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HI HB1968: Relating To Permitting.

Dead/Failed Hawaii · 2026 session

Last verified Oct 10, 2026 · official bill text

HB1968 · where it stands

This bill did not become law (dead/failed) · last action Feb 11, 2026.

What do these statuses mean?
Introduced
Filed in the legislature; may be waiting for a committee hearing.
Passed a chamber
Approved by one or both chambers; awaiting further action.
Enacted
Signed into law, or became law without a signature or over a veto.
Effective date
The date the law says it takes effect. Once it has passed, the page shows "Effective" and the date. A court order can still block a law; if we know of one, the summary says so.
Dead / vetoed
Vetoed, failed, or the session ended without action.

In one paragraph

Hawaii's HB 1968 HD 1 (2026) would have directed the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, with a county it selects, to build a pilot permitting-intake platform that uses AI to support intake, routing and review of single-family-home permit applications, with a blank general-fund appropriation. It passed second reading in the House February 11, 2026 and was referred to WAL, but was not enacted.

Plain-English summary, written with AI assistance. The official text controls.

What it means for business

None: the bill did not pass. It would have directed a state agency and one county to build an AI-assisted permit intake pilot, with no duties for private businesses.

Key provisions

  1. Would require DBEDT and a selected county to develop a pilot platform limited to permitting intake and single-family-home projects
  2. Platform would use AI to support intake, routing and review; screen applications for completeness, missing documents and inconsistencies; enforce required fields; and validate basic parcel and zoning information
  3. Would route applications to all relevant county agencies at the same time and give applicants guidance through a chat feature and FAQs
  4. Would keep in-person and phone support and ensure any automation or AI enhances, rather than replaces, human service
  5. DBEDT would develop a policy or metric to judge whether all counties should adopt similar platforms
  6. Appropriation amount and county matching funds left blank; effective date written as July 1, 3000; passed second reading as amended in HD 1 February 11, 2026

Latest legislative action

Feb 11, 2026. Passed 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).

Sponsors (showing 5 of 20)

NameRoleDistrict
D Sponsor HD-024
D Sponsor HD-044
D Sponsor HD-008
D Sponsor HD-017
D Sponsor HD-026

Related and companion bills

Topics and industries

Related topics

AI in Government

Affected industries

GovernmentReal EstateHousingTechnology

This page is general information, not legal advice. Summaries are AI-assisted and may contain errors; read the statute for the controlling text and talk to a lawyer about your situation. Full disclaimer · Report an error

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