HB 2171HawaiiProcess complete

University of Hawaii can run teaching businesses without county zoning approvals

University of Hawaii businesses qualify for county zoning exemptions when they mainly serve education, training, or research and involve active, supervised student learning.

What it does

The University of Hawaii can run businesses mainly for supervised student learning without county zoning or land-use approvals. Safety rules, disability access requirements, and applicable taxes still apply.

The university keeps money earned by covered teaching businesses to pay costs, maintain facilities, or support student scholarships. Earning money must remain secondary to education.

Argument forSkipping county zoning approvals could help the university offer hands-on student training without delays from those approval processes.

Argument againstThe county approval exemption could limit neighbors’ chances to raise concerns about university teaching businesses near their homes.

More detail

The University of Hawaii can operate qualifying teaching businesses without county zoning or land-use approvals. Covered operations take place on land the university owns, leases, or otherwise controls. They are allowed uses on land designated for university purposes. Operations must directly support a university education, job training, or research program and provide supervised practical learning. Students must participate actively and regularly through a course that earns credit, a certificate program, or a formal training program. Education, training, or research must be the main purpose, rather than commercial business. Safety and disability access rules still apply, along with applicable general excise taxes on business activity and taxes on short-term lodging.

The university must keep revenue from covered operations to pay costs, maintain facilities, or support student scholarships. This rule covers revenue from university operations that meet the law’s educational purpose and student participation requirements. Income from selling goods or services must remain secondary to and support the university’s educational mission. The law’s provisions took effect upon approval on June 24, 2026.

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Where it stands

IntroducedJan 26
Passed HouseMar 5
Passed SenateApr 10
To Governor
Became LawJun 24

Looking ahead

No hearings or votes scheduled.

History

2026
1. Jun 24Act 138, 06/24/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1239).Latest
2. Jun 24Act 138, on 06/24/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1239).Became Law
3. May 8Received notice of passage on Final Reading in House (Hse. Com. No. 888).Minor
4. May 7Transmitted to Governor.
5. May 6Passed Final Reading, as amended (CD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . 0 No(es): none. 0 Excused: none.Major
  - Vote recorded Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1. Result: pass.Lower
6. May 6Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1 with none voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Iwamoto, Pierick voting no (2) and none excused (0).Major
7. May 6Received notice of Final Reading (Sen. Com. No. 816).Minor
8. May 1Reported from Conference Committee (Conf Com. Rep. No. 107-26) as amended in (CD 1).
9. May 1Forty-eight (48) hours notice Wednesday, 05-06-26.
10. May 1Reported from Conference Committee as amended CD 1 (Conf. Com. Rep. No. 107-26).
11. May 148 Hrs. Notice (as amended CD 1) 05-06-26
12. Apr 29The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. The votes were as follows: 5 Ayes: Representative(s) Garrett, Hashem, Templo, Woodson, Muraoka; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.Minor
  - Vote recorded The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. Result: pass.Upper
  - Vote recorded The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. Result: pass.Lower
13. Apr 29The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes of the Senate Conference Managers were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Hashimoto, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.Minor
14. Apr 28Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Wednesday 04-29-26 3:10PM in conference room 229.
15. Apr 27Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Tuesday 04-28-26 3:15PM in conference room 229.
16. Apr 24Received notice of appointment of House conferees (Hse. Com. No. 820).Minor
17. Apr 24Bill scheduled for Conference Committee Meeting on Monday, 04-27-26 3:15PM in conference room 229.
18. Apr 23House Conferees Appointed: Garrett, Hashem, Templo Co-Chairs; Woodson, Muraoka.
19. Apr 22Received notice of Senate conferees (Sen. Com. No. 719).Minor
20. Apr 21Senate Conferees Appointed: Kim Chair; Hashimoto Co-Chair; DeCorte.
21. Apr 16Received notice of disagreement (Hse. Com. No. 599).Minor
22. Apr 14House disagrees with Senate amendment (s).Minor
23. Apr 10Report Adopted; Passed Third Reading. Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.Passed Senate
  - Vote recorded Report Adopted; Passed Third Reading. Result: pass.Upper
24. Apr 10Returned from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 548) in amended form (SD 1).
25. Apr 9Reported from WAM (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3640) with recommendation of passage on Third Reading.
26. Apr 9One Day Notice 04-10-26.
27. Apr 6The committee(s) on WAM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in WAM were as follows: 12 Aye(s): Senator(s) Dela Cruz, Moriwaki, DeCoite, Hashimoto, Inouye, Kanuha, Kidani, Kim, Richards, Wakai, Fevella; Aye(s) with reservations: Senator(s) Elefante ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Lee, C..Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee(s) on WAM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. Result: pass.Upper
28. Apr 1The committee(s) on WAM will hold a public decision making on 04-06-26 10:32AM; Conference Room 211 & Videoconference.
29. Mar 23Reported from EDU (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3138) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.
30. Mar 23Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referred to WAM.Minor
31. Mar 17The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in EDU were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Hashimoto, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 2 Excused: Senator(s) Kidani, Fukunaga.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. Result: pass.Upper
32. Mar 12The committee(s) on EDU has scheduled a public hearing on 03-16-26 1:00PM; Conference Room 229 & Videoconference.
33. Mar 10Referred to EDU, WAM.Minor
34. Mar 6Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 87).Minor
35. Mar 6Passed First Reading.Minor
36. Mar 5Reported from FIN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 808-26), recommending passage on Third Reading.
  - Vote recorded Passed Third Reading. Result: pass.Lower
37. Mar 5Passed Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Iwamoto, Pierick voting no (2) and Representative(s) Perruso excused (1). Transmitted to Senate.Passed House
38. Feb 25The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. 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.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. Result: pass.Lower
39. Feb 23Bill scheduled to be heard by FIN on Wednesday, 02-25-26 2:00PM in House conference room 308 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
40. Feb 19Reported from WAL (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 541-26), recommending referral to FIN.
  - Vote recorded Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN. Result: pass.Lower
41. Feb 19Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN with Representative(s) Shimizu voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Pierick voting no (1) and none excused (0).Minor
42. Feb 17The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes were as follows: 7 Ayes: Representative(s) Hashem, Morikawa, Belatti, Ichiyama, Woodson, Souza; Ayes with reservations: Representative(s) Shimizu; 1 Noes: Representative(s) Iwamoto; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Poepoe.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. Result: pass.Lower
43. Feb 11Reported from HED (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 131-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to WAL.
  - Vote recorded Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on WAL. Result: pass.Lower
44. Feb 11Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on WAL with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Holt excused (1).Minor
45. Feb 11Bill scheduled to be heard by WAL on Tuesday, 02-17-26 9:00AM in House conference room 411 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
46. Feb 6The committee on HED recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 10 Ayes: Representative(s) Garrett, Amato, Evslin, Kapela, Kila, La Chica, Olds, Woodson, Muraoka, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee on HED recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. Result: pass.Lower
47. Feb 3Bill scheduled to be heard by HED on Friday, 02-06-26 2:05PM in House conference room 309 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
48. Jan 30Referred to HED, WAL, FIN, referral sheet 5Minor
49. Jan 28Introduced and Pass First Reading.Minor
50. Jan 26Pending introduction.Introduced

Education

Issue with this bill?

HB 2171HawaiiProcess complete

University of Hawaii can run teaching businesses without county zoning approvals

University of Hawaii businesses qualify for county zoning exemptions when they mainly serve education, training, or research and involve active, supervised student learning.

What it does

The university keeps money earned by covered teaching businesses to pay costs, maintain facilities, or support student scholarships. Earning money must remain secondary to education.

Argument forSkipping county zoning approvals could help the university offer hands-on student training without delays from those approval processes.

Argument againstThe county approval exemption could limit neighbors’ chances to raise concerns about university teaching businesses near their homes.

More detail

Where do you stand?

Tell your reps

Take a position to see your representatives and ways to contact them.

More on this bill

Where it stands

IntroducedJan 26
Passed HouseMar 5
Passed SenateApr 10
To Governor
Became LawJun 24

Looking ahead

No hearings or votes scheduled.

History

2026
1. Jun 24Act 138, 06/24/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1239).Latest
2. Jun 24Act 138, on 06/24/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1239).Became Law
3. May 8Received notice of passage on Final Reading in House (Hse. Com. No. 888).Minor
4. May 7Transmitted to Governor.
5. May 6Passed Final Reading, as amended (CD 1). Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . 0 No(es): none. 0 Excused: none.Major
  - Vote recorded Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1. Result: pass.Lower
6. May 6Passed Final Reading as amended in CD 1 with none voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Iwamoto, Pierick voting no (2) and none excused (0).Major
7. May 6Received notice of Final Reading (Sen. Com. No. 816).Minor
8. May 1Reported from Conference Committee (Conf Com. Rep. No. 107-26) as amended in (CD 1).
9. May 1Forty-eight (48) hours notice Wednesday, 05-06-26.
10. May 1Reported from Conference Committee as amended CD 1 (Conf. Com. Rep. No. 107-26).
11. May 148 Hrs. Notice (as amended CD 1) 05-06-26
12. Apr 29The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. The votes were as follows: 5 Ayes: Representative(s) Garrett, Hashem, Templo, Woodson, Muraoka; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.Minor
  - Vote recorded The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. Result: pass.Upper
  - Vote recorded The Conference Committee recommends that the measure be Passed, with Amendments. Result: pass.Lower
13. Apr 29The Conference committee recommends that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes of the Senate Conference Managers were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Hashimoto, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.Minor
14. Apr 28Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Wednesday 04-29-26 3:10PM in conference room 229.
15. Apr 27Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Tuesday 04-28-26 3:15PM in conference room 229.
16. Apr 24Received notice of appointment of House conferees (Hse. Com. No. 820).Minor
17. Apr 24Bill scheduled for Conference Committee Meeting on Monday, 04-27-26 3:15PM in conference room 229.
18. Apr 23House Conferees Appointed: Garrett, Hashem, Templo Co-Chairs; Woodson, Muraoka.
19. Apr 22Received notice of Senate conferees (Sen. Com. No. 719).Minor
20. Apr 21Senate Conferees Appointed: Kim Chair; Hashimoto Co-Chair; DeCorte.
21. Apr 16Received notice of disagreement (Hse. Com. No. 599).Minor
22. Apr 14House disagrees with Senate amendment (s).Minor
23. Apr 10Report Adopted; Passed Third Reading. Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none. Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.Passed Senate
  - Vote recorded Report Adopted; Passed Third Reading. Result: pass.Upper
24. Apr 10Returned from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 548) in amended form (SD 1).
25. Apr 9Reported from WAM (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3640) with recommendation of passage on Third Reading.
26. Apr 9One Day Notice 04-10-26.
27. Apr 6The committee(s) on WAM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in WAM were as follows: 12 Aye(s): Senator(s) Dela Cruz, Moriwaki, DeCoite, Hashimoto, Inouye, Kanuha, Kidani, Kim, Richards, Wakai, Fevella; Aye(s) with reservations: Senator(s) Elefante ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Lee, C..Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee(s) on WAM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. Result: pass.Upper
28. Apr 1The committee(s) on WAM will hold a public decision making on 04-06-26 10:32AM; Conference Room 211 & Videoconference.
29. Mar 23Reported from EDU (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 3138) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.
30. Mar 23Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referred to WAM.Minor
31. Mar 17The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in EDU were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Hashimoto, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 2 Excused: Senator(s) Kidani, Fukunaga.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. Result: pass.Upper
32. Mar 12The committee(s) on EDU has scheduled a public hearing on 03-16-26 1:00PM; Conference Room 229 & Videoconference.
33. Mar 10Referred to EDU, WAM.Minor
34. Mar 6Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 87).Minor
35. Mar 6Passed First Reading.Minor
36. Mar 5Reported from FIN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 808-26), recommending passage on Third Reading.
  - Vote recorded Passed Third Reading. Result: pass.Lower
37. Mar 5Passed Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Iwamoto, Pierick voting no (2) and Representative(s) Perruso excused (1). Transmitted to Senate.Passed House
38. Feb 25The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. 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.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. Result: pass.Lower
39. Feb 23Bill scheduled to be heard by FIN on Wednesday, 02-25-26 2:00PM in House conference room 308 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
40. Feb 19Reported from WAL (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 541-26), recommending referral to FIN.
  - Vote recorded Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN. Result: pass.Lower
41. Feb 19Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN with Representative(s) Shimizu voting aye with reservations; Representative(s) Pierick voting no (1) and none excused (0).Minor
42. Feb 17The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes were as follows: 7 Ayes: Representative(s) Hashem, Morikawa, Belatti, Ichiyama, Woodson, Souza; Ayes with reservations: Representative(s) Shimizu; 1 Noes: Representative(s) Iwamoto; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Poepoe.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. Result: pass.Lower
43. Feb 11Reported from HED (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 131-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to WAL.
  - Vote recorded Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on WAL. Result: pass.Lower
44. Feb 11Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on WAL with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Holt excused (1).Minor
45. Feb 11Bill scheduled to be heard by WAL on Tuesday, 02-17-26 9:00AM in House conference room 411 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
46. Feb 6The committee on HED recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 10 Ayes: Representative(s) Garrett, Amato, Evslin, Kapela, Kila, La Chica, Olds, Woodson, Muraoka, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.Minor
  - Vote recorded The committee on HED recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. Result: pass.Lower
47. Feb 3Bill scheduled to be heard by HED on Friday, 02-06-26 2:05PM in House conference room 309 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
48. Jan 30Referred to HED, WAL, FIN, referral sheet 5Minor
49. Jan 28Introduced and Pass First Reading.Minor
50. Jan 26Pending introduction.Introduced

Education

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What it does

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Tell your reps

More on this bill

Where it stands

Looking ahead

History

What it does

Where do you stand?

Choose your position

Tell your reps

More on this bill

Where it stands

Looking ahead

History