Aloha UHPA Members,
The 2026 legislative session adjourned last Friday, May 8. Throughout the session, UHPA tracked approximately 90 bills and submitted testimony on more than 50 measures to ensure that faculty interests and working conditions remained at the forefront of the legislative conversation.
We are pleased to report that no harmful legislation made it over the finish line, thanks to your organization’s collective efforts to successfully defeat those measures. In addition, several priority measures have now passed their final readings and have been transmitted to the Governor, who has the option to sign them into law, veto them, or allow them to become law without a signature.
The Importance of Political Advocacy & Relationships
This session serves as a reminder of why UHPA’s engagement in the political process and work performed by the UHPA Legislative Action Committee is vital. Legislative decisions directly impact our classrooms, our research, our academy, and our livelihoods. However, successful advocacy is not just about submitting testimony; it is about the long-term relationships we build with policymakers. These partnerships ensure that the faculty’s collective voice is integrated into the policies that shape the future of higher education in Hawaiʻi. We would like to specifically credit the leadership in the House and key allies in the Senate who worked with us this session to move our priority measures forward and, just as importantly, helped shield the University from potentially damaging legislation. In particular, Representative Andrew Garrett, Chair of the House Higher Education Committee, deserves a special call-out for working tirelessly as a champion for faculty and the University and being instrumental in staving off substantial threats to the UH system.
State Supplemental Budget Outcome
The State Supplemental Budget for the upcoming fiscal cycle has officially passed. For the University of Hawaiʻi, the final version of HB 1800 includes recalibrated appropriations for both operating costs and capital improvement projects across the 10-campus system. To meet statewide reduction targets and balance the financial plan, the legislature reduced the general fund operating budget by approximately $3.8 million, which will be managed through annual fiscal restrictions. On the capital improvement front, the budget provides approximately $126 million for various projects, including $85 million specifically dedicated to repair and maintenance. While local fiscal pressures required a recalibration of original requests, the final measure maintains the essential support necessary for university operations through FY 2026-2027.
Bills Heading to the Governor
The following measures successfully passed the legislature:
- – Safety & Protections for Public Employees (SB 2567 & SB 2568): These bills allow public employers to file Temporary Restraining Orders (TROs) on behalf of employees facing workplace harassment and elevate harassment against a public servant to a misdemeanor crime. UHPA, alongside other public sector unions, fought to ensure these protections cover all public employees, defeating initial versions that limited these protections only to high-ranking officials.
- – Civil Rights (HB 1870): This bill designates “protected community locations” to limit state and local participation in civil immigration enforcement and ensures safe access to essential services. UHPA worked to guarantee that UH campuses were explicitly included as protected locations in the final language of the bill.
- – Workers’ Compensation Reform (HB 1514, HB 1515, and HB 1509): A suite of bills aimed at modernizing the workers compensation system, including faster approvals for vocational rehabilitation, functional capacity exams, and employer responses to treatment plans.
- – Artificial Intelligence (HB 2137): This measure prohibits the malicious use of deepfake technology for fraud or defamation while maintaining exemptions for educational and artistic expression.
Notable Successes: Defeated Threats
UHPA stood alongside the UH in opposing the following measures that would have negatively impacted our members and the University. We are pleased to report that these bills did not survive the final stages of the session:
- – Fund Sweep Measures (SB 2602 and SB2921): Throughout this past session, we closely monitored two “fund sweep” measures aimed at filling state fiscal gaps. The first, SB 2602, specifically targeted the UH Tuition and Fees Special Fund; however, following strong opposition from UHPA and the University, no House conferees were assigned and the bill died. A second broader measure, SB 2921, did pass and allows for the transfer of excess balances from various state agencies into the General Fund. Thankfully, no UH funds were included in this sweep.
Travel Moratorium (SB 3332): A proposed two-year moratorium on state-funded travel failed to move forward and did not pass.
Measures That Did Not Survive
Despite our advocacy, several key measures that would have benefitted faculty and the UH did not reach the finish line, due, in large part, to the actions and inactions by Senator Donna Mercado Kim. More on that below.
In a Conference Committee, Conferees (Managers) appointed by each legislative body negotiate with the other body to reach an agreement. When a Conference Draft is agreed upon, it means that the differences have been resolved. The next step is for the Conference Draft to go to a floor vote in each legislative body, which is generally a formality, since the negotiators from each legislative body agreed and resolved their differences. The following bills went to Conference Committee:
- – Collective Bargaining (HB 1664): Allowed impasses and disputes relating to the amounts of State contributions to the Hawaiʻi Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund (EUTF) to be resolved by arbitration. Repeals the prohibition against strikes by members of bargaining units on the issue of the amounts of State and county contributions to the EUTF. Unfortunately, this measure died because Senator Donna Mercado Kim decided to torpedo these measures by not attending the Conference Committee meetings to hold back quorum.
- – Efficiency Measures: Both HB 1656 (fairer overpayment recovery) and HB 1663 (timely travel reimbursements) failed to move forward after conference committees could not reach an agreement Another two measures that would provide benefits to public sector employees in which Senator Donna Mercado Kim decided again to not attend the Conference Committee meetings. Another sign of pure dereliction of duties We wonder if Senator Donna Mercado Kim was travelling during this time as the Senator is ranked #1 in Hawaiʻi legislators who seek travel and #2 in taking the most travel days according to an April 19, 2026 article in CivilBeat.
- – UH Athletics & NIL (SB 3263): This bill provided critical appropriations and established the framework for Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) activities to keep UH competitive in the rapidly changing landscape of college sports. After passing the House Floor by a vote of 44-7, the measure was defeated on the Senate floor on the final day of session by a vote of 12-11.
Particularly troubling is that Senators Donna Mercado Kim, Troy Hashimoto, and Samantha DeCorte each voted in favor of the Conference Draft on May 1, 2026, only to reverse course and vote against the very same measure on final reading on May 8, 2026. Senator Kim served as the Senate Conference Chair, and the Conference Committee action represented the Senate’s negotiated position on the bill. This raises serious concerns about the integrity and transparency of the legislative process. Supporting the negotiated Conference Draft in committee, then abandoning it on the Senate Floor at the decisive moment, appears less like principled policymaking and more like a calculated political maneuver that allowed the bill to advance publicly while ensuring its defeat when it mattered the most. Whether driven by political gamesmanship or a failure to stand behind their own conference position, the result was the same. Unfortunately, UH Athletics, UH student-athletes, and the broader University community were left without meaningful legislative support.
UH Athletics plays a vital role in strengthening the University’s visibility, reputation, student experience, and connection to communities across Hawaiʻi. The failure of SB 3263 was not merely a missed funding opportunity, it was a consequential setback for the University’s ability to compete and adapt. Senators Kim, Hashimoto, and DeCorte should be held accountable for supporting the bill in conference, then turning against it on the Senate Floor when their votes were most needed. Three days later the UH Men’s Volleyball team won their third national title. Wonder whether these Senators were actually cheering “Lets Go Bows”?
Confirmation of Hawaii Supreme Court Chief Justice Vladimir P. Devens
Finally, beyond the tracking of specific bills, UHPA, along with other public sector unions, successfully advocated for the Senate confirmation of Associate Justice Vladimir P. Devens as the next Chief Justice of the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court. UHPA submitted strong testimony in support of Justice Devens, highlighting his deep understanding of labor and working people, his commitment to judicial independence, and an extensive legal career rooted in fairness and integrity.
UHPA will continue to monitor the Governor’s actions on all surviving bills and will provide further updates as they are finalized.
Mahalo,
Christian L. Fern
Executive Director