SR 153 Hawaii Senate · 2026 Regular Session

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO CONVENE A SHARED DECISION MAKING COMMITTEE TO DEVELOP AN ACTION PLAN TO ESTABLISH A K-12 KAIAPUNI SCHOOL IN KAPOLEI.

This Senate Resolution requests the Hawaii Department of Education to create a committee to plan a new K-12 Hawaiian language immersion school in Kapolei. The bill addresses the current lack of a full K-12 Kaiapuni school in the area, where students must commute to Honolulu for higher grades. The proposed committee would include educators, community members, parents, and administrators to develop an action plan covering facility planning, teacher recruitment, and curriculum development. The plan aims to phase in the school by the 2027-2028 school year, starting with kindergarten through second grade, with additional grades added in subsequent years.

Issues: ✓ Education

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Mar 2026

Committee Review

Apr 2026

Senate Passage

Apr 2026

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Mar 16, 2026 Last action May 12, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

SR153 → SR153_SD1 · 7 edits

MODERATE

This bill was updated from a House Committee Resolution to a Senate Committee Resolution, changing the bill type and associated metadata. Substantively, the committee size was increased from eleven to twelve members, and the list of required school principals was expanded to include elementary school leaders. The committee composition was also adjusted to include four community members instead of three, with specific additions for a parent representative and a community member from a cultural nonprofit. The action plan requirements were modified to include a prediction of statewide impacts on existing Hawaiian immersion schools.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from a House committee resolution to a Senate committee resolution, altering the legislative body and procedural metadata. The scope of the committee's composition was broadened to include elementary school principals and additional community stakeholders.

REQUIREMENT

The committee size was increased from eleven members to twelve members.

The requirement for school principals was expanded to include elementary, middle, and high school principals, specifically adding Nānākuli Elementary and Waiau Elementary.

The number of required community members on the committee was increased from three to four.

A new requirement was added for one parent of a current student in an elementary Kaiapuni program to serve on the committee.

A new requirement was added for one community member from a cultural nonprofit organization.

The action plan requirements now include a mandate to predict the statewide impact on existing Kaiapuni schools and programs.

The requirement for a professor from Leeward Community College or UH West Oʻahu was removed from the committee composition list.

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

Apr 9, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report and Resolution Adopted, as amended (SD 1).

upper

Apr 8, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported from EDU/HWN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3603) with recommendation of adoption, as amended (SD 1).

upper

Apr 8, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in EDU were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Kidani, Fukunaga, Hashimoto, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Apr 8, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on HWN recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. 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

Apr 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on EDU/HWN has scheduled a public hearing on 04-08-26 1:01PM; Conference Room 229 & Videoconference.

upper

Mar 19, 2026

Committee

Referred to EDU/HWN.

upper

Mar 16, 2026

Introduced

Offered.

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors