HB 2296 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO SCHOOL MEALS.

HB 2296 reduces the minimum revenue requirement the Department of Education must recover from school meal charges in state-operated public schools. This means schools would need to cover less cost through meal fees, potentially allowing for lower prices or reduced financial pressure on meal programs. The bill directly affects all public schools managed by the Department of Education, changing how they calculate required meal revenue. It does not alter meal eligibility or nutritional standards, focusing solely on the financial recovery target.

Issues: ✓ Education

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Apr 2026

House Passage

Apr 2026

Senate Passage

Apr 2026

Signed into Law

Jul 2026

Introduced Jan 26, 2026 Signed Jul 14, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2296_SD1 → HB2296_SD2 · 2 edits

MINOR

The bill's effective date was changed from a fixed future date of July 31, 2055, to 'upon its approval,' meaning the law will take effect immediately when signed. Additionally, the bill's metadata was updated to reflect a new sponsor, Joseph Brown, and revised version numbers, indicating this is a second draft of the legislation.

Scope change

The bill's applicability timeline changed from a distant future date to immediate effect upon legislative approval.

TIMELINE

The effective date was changed from July 31, 2055, to 'upon its approval,' allowing the law to take effect immediately rather than waiting for a specific future year.

TECHNICAL

The bill sponsor was updated from Finnley Brakke to Joseph Brown, and version metadata was revised to reflect the second draft status.

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

Apr 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Final Reading as amended in SD 2 with Representative(s) Alcos, Garcia, Gedeon voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Kapela excused (1).

lower

Apr 24, 2026

Introduced

House agrees to Senate amendment(s).

lower

Apr 16, 2026

Amended

House disagrees with Senate amendment (s).

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Introduced

Returned from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 676) in amended form (SD 2).

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Third Reading, as amended (SD 2). 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, WITH AMENDMENTS. 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

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on WAM will hold a public decision making on 04-01-26 10:03AM; Conference Room 211 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Committee

Reported from EDU (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3391) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.

upper

Mar 25, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU has scheduled a public hearing on 03-25-26 1:12PM; Conference Room 229 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Committee

Referred to EDU, WAM.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 200).

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Lower · Passed

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

lower

Mar 4, 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, Gedeon, Reyes Oda; Ayes with reservations: Representative(s) Alcos; Noes: none; and Excused: none.

lower

Feb 17, 2026

Committee

Reported from EDN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 316-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to FIN.

lower

Feb 10, 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, FIN, 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