The 19 bills on Gov. Josh Green's intent-to-veto list impact many different issues, from criminal justice to housing to taxes.
Just because a bill is on this list, though, doesn’t guarantee that the governor will veto it — he just had to notify the Legislature by June 24 of bills that could be vetoed. Green has until July 9 to make his final decision.
In the meantime, the state Legislature can decide if it wants to come back into session to override any vetoes with a two-thirds majority.
Here are the five bills on the list that HPR is paying close attention to.
1. Asset Forfeiture: HB126
This measure would change the state’s criminal asset forfeiture program. What does that mean? It’s when law enforcement can seize property to investigate crimes — even if no one has actually been charged.
Lawmakers passed a bill that would require law enforcement to return the seized property to someone who has not been charged with a crime after one year. Currently, the seized property could be forfeited even if no charges were brought against the owner. It would also establish better reporting requirements for the state Attorney General’s Office.
Green wrote that the one-year restriction is not enough time for law enforcement to file charges and that forfeited property is important in investigations.
House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee Chair David Tarnas explained that if the measure is vetoed by the governor, he will continue to work on it next year.
“We did suggest in our bill that the assets would only be able to be forfeited once an individual is charged. And so hopefully we'll be able to stay with that as the trigger, but we would extend the time. So rather than just being one year, maybe two years will be sufficient,” he said.
“We'll have to work on this and see if that's going to be the right combination of things so we can have reform.”
While Green was a lawmaker, he introduced a bill in 2016 that would have required a conviction for property to be permanently seized.
2. Tax Credits: HB796
This measure would have significantly reduced most tax credits offered in the state by either putting a five-year sunset on them or, in the sixth year, 2031, beginning to reduce them by one-third over three years. The tax credits ranged from those for renewable energy projects to the film industry.
Green wrote that “removing the specific tax exemptions afforded to these entities would provide little financial benefit to the state while harming, in particular, sugarcane producers.”
3. Solitary Confinement Regulation: SB104
Another measure being considered by Green for a veto would set stronger regulations on the use of solitary confinement on inmates.
Kat Brady, the coordinator of the Community Alliance on Prisons, has been fighting for reform of the state’s use of solitary confinement for the last decade.
“Isolation with absolutely no programs, no books, nothing – you're thrown in a cell with a little thin mattress on the floor and you have nothing, and maybe you get out for one hour a day,” she said. “Humans are social creatures and to isolate people – it's so inhumane.”
A 2021 report showed that 245 inmates in Hawaiʻi were put in solitary confinement – 97 were kept there for over a year.
Green wrote that the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation already has policies in place and follows national standards. He added that the department is working with the Correctional Systems Oversight Commission to amend its policies and procedures.
However, in written testimony for the measure, the Correctional Systems Oversight Commission supported the bill and wrote that it was concerned about the current operations at DCR regarding solitary confinement.
“The Commission is extremely concerned about the long-term physical and psychological effects of 12-plus months in a segregated housing setting, which are now well-documented and studied. The trend nationally is to decrease the amount of time in segregated housing settings,” it wrote.
“With the state of Hawaii's transition to a therapeutic model of corrections, SHIP should be reevaluated and potentially eliminated in totality as it does not align with a rehabilitative framework.”
4. Permits for single- and multi-family housing: SB66
The measure would require counties to grant building permits to single and multi-family homes within 60 days if the application is certified by a licensed engineer and an architect.
Senate Housing Committee Chair Stanley Chang explained that it’s a way to speed up the ability for people to improve their homes.
“Building departments are extremely overburdened that permit times can take up to a year or longer, even for simple single-family homes or two-story residential as this bill addresses,” he said.
“This enables homeowners across the state to improve their properties without being dragged on for years at a time by the building departments.”
The Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting was one of the entities that opposed the measure. DPP Director Dawn Takeuchi Apuna wrote in her testimony on the measure that the bill could jeopardize the safety of the homes.
“Everyone, including DPP, wants building permits issued quickly, but it should not be at the cost of life and safety,” she wrote.
“The review that determines compliance with codes is essential to the approval of the building permit. By simply allowing the “approval” of a building permit without the proper review for compliance with the codes defeats the purpose of the building permit review and places the public at great risk.”
Green wrote that he is considering a veto on the measure because it would undermine regulatory agencies and create a conflict of interest for professionals.
5. State Budget: HB300
Green is considering vetoing line items from the state’s about $20 billion operating and capital improvement budget. The governor’s office did not provide a detailed list of what particular items were being considered. However, he wrote that federal funding and lower revenue projections for the state were the main reasons driving his decision.
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