Hawaii bills · 2026 Regular Session
Hawaii HB 1531
RELATING TO EMERGENCY ANNOUNCEMENTS.
- Introduced
- In committee
- Passed House
- Passed Senate
- To Governor
- Became law
Sponsors
- KONG (Democratic)
Summary
Official abstract published by the Hawaii legislature· description
Requires the Governor or mayor of a county, during a state of emergency, to provide an American Sign Language interpreter at each live broadcast press conference. Requires the Governor or mayor of a county to provide a primary pool feed for any live official announcement that includes an American Sign Language interpreter in a picture-in-picture window, and does not require broadcasters that rebroadcast the official announcement to independently generate or insert this accessibility feature. Requires, to the fullest extent possible, that the American Sign Language interpreter's face, body, arms, and hands are visible. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD2)
Text versions
Roll-call votes
State vote data last updated Oct 15, 2026, 8:04 PM.
| Date | Vote | Result | Your legislators |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 5, 2026 House | The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. | pass | Set your home in Hawaii to see |
| Feb 6, 2026 House | The committee on PBS recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. | pass | Set your home in Hawaii to see |
Actions
- Jan 14, 2026 · House
Prefiled. - Jan 21, 2026 · House
Introduced and Pass First Reading. - Jan 26, 2026 · House
Referred to PBS, JHA, referral sheet 1 - Jan 27, 2026 · House
Bill scheduled to be heard by PBS on Friday, 01-30-26 11:00AM in House conference room 411 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. - Jan 30, 2026 · House
The committee(s) on PBS recommend(s) that the measure be deferred until 02-04-26. - Feb 2, 2026 · House
Bill scheduled for decision making on Wednesday, 02-04-26 11:30AM in conference room 411 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. - Feb 4, 2026 · House
The committee(s) on PBS recommend(s) that the measure be deferred until 02-06-26 11:30AM. - Feb 5, 2026 · House
Bill scheduled for decision making on Friday, 02-06-26 11:30AM in conference room 411 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. - Feb 6, 2026 · House
The committee on PBS recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 9 Ayes: Representative(s) Belatti, Iwamoto, Hashem, Ichiyama, Morikawa, Poepoe, Woodson, Shimizu, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and Excused: none. - Feb 11, 2026 · House
Reported from PBS (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 191-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to JHA. - Feb 11, 2026 · House
Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on JHA with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Holt excused (1). - Mar 3, 2026 · House
Bill scheduled to be heard by JHA on Thursday, 03-05-26 2:00PM in House conference room 325 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. - Mar 5, 2026 · House
The committee on JHA recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 9 Ayes: Representative(s) Tarnas, Poepoe, Belatti, Cochran, Hashem, Takayama; Ayes with reservations: Representative(s) Kahaloa, Garcia, Shimizu; Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Sayama. - Mar 6, 2026 · House
Reported from JHA (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1146-26) as amended in HD 2, recommending passage on Third Reading. - Mar 6, 2026 · House
Forty-eight (48) hours notice Tuesday, 03-10-26. - Mar 10, 2026 · House
Passed Third Reading as amended in HD 2 with Representative(s) Garcia, Gedeon, Hartsfield, Kahaloa, Keohokapu-Lee Loy, Kila, Olds, Shimizu, Souza voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0). Transmitted to Senate. - Mar 12, 2026 · Senate
Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 240). - Mar 12, 2026 · Senate
Passed First Reading. - Mar 12, 2026 · Senate
Referred to PSM, WAM.