HB 2604 Hawaii House · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO PERFORMING ARTS.

HB 2604 would add a small surcharge to the price of tickets for certain live performing arts events held in the state, such as theater, dance, or music performances. This fee would directly affect ticket buyers attending those specific events. The bill establishes a new fee structure where the surcharge is collected by the ticket seller and added to the final ticket price. The exact amount and specific event types covered aren't detailed in the provided abstract, but the surcharge applies only to events occurring within the state.

Issues: ✓ Budget & Taxes

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 28, 2026 Last action Mar 23, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

HB2604_HD1 → HB2604_HD2 · 4 edits

MODERATE

This revision shifts the performing arts ticket surcharge from a venue-based fee to a purchaser-based tax, requiring buyers to pay the $1 surcharge directly. It adds new reporting requirements for ticket providers to track sales and exemptions, and clarifies that collected funds must be held in trust until remitted to the state treasury. The bill also updates the fund's definition to explicitly include these new surcharge revenues.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include new administrative requirements for ticket providers, specifically mandating periodic returns and record-keeping to verify exemptions.

REQUIREMENT

Ticket providers must now file periodic returns detailing the number of tickets sold, exempt tickets, and total surcharge amounts collected.

FISCAL

The surcharge is now imposed on the purchaser rather than the venue, and funds must be held in trust until remitted to the department.

The definition of the performing arts grants special fund was updated to explicitly include the new surcharge revenues collected by the department.

ENFORCEMENT

New subsections clarify that the surcharge is administered and enforced using the same rules as other taxes in the chapter, including penalties and interest.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the House by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDT/WLA has scheduled a public hearing on 03-23-26 1:15PM; Conference Room 224 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Referred to EDT/WLA, CPN/WAM.

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 442).

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

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

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. 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; Noes: none; and Excused: none.

lower

Feb 12, 2026

Committee

Reported from CAA (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 245-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to FIN.

lower

Feb 6, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on CAA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 4 Ayes: Representative(s) Kapela, Kong, Garrett, Lee, M.; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 2 Excused: Representative(s) Sayama, Reyes Oda.

lower

Feb 2, 2026

Committee

Referred to CAA, FIN, referral sheet 6

lower

Jan 28, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and Pass First Reading.

lower

8 primary · 1 co-sponsor