HB 2544 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO ADMINISTRATIVE FEES.

Summary

Makes permanent, rather than repealing upon the adoption of relevant administrative rules, the Department of Land and Natural Resources' authority to establish a transaction fee for certain services rendered by the Bureau of Conveyances for each recording in the Bureau of Conveyances and Land Court. Amends the authorized uses of moneys in the Bureau of Conveyances Special Fund. Repeals language that required the Bureau of Conveyances' microfilm fees to be established by rules. Effective 7/1/3026. (SD1)

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 28, 2026 Last action Mar 30, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2544_HD1 → HB2544_SD1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill updates the Bureau of Conveyances Special Fund to allow money to be used for increased efficiency and productivity, rather than just automation. It extends the deadline for repealing a specific fee provision to December 31, 2026, and adjusts the bill's effective date to July 1, 2026.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on the Bureau of Conveyances, but the applicability of fee rules has been extended by several years.

FISCAL

The authorized uses of the Bureau of Conveyances Special Fund were modified to include 'increased efficiency and productivity' alongside automation and daily operations.

TIMELINE

The repeal of a specific fee provision established by Act 120 was extended from December 31, 2026, to December 31, 2026 (text indicates a change in the repeal date context, though the specific year 2026 appears in both versions, the surrounding context regarding Act 120 was clarified and extended in the SD version).

The bill's effective date was changed from July 1, 3000, to July 1, 2026.

TECHNICAL

Minor text formatting changes were made to the description of microfilm fee exemptions.

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 WLA (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3257) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.

upper

Mar 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on WLA recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in WLA were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Lee, C., Inouye, Chang, Lamosao, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on WLA has scheduled a public hearing on 03-16-26 1:00PM; Conference Room 224 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Committee

Referred to WLA, WAM.

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 116).

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

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 18, 2026

Committee

Reported from WAL (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 462-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to FIN.

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 9 Ayes: Representative(s) Hashem, Morikawa, Belatti, Ichiyama, Iwamoto, Poepoe, Woodson, Shimizu, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.

lower

Feb 2, 2026

Committee

Referred to WAL, FIN, referral sheet 6

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

3 primary · 0 co-sponsors