SB 2659 Hawaii Senate · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO THE BOARD OF REGENTS.

SB 2659 prohibits current employees of the University of Hawaii or the Research Corporation of the University of Hawaii from serving on the Board of Regents. This bill directly affects active staff members at these institutions who might otherwise be eligible for board appointments. The key provision is a clear legal ban preventing such employees from holding board positions, aiming to avoid potential conflicts of interest. The bill is currently in committee review, having passed its first reading and scheduled for a public hearing on February 9, 2026.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Feb 2026

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 23, 2026 Last action Feb 18, 2026

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

Feb 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Second Reading and referred to JDC.

upper

Feb 18, 2026

Committee

Reported from EDU (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 2334) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading and referral to JDC.

upper

Feb 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

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

upper

Feb 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU has rescheduled its public hearing to 02-13-26 1:05PM; CR 229 & Videoconference.

upper

Feb 8, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU deleted the measure from the public hearing scheduled on 02-09-26 1:05PM; CR 229 & Videoconference.

upper

Feb 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU has scheduled a public hearing on 02-09-26 1:05PM; Conference Room 229 & Videoconference.

upper

Jan 28, 2026

Committee

Referred to EDU, JDC.

upper

Jan 23, 2026

Introduced

Introduced.

upper

4 primary · 2 co-sponsors