HB 2433 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO THE HAWAIIAN LANGUAGE.

Summary

Requires that priority be given to the language of a law that aligns with the intent of the Legislature if there is a difference between the English and Hawaiian versions of the law that is material to its interpretation. Effective 3/22/2075. (SD1)

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Apr 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Apr 2026

Governor

Introduced Jan 27, 2026 Last action Apr 28, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2433_HD1 → HB2433_SD1 · 3 edits

MINOR

This bill updates the official status of Hawaiian alongside English and clarifies that Hawaiian should take priority in interpretation when there is a material conflict between the two language versions. It also changes the effective date of the law from the distant future of July 1, 3000, to March 22, 2075, likely to align with a specific legislative session or future implementation plan.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on language policy, but the interpretation rule is slightly refined to explicitly mention 'material' differences rather than just 'radical and irreconcilable' ones, and the effective date is moved forward by over 700 years.

REQUIREMENT

The rule for resolving conflicts between English and Hawaiian legal texts was updated to prioritize the version aligning with legislative intent when a 'material' difference exists.

TIMELINE

The effective date of the act was changed from July 1, 3000, to March 22, 2075.

TECHNICAL

Minor text formatting and metadata updates were made to reflect the transition from House Draft 1 to Senate Draft 1.

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 16, 2026

Amended

House disagrees with Senate amendment (s).

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Introduced

Returned from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 691) in amended form (SD 1).

lower

Apr 14, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Third Reading, as amended (SD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.

upper

Apr 7, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Apr 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on JDC will hold a public decision making on 04-07-26 10:15AM; Conference Room 016 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Second Reading and referred to JDC.

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Committee

Reported from HWN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3380) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading and referral to JDC.

upper

Mar 24, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on HWN recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in HWN were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Richards, Lamosao, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 2 Excused: Senator(s) Ihara, Keohokalole.

upper

Mar 17, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on HWN has scheduled a public hearing on 03-24-26 2:05PM; Conference Room 224 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Referred to HWN, JDC.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 418).

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 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 8 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Cochran, Hashem, Sayama, Takayama, Garcia, Shimizu; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 2 Excused: Representative(s) Belatti, Kahaloa.

lower

Feb 2, 2026

Committee

Referred to JHA, referral sheet 6

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

Jan 27, 2026

Introduced

Pending introduction.

lower

12 primary · 1 co-sponsor