HR 79: URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO PROPOSE AN AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION TO ALLOW STATES TO RESTRICT THE PURCHASE OF RESIDENTIAL REAL PROPERTY TO STATE RESIDENTS.

HOUSE RESOLUTION

URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO PROPOSE AN AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION TO ALLOW STATES TO RESTRICT THE PURCHASE OF RESIDENTIAL REAL PROPERTY TO STATE RESIDENTS.

     WHEREAS, Hawaii faces one of the most severe housing affordability crises in the nation, with median home prices far exceeding the purchasing power of Hawaii residents; and

WHEREAS, a significant contributing factor to Hawaii's escalating housing prices is the high volume of purchases by out‑of‑state buyers, including individuals and corporate entities who acquire residential real property as investment assets, vacation homes, or short‑term rental inventory, thereby reducing available housing stock for Hawaii residents; and

WHEREAS, these out‑of‑state acquisitions place upward pressure on home prices statewide, making it increasingly difficult for Hawaii residents to afford homes in their own communities; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii's unique geographic isolation, limited land availability, and culturally distinct communities amplify the impact of speculative and external real estate demands more acutely than in other states; and

WHEREAS, residents across the State report being priced out of their neighborhoods, displaced from multi‑generational communities, or prevented from purchasing a first home due to competition from out‑of‑state buyers having significantly greater financial resources; and

WHEREAS, despite these challenges, Article IV, Section 2, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution, the Privileges and Immunities Clause, currently prohibits states from limiting the purchase of residential real property based on state residency, thereby preventing Hawaii from enacting laws that would reserve its limited residential land for its own residents; and

WHEREAS, numerous states, including Hawaii, have expressed growing concern regarding the effect of interstate and international speculative investment on local housing markets and have sought federal relief to better regulate residential real property ownership for the benefit of their residents; and

WHEREAS, only an amendment to the United States Constitution can provide states with the authority to enact residency‑based restrictions on the purchase of residential real property; 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 United States Congress is urged to propose an amendment to the United States Constitution expressly authorizing states to enact laws restricting the purchase of residential real property to bona fide state residents; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Majority Leader of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and each member of Hawaii's congressional delegation.

Report Title:

Homeownership; State Residents; United States Constitutional Amendment; Congress