HR 74: REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.
- Session Year: 2025-2026
- House: House
- Latest Version Date: 2026-04-08
Current Status:
In Progress
(2026-04-09: Reported from WAL (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1861-26) as amended in HD 2, recommending adoption.)
Introduced
In Committee
First Chamber
In Committee
Second Chamber
Final Decking
Enacted
What does this bill do?
The resolution asks the State Building Code Council to create a Basic Shelter appendix so government agencies and nonprofits can use simpler standards to build low-cost, rapidly deployed housing. Housing built under those standards would be allowed only during a governor- or mayor-declared emergency and could later be converted to permanent homes if upgraded to meet the state building code or HUD manufactured-housing rules. The council is asked to base the standards on HUD, ICC, and FEMA guidance and to consult counties, housing groups, nonprofits, and industry.
The summary is provided by generative AI which can make mistakes. For original language, please view the details in the table below.
REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.
REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.
REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
74 |
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THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026 |
H.D. 2 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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HOUSE RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.
WHEREAS, Hawaii continues to face urgent housing shortages, compounded by high construction costs, labor constraints, and limited buildable land; and
WHEREAS, the current State Building Code requires all new housing to comply with comprehensive standards, including energy-efficient windows, permanent insulation, and individual kitchens and bathrooms, which are appropriate for conventional housing but effectively prohibit low-cost, rapid-deployment housing solutions, such as single-wall plantation homes, Quonset huts, kauhale, and prefabricated accessory dwelling units (ADUs); and
WHEREAS, under gubernatorial emergency proclamations, temporary exemptions from full building code requirements have enabled innovative supportive housing models, including kauhale villages and the rapid deployment of prefabricated ADUs following the August 2023 Maui wildfires; and
WHEREAS, however, these solutions disappear when the emergency proclamations expire, leaving the State without durable tools to provide affordable and emergency housing; and
WHEREAS, section 107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, expressly authorizes the State Building Code Council to adopt provisions based on nationally published codes or standards, including mechanical standards, hurricane-resistant standards, flood and tsunami standards, and other loss mitigation standards; and
WHEREAS, establishing a new category of basic shelter standards will enable the adoption of minimum standards that ensure housing is safe, sanitary, and structurally sound, while also allowing greater flexibility than full building code requirements; and
WHEREAS, housing constructed under the basic shelter standards is intended to address immediate shelter needs arising from a natural disaster or other emergency and would only be deployed during, or in direct response to, a gubernatorial or county emergency proclamation issued pursuant to chapter 127A, Hawaii Revised Statutes; and
WHEREAS, units constructed under the basic shelter standards are intended for temporary occupancy during the pendency of such emergency proclamation, consistent with the approach taken in Appendix P of the California Building Code, which limits occupancy of emergency housing to the duration of a declared state of emergency, local state of emergency, or shelter crisis; and
WHEREAS, adopting basic shelter standards would also provide a lawful framework for dignified, low-cost housing solutions, and restricting the use of basic shelter standards to projects built or conveyed by government agencies or nonprofit organizations would prevent speculative or profit-driven misuse; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that the State Building Code Council is requested to develop and adopt basic shelter standards to enable low-cost, rapid-deployment housing solutions; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to adopt, amend, or update the State Building Code pursuant to its authority under section 107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, to establish a Basic Shelter Appendix; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consider the following suitable reference standards for the new Basic Shelter Appendix:
(1) United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Housing Quality Standards (24 C.F.R. 982.401) and HUD Minimum Property Standards;
(2) International Code Council Off-Site Construction Standards (ICC/MBI 1200, 1205, and 1210), including provisions for mechanical, electrical, plumbing, energy efficiency, and water conservation; and
(3) Federal Emergency Management Agency and international humanitarian shelter standards, which are recognized benchmarks for emergency and supportive housing; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to authorize occupancy of housing constructed under the Basic Shelter Appendix only during, or in direct response to, a natural disaster emergency proclamation issued pursuant to chapter 127A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, by the Governor or the relevant county mayor; provided that such authorization be limited to the duration of the applicable proclamation, unless the unit has been converted to permanent habitation as provided herein; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to develop, as part of the Basic Shelter Appendix, a conversion pathway under which a unit initially constructed under basic shelter standards may be converted to permanent habitation upon a determination by the applicable county building official that the unit, as converted, complies with the Hawaii State Building Code or the standards for manufactured housing under title 24 Code of Federal Regulations part 3280; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that if a unit initially constructed under basic shelter standards eventually becomes permanent habitation, the unit should be upgraded to comply with the requirements of the Hawaii State Building Code or HUD Housing Quality Standards (24 C.F.R. 982.401) and HUD Minimum Property Standards; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consult with county building officials, housing advocates, nonprofit organizations, and industry stakeholders to ensure that the new basic shelter standards protect public health, safety, and welfare, and reflect Hawaii's climate, cultural context, and resilience needs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Comptroller, Chair of the State Building Code Council, Director of the Hawaii County Department of Public Works, Director of the Department of Planning and Permitting of the City and County of Honolulu, County Engineer of the Kauai County Department of Public Works, and Director of the Maui County Department of Public Works.
State Building Code; State Building Code Council; Basic Shelter Standards; Supportive Housing Models
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
74 |
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THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026 |
H.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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HOUSE RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.
WHEREAS, Hawaii continues to face urgent housing shortages, compounded by high construction costs, labor constraints, and limited buildable land; and
WHEREAS, the current State Building Code requires all new housing to comply with comprehensive standards, including energy-efficient windows, permanent insulation, and individual kitchens and bathrooms, which are appropriate for conventional housing but effectively prohibit low-cost, rapid-deployment housing solutions, such as single-wall plantation homes, Quonset huts, kauhale, and prefabricated accessory dwelling units (ADUs); and
WHEREAS, under gubernatorial emergency proclamations, temporary exemptions from full building code requirements have enabled innovative supportive housing models, including kauhale villages and the rapid deployment of prefabricated ADUs following the August 2023 Maui wildfires; and
WHEREAS, however, these solutions disappear when the emergency proclamations expire, leaving the State without durable tools to provide affordable and emergency housing; and
WHEREAS, section 107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, expressly authorizes the State Building Code Council to adopt provisions based on nationally published codes or standards, including mechanical standards, hurricane-resistant standards, flood and tsunami standards, and other loss mitigation standards; and
WHEREAS, establishing a new category of basic shelter standards will enable the adoption of minimum standards that ensure housing is safe, sanitary, and structurally sound, while also allowing greater flexibility than full building code requirements; and
WHEREAS, housing constructed under the basic shelter standards is intended to address immediate shelter needs arising from a natural disaster or other emergency and would only be deployed during, or in direct response to, a gubernatorial or county emergency proclamation issued pursuant to chapter 127A, Hawaii Revised Statutes; and
WHEREAS, units constructed under the basic shelter standards are intended for temporary occupancy during the pendency of such emergency proclamation, consistent with the approach taken in Appendix P of the California Building Code, which limits occupancy of emergency housing to the duration of a declared state of emergency, local state of emergency, or shelter crisis; and
WHEREAS, adopting basic shelter standards would also provide a lawful framework for dignified, low-cost housing solutions, and restricting the use of basic shelter standards to projects built or conveyed by government agencies or nonprofit organizations would prevent speculative or profit-driven misuse; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that the State Building Code Council is requested to develop and adopt basic shelter standards to enable low-cost, rapid-deployment housing solutions; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to adopt, amend, or update the State Building Code pursuant to its authority under section 107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, to establish a Basic Shelter Appendix; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consider the following suitable reference standards for the new Basic Shelter Appendix:
(1) United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Housing Quality Standards (24 C.F.R. 982.401) and HUD Minimum Property Standards;
(2) International Code Council Off-Site Construction Standards (ICC/MBI 1200, 1205, and 1210), including provisions for mechanical, electrical, plumbing, energy efficiency, and water conservation; and
(3) Federal Emergency Management Agency and international humanitarian shelter standards, which are recognized benchmarks for emergency and supportive housing; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to authorize occupancy of housing constructed under the Basic Shelter Appendix only during, or in direct response to, a natural disaster emergency proclamation issued pursuant to chapter 127A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, by the Governor or the relevant county mayor; provided that such authorization be limited to the duration of the applicable proclamation, unless the unit has been converted to permanent habitation as provided herein; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to develop, as part of the Basic Shelter Appendix, a conversion pathway under which a unit initially constructed under basic shelter standards may be converted to permanent habitation upon a determination by the applicable county building official that the unit, as converted, complies with the Hawaii State Building Code or the standards for manufactured housing under title 24 Code of Federal Regulations part 3280; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consult with county building officials, housing advocates, nonprofit organizations, and industry stakeholders to ensure that the new basic shelter standards protect public health, safety, and welfare, and reflect Hawaii's climate, cultural context, and resilience needs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Comptroller, Chair of the State Building Code Council, Director of the Hawaii County Department of Public Works, Director of the Department of Planning and Permitting of the City and County of Honolulu, County Engineer of the Kauai County Department of Public Works, and Director of the Maui County Department of Public Works.
State Building Code; State Building Code Council; Basic Shelter Standards; Supportive Housing Models
|
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
74 |
|
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026 |
|
|
|
STATE OF HAWAII |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
||
HOUSE RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE STATE BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND ADOPT BASIC SHELTER STANDARDS TO ENABLE LOW-COST, RAPID-DEPLOYMENT HOUSING SOLUTIONS.
WHEREAS, Hawaii continues to face urgent housing shortages, compounded by high construction costs, labor constraints, and limited buildable land; and
WHEREAS, the current State Building Code requires all new housing to comply with comprehensive standards, including energy-efficient windows, permanent insulation, and individual kitchens and bathrooms, which are appropriate for conventional housing but effectively prohibit low-cost, rapid-deployment housing solutions, such as single-wall plantation homes, Quonset huts, kauhale, and prefabricated accessory dwelling units (ADUs); and
WHEREAS, under gubernatorial emergency proclamations, temporary exemptions from full building code requirements have enabled innovative supportive housing models, including kauhale villages and the rapid deployment of prefabricated ADUs following the August 2023 Maui wildfires; and
WHEREAS, however, these solutions disappear when the emergency proclamations expire, leaving the State without durable tools to provide affordable and emergency housing; and
WHEREAS, section 107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, expressly authorizes the State Building Code Council to adopt provisions based on nationally published codes or standards, including mechanical standards, hurricane-resistant standards, flood and tsunami standards, and other loss mitigation standards; and
WHEREAS, establishing a new category of basic shelter standards will enable the adoption of minimum standards that ensure housing is safe, sanitary, and structurally sound, while also allowing greater flexibility than full building code requirements; and
WHEREAS, adopting basic shelter standards would also provide a lawful framework for dignified, low-cost housing solutions, and restricting the use of basic shelter standards to projects built or conveyed by government agencies or nonprofit organizations would prevent speculative or profit-driven misuse; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that the State Building Code Council is requested to develop and adopt basic shelter standards to enable low-cost, rapid-deployment housing solutions; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to adopt, amend, or update the State Building Code pursuant to its authority under section 107-25(6), Hawaii Revised Statutes, to establish a Basic Shelter Appendix; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consider the following suitable reference standards for the new Basic Shelter Appendix:
(1) United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Housing Quality Standards (24 C.F.R. 982.401) and HUD Minimum Property Standards;
(2) International Code Council Off-Site Construction Standards (ICC/MBI 1200, 1205, and 1210), including provisions for mechanical, electrical, plumbing, energy efficiency, and water conservation; and
(3) Federal Emergency Management Agency and international humanitarian shelter standards, which are recognized benchmarks for emergency and supportive housing; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State Building Code Council is requested to consult with county building officials, housing advocates, nonprofit organizations, and industry stakeholders to ensure that the new basic shelter standards reflect Hawaii's climate, cultural context, and resilience needs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Comptroller, Chair of the State Building Code Council, Director of the Hawaii County Department of Public Works, Director of the Department of Planning and Permitting of the City and County of Honolulu, County Engineer of the Kauai County Department of Public Works, and Director of the Maui County Department of Public Works.
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OFFERED BY: |
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State Building Code; State Building Code Council; Basic Shelter Standards; Supportive Housing Models
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Date
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Status
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| Apr 9, 2026 | Reported from WAL (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1861-26) as amended in HD 2, recommending adoption. |
| Apr 7, 2026 | The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 8 Ayes: Representative(s) Hashem, Morikawa, Belatti, Ichiyama, Iwamoto, Poepoe, Shimizu, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Woodson. |
| Apr 2, 2026 | Resolution scheduled to be heard by WAL on Tuesday, 04-07-26 10:00AM in conference room 411 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. |
| Apr 1, 2026 | Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on WAL as amended in HD 1 with Representative(s) Cochran voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0). |
| Apr 1, 2026 | Reported from HSG (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1648-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending referral to WAL. |
| Mar 27, 2026 | The committee on HSG recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 6 Ayes: Representative(s) Evslin, Miyake, Grandinetti, Kila, Kitagawa; Ayes with reservations: Representative(s) Cochran; Noes: none; and 3 Excused: Representative(s) La Chica, Muraoka, Pierick. |
| Mar 25, 2026 | Resolution scheduled to be heard by HSG on Friday, 03-27-26 9:30AM in conference room 430 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE. |
| Mar 18, 2026 | Referred to HSG, WAL, referral sheet 18 |
| Mar 16, 2026 | Offered |
| Mar 12, 2026 | To be offered. |
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Date
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Description
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Location
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Votes
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| Apr 7, 2026 | The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS | House Standing Committee on Water & Land |
Passed |
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| Mar 27, 2026 | The committee on HSG recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS | House Standing Committee on Housing |
Passed |
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.
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Organization
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Position
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Date
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| The Plumbers and Fitters UA Local 675 | *** Against | Mar 27, 2026 |
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Date
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Testimony PDF
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| Apr 7, 2026 | HR74_HD1_TESTIMONY_WAL_04-07-26_.PDF |
| Mar 27, 2026 | HR74_TESTIMONY_HSG_03-27-26_.PDF |
Bill Author
