SB 2615: DOE; School Cafeteria Meals; Costs

Current Status:

Failed

(2026-04-16: Received notice of disagreement (Sen. Com. No. 710).)

Introduced

In Committee

First Chamber

In Committee

Second Chamber

Final Decking

Enacted

Version:

Requires the Department of Education to charge no less than one-quarter of the cost of preparing a school meal for each school meal. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

Version:

SB2615 HD1

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2615
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO SCHOOL CAFETERIA MEAL COSTS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Section 302A-405, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

1. By amending subsection (a) to read:

"(a) The price for school meals shall be set by the department to ensure that moneys received from the sale of the meals shall be [~~not~~] no less than [~~one-half~~] one-quarter of the cost of preparing the meals. The prices for school meals may be adjusted annually based on the previous year's costs rounded to the nearest five cents; provided that the department by rule shall provide a lower rate or free meals to children based on their economic need."

2. By amending subsection (c) to read:

"(c) It is the intent of this section not to jeopardize the receipt of any federal aid and to the extent, and only to the extent necessary to effectuate this intent, the governor may modify the strict provisions of this section, but shall promptly report [~~any such~~] the modification with the governor's reasons therefor to the next succeeding session of the legislature for review."

SECTION 2. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 3000.

Report Title:

DOE; School Cafeteria Meals; Costs

Description:

Requires the Department of Education to charge no less than one-quarter of the cost of preparing a school meal for each school meal. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD1)

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.

SB2615

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2615
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

Relating to school cafeteria meal costs.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Section 302A-405, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

1. By amending subsection (a) to read:

"(a) The price for school meals shall be set by the department to ensure that moneys received from the sale of the meals shall be not less than [~~one-half~~] one-quarter of the cost of preparing the meals. The prices for school meals may be adjusted annually based on the previous year's costs rounded to the nearest five cents; provided that the department by rule shall provide a lower rate or free meals to children based on their economic need."

2. By amending subsection (c) to read:

SECTION 2. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

DOE; School Cafeteria Meals; Costs

Description:

Requires the Department of Education to charge not less than one-quarter of the cost of preparing a school meal for each school meal.

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.

Date	Status
Apr 16, 2026	Received notice of disagreement (Sen. Com. No. 710).
Apr 16, 2026	Senate disagrees with House amendments.
Apr 16, 2026	Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 683).
Apr 14, 2026	Passed Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0). Transmitted to Senate.
Apr 10, 2026	Deferred one day 04-14-26.
Apr 10, 2026	Reported from FIN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 2043-26), recommending passage on Third Reading.
Apr 7, 2026	The 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; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.
Apr 2, 2026	Bill scheduled to be heard by FIN on Tuesday, 04-07-26 2:00PM in House conference room 308 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
Mar 24, 2026	Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on FIN with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Garrett, Quinlan excused (2).
Mar 24, 2026	Reported from EDN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1382-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to FIN.
Mar 19, 2026	The committee on EDN recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 10 Ayes: Representative(s) Woodson, La Chica, Amato, Evslin, Garrett, Kapela, Kila, Olds, Muraoka, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and Excused: none.
Mar 17, 2026	Bill scheduled to be heard by EDN on Thursday, 03-19-26 2:00PM in House conference room 309 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.
Mar 12, 2026	Referred to EDN, FIN, referral sheet 17
Mar 12, 2026	Pass First Reading
Mar 10, 2026	Received from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 274) in amended form (SD 0).
Mar 10, 2026	Received from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 273).
Mar 10, 2026	Report adopted; Passed Third Reading. Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.
Mar 6, 2026	One Day Notice 03-10-26.
Mar 6, 2026	Reported from WAM (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 2897) with recommendation of passage on Third Reading.
Mar 3, 2026	The 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, Elefante, Hashimoto, Inouye, Kanuha, Kidani, Kim, Lee, C., Richards, Wakai; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Fevella.
Feb 27, 2026	The committee(s) on WAM will hold a public decision making on 03-03-26 10:17AM; Conference Room 211 & Videoconference.
Feb 18, 2026	Report adopted; Passed Second Reading and referred to WAM.
Feb 18, 2026	Reported from EDU (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 2339) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading and referral to WAM.
Feb 13, 2026	The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in EDU were as follows: 3 Aye(s): Senator(s) Kim, Kidani, DeCorte; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 2 Excused: Senator(s) Fukunaga, Hashimoto.
Feb 10, 2026	The committee(s) on EDU has scheduled a public hearing on 02-13-26 1:05PM; CR 229 & Videoconference.
Jan 28, 2026	Referred to EDU, WAM.
Jan 23, 2026	Passed First Reading.
Jan 23, 2026	Introduced.

Date	Description	Location	Votes
Apr 14, 2026	Third Reading	House Floor	52 0 0 Passed
Apr 7, 2026	The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED	House Standing Committee on Finance	16 0 0 Passed
Mar 19, 2026	The committee on EDN recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS	House Standing Committee on Education	10 0 0 Passed
Mar 10, 2026	Third Reading	Senate Floor	25 0 0 Passed
Mar 3, 2026	The committee(s) on WAM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED	Senate Standing Committee on Ways and Means	12 0 1 Passed
Feb 13, 2026	The committee(s) on EDU recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED	Senate Standing Committee on Education	3 0 2 Passed

Key

Pro

Against

Did Not Vote

This list shows positions taken on this bill by organizations on the date displayed, which is linked to the original source.

Positions by individuals are not included.

* Testimony in a hearing

** Position recorded in bill analysis

*** Position recorded in written testimony

Organization	Position	Date
Democratic Party of Hawai‘i Education Caucus	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Democratic Party of Hawai’i Education Caucus	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Hawaii State Department of Education	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Hawaiʻi Food+ Policy	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Hawai‘i Children’s Action Network Speaks!	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Hawai‘i Food+ Policy	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Hawai‘i Public Health Institute	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Hawai‘i Public Health Institute (HIPHI)	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
HEAL Coalition	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Healthy Eating, Active Living (HEAL) Coalition	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026
Office of the Governor	*** Support	Mar 3, 2026
Office of the Governor	*** Support	Apr 7, 2026

* Testimony in a hearing

** Position recorded in bill analysis

*** Position recorded in written testimony

SSCR2897 Paul Kanoho SSCR Ainoa Naniole 2 6 2011-01-28T03:25:00Z 2026-03-06T02:55:00Z 2026-03-06T02:55:00Z 2 329 1699 House of Representatives 22231 68 20 2025 16.00 Print 0 0 false false false EN-US JA X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;}

STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2897

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2615

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 2615 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO SCHOOL CAFETERIA MEAL COSTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to support the provision of affordable meals in the State's schools.

More specifically, this measure reduces the amount that the Department of Education is required to charge for school meals from an amount not less than one-half of the cost of preparing the meals, to an amount not less than one-quarter of the cost of preparing the meals.

Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Office of the Governor, Department of Education, Hawaii Public Health Institute, and Hawaii Food+ Policy.

Your Committee finds that, according to the written comments provided by the Department of Education, the cost of producing a school lunch in fiscal year 2024-2025 was $9.05, while the student meal price was $2.50, or approximately twenty-eight percent of the cost. Your Committee notes that, to comply with the existing law, school meal prices would need to be raised, which would likely result in fewer students purchasing the schools meals. Accordingly, your Committee believes that reducing the statutory cost-recovery threshold to one-fourth of the meal preparation costs, as provided by this measure, is necessary to prevent this outcome and to ensure that school meals remain affordable for the State's families.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2615 and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

________________________________

DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair

SSCR2339 Amy Vickers SSCR Ainoa Naniole 2 17 2026-02-16T22:23:00Z 2026-02-18T03:36:00Z 2026-02-18T03:36:00Z 2 279 1435 House of Representatives 21463 62 19 1712 16.00 Print 110 0 0 false false false EN-US JA X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;}

STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2339

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2615

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2615 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO SCHOOL CAFETERIA MEAL COSTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require the Department of Education to charge not less than one-quarter of the cost of preparing a school meal for each school meal.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Education, Education Caucus of the Democratic Party of Hawaiʻi, and Hawaiʻi Food+ Policy.

Your Committee finds that under current statute, the Department of Education is required to set school meal prices at half of the cost of production. In school year 2024-2025, it cost the Department $9.05 to produce one meal, while the price charged per student was $2.50. To comply with current statute, the Department would be forced to double current school meal prices, which would be particularly challenging for working families already facing high living costs. This measure would enable the Department to continue to provide school lunches for students at an affordable price.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2615 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Education,

________________________________

DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair

Date	Testimony PDF
Apr 7, 2026	SB2615_HD1_TESTIMONY_FIN_04-07-26_.PDF
Mar 18, 2026	SB2615_TESTIMONY_EDN_03-19-26_.PDF
Mar 3, 2026	SB2615_TESTIMONY_WAM_03-03-26_.PDF
Feb 13, 2026	SB2615_TESTIMONY_EDU_02-13-26_.PDF

Discussed in Hearing

10MIN

Authors shown for version:
SB2615_HD1 (3/23/2026)

SB 2615: DOE; School Cafeteria Meals; Costs

Current Status:

House Standing Committee on Education

House Standing Committee on Education

Senate Standing Committee on Education

Senate Standing Committee on Water, Land, Culture and the Arts

Senate Standing Committee on Education

Senate Standing Committee on Water, Land, Culture and the Arts