EDU were as follows: 4 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Kidani, Hashimoto, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Fukunaga.

upper

Mar 16, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU has scheduled a public hearing on 03-18-26 1:00PM; Conference Room 229 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Committee

Referred to EDU, WAM.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 191).

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Perruso, Sayama excused (2). Transmitted to Senate.

lower

Mar 3, 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 20, 2026

Lower · Passed

Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN as amended in HD 2 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Quinlan excused (1).

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Committee

Reported from LAB (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 637-26) as amended in HD 2, recommending referral to FIN.

lower

Feb 17, 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; Noes: none; and Excused: none.

lower

Feb 9, 2026

Committee

Reported from EDN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 68-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to LAB.

lower

Feb 5, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on EDN recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 10 Ayes: Representative(s) Woodson, La Chica, Amato, Evslin, Garrett, Kapela, Kila, Olds, Muraoka, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and Excused: none.

lower

Jan 30, 2026

Committee

Referred to EDN, LAB, FIN, referral sheet 5

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

Jan 26, 2026

Introduced

Pending introduction.

lower

26 primary · 0 co-sponsors