HB 2279 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO EXPUNGEMENT ORDERS.

Summary

Amends the expungement orders law to reflect that a person who is arrested for or charged with a crime but convicted of a violation is eligible for an expungement of their arrest record for that incident. (CD1)

Issues: ✓ Criminal Justice

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Apr 2026

House Passage

May 2026

Senate Passage

May 2026

Signed into Law

Jun 2026

Introduced Jan 26, 2026 Signed Jun 26, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2279_HD1 → HB2279_SD1 · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was revised from the House version to the Senate version, updating the bill number and author information. The most significant substantive change is the effective date of the law, which was moved from immediate approval to July 1, 2050. Minor text adjustments were made to clarify the legal reasoning regarding arrest record expungement for violations.

Scope change

The scope of the bill remains the same, focusing on expungement eligibility for individuals convicted of violations rather than crimes.

TIMELINE

The effective date of the Act was changed from upon approval to July 1, 2050.

TECHNICAL

The bill number was updated from HB 2279 HD1 to HB 2279 SD1, and the author name was changed from Emma Berman to Adam Weiss.

Minor punctuation adjustments were made to the explanatory text regarding the definition of a 'violation' versus a 'crime'.

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

Upper · Passed

Passed Final Reading, as amended (CD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none).

upper

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

Apr 29, 2026

Introduced

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

upper

Apr 29, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from Conference Committee as amended CD 1 (Conf. Com. Rep. No. 67-26).

upper

Apr 29, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported from Conference Committee (Conf Com. Rep. No. 67-26) as amended in (CD 1).

lower

Apr 27, 2026

Upper · Passed

The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes of the Senate Conference Managers were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Fukunaga, Rhoads, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Apr 27, 2026

Lower · Passed

The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. The votes were as follows: 5 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Belatti, Poepoe, Ratcliffe, Shimizu; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.

lower

Apr 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

Bill scheduled for Conference Committee Meeting on Monday, 04-27-26 1:30PM in conference room 325.

lower

Apr 16, 2026

Amended

House disagrees with Senate amendment (s).

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Introduced

Returned from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 672) in amended form (SD 1).

lower

Apr 14, 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 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in JDC were as follows: 4 Aye(s): Senator(s) Rhoads, Chang, San Buenaventura, Awa; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Gabbard.

upper

Mar 25, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC will hold a public decision making on 04-01-26 10:30AM; CR 016 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Mar 23, 2026

Committee

Reported from PSM (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3103) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to JDC.

upper

Mar 16, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on PSM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in PSM were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Fukunaga, Lee, C., Inouye; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 2 Excused: Senator(s) Hashimoto, DeCorte.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on PSM has scheduled a public hearing on 03-16-26 3:02PM; Conference Room 016 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Referred to PSM, JDC.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 387).

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

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

lower

Feb 19, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 10 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Belatti, Cochran, Hashem, Kahaloa, Sayama, Takayama, Garcia, Shimizu; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and Excused: none.

lower

Jan 30, 2026

Committee

Referred to JHA, referral sheet 5

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

Jan 26, 2026

Introduced

Pending introduction.

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors