House Floor

Will the House come to order? Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.

[Roll call]

Madam Speaker, 49 Members are present. One is excused.

Thank you. Item number two. Reading of the journal. Representative Morikawa. Madam Speaker, may this matter be deferred. So ordered. Item number three. Messages from the Governor. Mr. Clerk, are there any messages from the Governor?

Madam Speaker, there are none.

Item number four. Senate Communications. Mr. Clerk, are there any Senate communications?

Yes. Madam Speaker, if you and the Members will turn your attention to the the addendum to today's order of the day. We are in receipt of communications returning the noted House Concurrent Resolutions, all having been adopted in the Senate.

We are in further receipt of a communication informing the House that the Senate has disagreed to the amendments proposed by the House to the noted Senate Concurrent Resolution. We are in further receipt of communications informing the House that the Senate has appointed conferees to the noted House and Senate bills.

Finally, we are in receipt of communications informing the House that the Senate has made changes to conferees to the noted House and Senate bills.

Members, are there any introductions? Representative Garcia.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I'd like to introduce some students and faculty and guests with us who are visiting from District 42 out west. Wahoo. Students from Honoluliuli Middle School. I'd like to introduce students from the SOAR program. SOAR is an acronym that stands for Striving for excellence in academics and personal growth. O. For overcoming challenges with determination.

A. For achieving their goals through hard work and perseverance. R. For respecting themselves and others in their school and community. The SOAR program is to uplift and inspire one another. And together they can soar to new heights. I'd like to introduce you name by name. And please stand once your name is called. Sarai Bula. Kane, L.J.

Hasi, Carly. Stand up. Stand up. Tobet Shaistin, J.J. Francis, Ms. Daisy, Mr. Ronald, Ms. Jessica and Brian Lawton. Welcome to the Hawaii House of Representatives.

Representative Olds.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I would like to introduce today my two boys, their first time ever seeing this session on the floor, Lika and Ty. And my Committee Clerk Jeanette who is. Corralling them, keeping them safe. Boys, welcome to your House of Representatives. Representative Alcos.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I wanted to introduce my Chief of Staff, Alan James Covito. Can you please stand up? He's been working out here for three years. It's the first time he's on the floor. Welcome to the House of Representatives.

Representative Lee Loy.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Here for moral support today is my office staff. House District to. I have my office manager Swana, my Committee Clerk Alicia and my student intern Kevin. Welcome to your House of Representatives.

Representative Kila.

Madam Speaker. In that same tone, at the same time I'd also like to recognize and acknowledge Saana Soana was also my first office manager when I was a staffer at the House of Representatives. And it is a former first time I get to acknowledge and thank her here on the House floor. Loa Swana.

Thank you for your service to the state, Madam Speaker.

Representative Garcia.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Also like to introduce Sheila Medeiros who's an active Member in the in the KAP community. Please stand to be recognized. Thank you.

If there are no further introductions, I'd like to call a recess subject to the call of the chair. Will the House come to order? Order of the day. Item number five, unfinished business. We are on item number five, unfinished business.

Members, please note that per Committee Referral sheet number 34, Senate Concurrent Resolution number 86 SD1HD1 and Senate Concurrent Resolution number 145 SD1 have been re referred solely to the Committee on Health and labor respectively. The Committee on Finance waived its referral to these measures and therefore it is appropriate for the House to consider action for adoption.

We will be taking up three motions. Representative Todd.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules of the House to reconsider action previously taken on Senate Concurrent resolution number 86 SD1 and Senate Concurrent Resolution number 145 SD1. Representative Morikawa.

Madam Speaker, I second the motion.

Any questions? Members, we will be taking a voice vote. All those in favor say aye. All those opposed say no. The motion is carried. Representative Todd.

Madam Speaker, I move to reconsider action taken pursuant to the recommendations contained in standing Committee report numbers 2074 and 2069, recommending referral to the Committee on Finance.

Representative Morikawa. Madam Speaker, I second the motion. Any discussion? Members, we will be taking a voice vote. All those in favor say aye. All those opposed say no. The motion is carried.

Representative Todd. Madam Speaker, I move to adopt Standing Senate Concurrent Resolution Number 86, SD1HD1, and Senate Concurrent Resolution Number 145, SD1, as listed on pages 1 and 2.

Representative Morikawa. Madam Speaker, I second the motion. Any discussion on these Items beginning with SCR number 86. SCR number 145. Representative Garcia, reservations. So ordered. Representative Pyrrick.

Thank you. No vote.

So ordered. Representative Muraoka.

So ordered. Okay, Members, we will be taking a voice vote. All those in favor say aye. All those opposed say no. The motion is carried. Item number six, Reports of Standing Committees. Representative Todd.

No vote.

Madam Speaker, I move to adopt Standing Committee report numbers 2140 through 2146 as listed on pages 2 through 4, and that the accompanying Senate Concurrent Resolutions as may be amended, be adopted. Representative Morikawa.

Madam Speaker, I second the motion. Any discussion on these items beginning with HSCR number 214141 on the top of page three. Signing Committee report number 21422143. Representative Moraoka.

No vote.

So ordered. 2144. At the top of page four, standing Committee report, 2145. 2146. Representative Garcia.

No vote.

So ordered. Representative Iwamoto.

I rise in support with reservations and a comment.

Please proceed.

So, this is requesting the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to convene a Tourism and Gaming Working Group. The product of this working group will be to propose future legislation.

However, my reservations lie in the fact that I actually wonder if the composition of this working group will come up with legislation to mitigate the harms that gambling algorithms are designed to have on our economically vulnerable families. Who will propose consumer protection bills related to effects of gambling?

Should there be bans on gambling companies being able to seek orders to garnish wages? Should we allow children to sue gambling companies for third party tortious interference when a parent gambles away their child support?

I just hope that there will be some consideration given to mitigating instead of just looking to allow for profits to be generated for these gambling companies. For these reasons, I have reservations. Thanks.

Representative Muraoka.

Now positions and can I have the words of Representative...as my own?

So ordered. Representative Matsumoto.

No vote.

So ordered. Representative Reyes Oda.

No vote.

So ordered. Representative Alcos.

No vote.

So ordered. Representative Pierick.

Thank you. In opposition.

Please proceed.

Gambling is an evil that invites other bad practices and other bad hobbies into the community. We have a very bad economy in our state. Taxes are high, costs of things are high, and we're going to add a vice into the community gambling.

So, the people who work hard for their money and then go gamble it away and then, oh no, they don't have money to buy food or pay for the rent. This is a bad idea. And so, I vote no.

Representative Perruso.

No vote.

So ordered. Representative Matayoshi.

With reservations. Brief comment.

So ordered. Please proceed.

Thank you. I—sorry, this thing's cutting in and out. Anyway, I, I think you know, Madam Speaker, that I, that I'm against legalizing gambling here. For this working group, I, I'm willing to see what comes out of it.

But I, I certainly do hope that the ills of gambling and the potential negative effects of gambling are also studied and considered in the working group as well. Thank you.

Representative Grandinetti.

No vote.

So ordered. Representative Kila.

Reservations.

So ordered. Representative Garrett.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. In opposition with a brief comment, please.

Please proceed.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Supporters of this resolution will say it's harmless, that it's just us gathering information to help us make an informed decision. But let's be real.

When you create a working group, invite representatives of gaming corporations to the table, and ask them to help draft the tourism gaming policy, you're not just studying the issue, you're scripting the outcome. This isn't research, it's a rehearsal. We've seen it across the country.

A so-called neutral study becomes a vehicle to legitimize the industry, sideline community voices, and paint gambling as inevitable. And once that narrative takes hold, it's almost impossible to turn back. The clear sign of where this is headed is the inclusion of the Aloha Stadium developer in the working group. Let's be honest.

When you need a casino to make your stadium pencil out, that's not planning, that's panic. That's a bailout dressed up as a policy discussion. Their seat at the table confirms what many of us already suspect. The stadium's finances are shaky, and gambling is being used as a financial life raft.

Madam Speaker, let's talk about the real stakes here. Legalized gambling doesn't come free. It comes with a bill our communities are left to pay. Across the country, the pattern is clear. Addiction goes up, debt goes up. Family breakdown and demand on social services go up.

In the promised economic uplift, it rarely materializes. And tthe people who suffer most, they're not tourists; they're our kupuna. They're working families. We should be building an economy that lifts people up, not one that cashes in when they fall down. Let's not confuse motion with progress. Gambling doesn't grow opportunity, it grows dependency.

And with all due respect, gambling is not economic development, it's economic extraction. If we're serious about high paying jobs in a diversified economy, then let's invest in education, innovation, and care, not in roulette wheels and slot machines. This resolution doesn't just open a conversation; it opens a door that we may never be able to close.

So, I'll say it plainly. Don't bet on gambling to boost our economy and don't bet against the people of Hawaii. Thank you, Madam Speaker. I urge my colleagues to vote no.

Representative Marten.

No vote, please.

So ordered. Representative Hussey.

Thank you very much. No vote with a request to insert written remarks into the journal.

So ordered. Representative Holt.

Thank you, Madam Speaker, in strong support.

Please proceed.

You know, this resolution, this resolution is dedicated to examining the potential in legalizing and regulating gaming in Hawaii. It's not about rushing into policy. It's about doing our due diligence, gathering the facts, and initiating a structured, inclusive conversation about the future of gaming in our state. You know, it's already happening.

The HPD has testified that 70 to 100 game rooms operate on anytime in Oahu. And we have nothing, no legal outlet for people to enjoy this type of entertainment. You know, the odds are worse in game realms. I don't have to get into all the ills of what we currently have going on.

You know, this would allow a legal method. As I mentioned, you know, Hawaii remains one of only two states in the nation with a complete ban on all forms of legalized gaming. And meanwhile, you know, states across the country have harnessed gaming as means of diversifying their economy, generating new revenue streams.

You know, it has been mentioned that it's possible to increase our job count by 6,000 jobs and a benefit of $250 million plus to our economy. So, I don't know any other industry currently that could provide these kinds of benefits to our state.

You know, even in small states such as Rhode Island and Delaware, they benefit from over $300 million and $240 million respectively in gross gaming revenue. So, you know, Hawaii is leaving a substantial revenue on the table.

And this would just create a working group to answer some of the questions that we have, such as, you know, what models of gaming could work for Hawaii? How can we ensure that responsible gaming and safeguard against addiction, you know, but also what kind of cultural considerations must be considered when crafting any policy?

And you know, we're such a unique state, so the framework would definitely have to be tailored to specifically fit our needs here in Hawaii. Again, it's not to legalize gambling. This is to study it, to carefully collaborate with the stakeholders. We did remove the industry folks from the resolution to ensure that it's not an unfair balance.

I do understand the concerns with the Aloha Halawa developers being on board, but this is not a bailout to Aloha Stadium, Madam Speaker. This is to study it comprehensively for our entire state.

You know, so, especially in the wake of our budgetary constraints and the rising cost of living, we do need to continue to study these types of things. So, I appreciate our colleagues' support for this resolution. Thank you.

Representative Hussey, for the second time.

Sorry, still in opposition. I just want to clarify my, my opposition to this measure, which I did chair as the, as the ECD Vice Chair, and with respect to the previous speaker, my direction to, to the chair, to the, to our Committee, to, I'm sorry, my direction in the ECD Committee was to remove the gam—was to remove the gaming corporations from the text of the resolutions.

I'm surprised to see that that this version which we have before us this morning still includes references to the corporations. So, that is the reason for my opposition. Thank you very much.

Representative Alcos.

Thank you, Speaker. I would like to adopt the words from Representative from Manoa as my own. And I also want to say that, you know, illegal gambling, we get chicken fights.

So ordered. Are you in opposition?

I'm in opposition.

Okay, thank you.

And we have chicken fights right now.

And other representatives say about game rooms, that we get about over half of the 50% of that is illegal and drug money that they stay betting at the chicken fight, maybe at the game rooms too. And now we're gonna make more game rooms and have more illegal monies going around.

Is that the kind of money that we want for our families and for our economy? I think that we should—you know, it's always not about money.

It should be what kind of money that we have and how do we support our community and not to try to make our keikis, our kids, and our families to go down that road where we have a lot of risk out there. So, that's part of the reason why I'm opposed. Thank you.

Representative Iwamoto.

Thank you, madam. Thank you, Madam Speaker. I actually now rise in opposition. Ater hearing the robust discussion, I'm changing my vote for support with reservations to an opposition. Thank you.

So ordered. Representative Shimizu.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Arise in strong opposition and comments, please.

Please proceed.

Madam Speaker, as you know, I am thoroughly and strongly against gambling. If this resolution passes, I hope and pray that there would be a fair, impartial, unbiased, honest, and objective analysis to conclude without a doubt, comprehensively and definitively that gambling is not a viable consideration by any means.

As someone who represents constituents who are strongly opposed to gambling, it is already discouraging and telling that this resolution has four members on the working group that have a clear bias towards approving gambling. One from Boyd Gaming Corporation, one from DraftKings Incorporated.

Point of order.

What is your point of order?

Actually, point of information, I guess. I'll draw—retract. That's okay.

Please proceed.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. One individual from BetMGM and as was previously referenced, one individual from Aloha Halawa District Partners trying to be part of this working group, while there are no other counter members that have a clear objection against gambling to provide fairness and balance. Let me repeat that again.

There are no other members on this working group that have a clear objection against gambling to provide fairness and balance, whereas we have four individuals that have a clear objective that want to promote gambling. Additionally, Madam Speaker, this resolution—excuse me, resolution—tasks the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to lead this working group.

Please note that HB 1308 was amended to have the same Department, DBEDT, designated to lead this effort after the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs did not want to have the responsibility.

And I would note that the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, who is tasked to lead this working group in SCR 121 already did a 74 page analysis with the conclusion and I read from their report, in a final report response, the estimated tax revenue from online sports wagering is modest at best.

It's a small return considering the long list of negative consequences that come with legalized gambling. Hawaii already struggles with low average household income, some of the highest consumer debt levels in the nation, a lack of financial literacy programs, and widespread poor spending habits. Job creation is minimal. Legalize, legalizing gambling, excuse me, legalizing gambling sends the wrong message.

And I'm reading this from DBEDT's report verbatim. And finally, this proposal clashes with how Hawaii presents itself to the world. We market our islands as family friendly, wellness focused, and rooted in community. Online gambling undermines that image and threatens a brand we've spent generations building.

Madam Speaker, if this resolution passes, I would humbly ask my colleagues to please save your no votes for HB 1308. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Representative Quinlan. Representative Todd.

Thank you. In support.

Please proceed.

Apologize for earlier in standing up. Didn't mean to cut you off that way. I just wanted to correct the record a little bit. The House Draft does not explicitly name those entities regarding the gaming corporations. That was the Senate Draft, and it was revised. So, I just wanted to correct the record on that.

Thanks.

Representative Chun.

Please note my reservations. Thank you.

So ordered. Representative Templo.

No vote, please. Thank you.

So ordered. Members, we will be taking a voice vote. All those—Representative Belatti.

My apologies. With reservations. Request to insert written comments.

So ordered. Representative Pierick.

Thank you. In opposition.

Please proceed.

Would it be permissible to request a roll call vote for this measure?

Recess, subject to the call of the chair.

Will the House come to order? Members will be taking a voice vote. All those in favor say aye. All those opposed say no. The motion is carried. Item number six, reports of standing committees. Representative Todd.

I think we're. Are we on seven? Seven. I'm sorry.

Sorry. Sorry. Item number seven, final reading. Members, there will be three motions. One to agree to the Senate amendments, one to suspend the rules for final reading by consent, and one to pass the House bills on final reading. Rep. Todd for the motion to agree.

Madam Speaker, I move to agree to the amendments made by the Senate to House Bill number 413 HD1. House Bill number 477HD1. House Bill number 871 HD1. House Bill number 951 HD2. House Bill number 1002 HD1. House Bill number 1017 HD1. House Bill number 1065 HD1. House Bill number 1120 HD2. House Bill number 1152 HD1. House Bill number 1379 HD2. Representative Morikawa.

Alice Peak I second the motion.

Any discussion? HB number Excuse me. Voice vote. We'll be taking a voice vote. All those in favor say aye. All those opposed say no. The motion is carried. Representative Morikawa.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules of the House in order to consider certain House Bills for final reading by consent. Calendar Representative Garcia Madam Speaker, I second the motion.

All those in favor signify by saying I. All those opposed say no. The motion is carried.

Representative Todd Madam Speaker, I move that said House Bills with Senate drafts as listed on pages 4 through 6 pass. Final reading.

Representative Morikawa Alice Peak I second the motion. Any discussion on these Items beginning with HB number 413. HB number 477. Representative Pyrrick thank you.

In opposition.

So this Bill is making it easier for people to collect unemployment right now. The process is you basically fill out a quick form online or in person saying I'm trying to get a job. So therefore give me money from the taxpayer be unemployment.

Please proceed.

This would kind of erase that process where you just click a button on a screen saying yep, I'm trying. It decreases accountability for people to say I am really trying to find a job. And in my desperation to get a job, government please give me a handout. I don't think we should be doing handouts.

I don't think people should be getting paid to not work. They should be getting paid to work. A lot of people are hiring right now. So those people go get a job versus collecting unemployment. I'm voting no.

At the Representative Shimizu.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. In opposition with comments, Please.

Please proceed.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I'm reading from testimony that was received from the Society of Human Resource Management. Testifying in opposition because they feel like the use of unemployment funds for those on strike is inappropriate and they feel like the changes need a comprehensive review before we pass such legislation.

Continuing on their testimony, we are concerned about any effort to expand eligibility for unemployment benefits to cover periods in which employees are on strike. We have previously testified that such a change would be an inappropriate use of the unemployment Fund.

The fundamental principle underlying unemployment eligibility is that benefits are available only when work is not available through no fault of the employee. A strike, by its very nature, involves a voluntary work stoppage where work is available but is declined in pursuit of other objectives.

Allowing unemployment benefits in this context would fundamentally alter the character of the Fund and raise serious questions about its appropriate use.

Moreover, determinations about the legitimacy of a strike, whether it is protected, lawful or supported by a bona fide bargaining impasse, are squarely within the jurisdiction of the National Labor Relations Board and the Hawaii Labor Relations Board, the Department of Labor and the Industrial. Excuse me.

The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations and Unemployment Administrators should not be placed in the inappropriate position of second guessing or supplanting those determinations. Employers should not be compelled to subsidize work stoppages that may directly undermine their bargaining positions or extend labor disputes.

Can I call a recess Representative Sayama.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Just a point of order. There's no reference to striking employees in this version of the Bill. Just wanted to make that clear. So if the previous speaker.

Recess. Subject to the call of the chair.

Apologies for any ruckus I caused. Let me move on to a different testimony that is relevant, as was the other testimony. But this is from the Chamber of Commerce, a well respected business organization that controls or is an association that has many of our important businesses. And their comment is. The proposed Bill raises serious concerns.

The measure's overall amendments could lead to inconsistent interpretations and hinder the effective Administration of benefits, ultimately harming both the intended beneficiaries and the broader labor market. Madam Speaker, those are significant reasons why I am opposing this Bill. And I would encourage my colleagues to do likewise. Thank you.

Representative Sayama. Are you in support.

Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Please proceed.

Thank you. I'd just like to clarify some information regarding this measure. And I appreciate the comments from the previous speaker. I apologize if I interrupted anything to want to clarify. There is no mention of striking employees in this measure.

This is for the General Part a Bill that will help streamline and modernize a lot of DLIR's application and operations for Unemployment Insurance in the state. For example, it was previously mentioned that it would make it too easy to apply for UI when in fact it is actually fairly difficult.

And actually the current law requires UI applications for the most part to be a hard copy mailed rather than be processed online. And so in this modern age, you know, this measure would allow DLIR to have some of these forms done online, like best practices for many other forms in public service that the State of Hawaii provides.

So again, this is for the most part just providing a better service to the citizens of the State of Hawaii. So with that, again, I just stand in support.

Representative Iwamoto.

Thank you Madam Speaker. I rise in support. I just wanted to remind the body that individual employees contribute to Unemployment Insurance. It is something that's that they pay for. So when they claim it, it is something that they've actually contributed to. It's not just other taxpayers payers. Thank you so much.

Representative Souza. In support, Madam Speaker. And can I have the words of the previous two speakers insert into the record as my own so ordered. Moving on to the top of page 5 HB 871. HB 951 Representative Garcia, reservations. So ordered. HB1002. HB 1017, Representative Iwamoto.

Thank you Madam Speaker. I rise in opposition. This is. Thank you. This is relating to the Greenhouse Gas Sequestration Task Force and it is designed to repeal the task force and the the Committee report recognizes that it's due to a lack of funding.

And I just wanted to share with you that instead of repealing this law, we should be providing adequate funding. I am shocked that there is no UH or HP student willing to take on the work. As part of their thesis perhaps.

And I also wanted to share with this body an op-ed written by Chip Fletcher, the interim dean of the School of Ocean and Earth Sciences and Technology at UH.

He wrote an op-ed on Sunday, this Sunday that I'd like to read excerpts from to demonstrate why we cannot afford to repeal investment in our state's greenhouse gas sequestration efforts. He writes, the climate crisis is no longer a distant concern. It's here now. Repeated reshaping daily life across Hawaii.

In 2024, the islands endured record breaking heat, persistent drought, stronger storms and rising seas. Each of the past 15 months shattered global monthly temperature records. This heat has serious consequences especially for Puna Outdoor Workers and low-income residents. Crops also suffer, energy bills spike and food Insecurity deep. Especially as 85% to 90% of our food is imported.

Much from California's Central Valley, where in 2024, temperatures reached 125 degrees Fahrenheit. On Oahu, fire incidents has surged by 400% since the 1960s. In 2023 alone, there were 214 wildfires scorched more than 12,000 acres statewide. Our oceans have absorbed over 90% of global warming's excess heat.

But in 2024, record high ocean temperatures fueled the most extensive global coral bleaching event ever recorded. Causing coral. I'm sorry. Ever recorded. Causing coral to decline sharply, undermining biodiversity, harming tourism and threatening an $800 million ocean economy as waters warm. Storm frequency and severity.

Point of order.

What is the.

I think we're off of the subject of the reso.

Can you please stick to the greenhouse.

Repealing the task force. All of these issues specifically deal with greenhouse gases. And I am saying that we should not be repealing the work of the task force. And what I'm reading is exactly related. Point of order, madam.

Would she please address the rostrum? Representative Quinlan, would the speaker please address the rostrum?

Okay.

Thank you.

And please, please keep your remarks to the task force.

Yes, the work of the task force that I am opposed to repealing because of this need, which I think whenever we've been speaking on bills and resos, we've been identifying the impacts, haven't. Haven't we, Madam Speaker? And so I am actually doing the same thing here and now.

The United nations warns the unchecked climate change could erase one third of global GDP by 2000. For Hawaii, this is not just economic, it's existential.

Point of order is denying the climate change exists or the impacts of it, or diminishing the importance of addressing it. That's not what this Bill is about.

Again, please. This is about the task force itself and the creation and the recycling and the repeal. Thank you, madam, for here. This is. So we're not talking about the task force, the agenda of the task force, we're talking about the.

The task force itself. Correct. And the task force is designed to address the very issues that Mr. Fletcher has identified. And so I'm basically trying to argue that by repealing this task force because we're not allocating sufficient funding, that that is the wrong direction. So I'm saying to keep it in the books.

And I'm saying this is why we must keep focus on the work at hand. Okay. All right. Thank you. Yes. So the but decisive Investment could instead grow global GDP by point. Recess, subject to the call of the chair.

Will the House come back to order? Representative Iwamoto?

Thank you, Madam Speaker. In conclusion, we need to invest in, rather than repeal, impactful efforts that help us mitigate these devastating effects on the climate and as a result, our economy and our livelihoods. For these reasons, I'm in opposition to this Bill. Thank you.

Representative Lowen.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. In support, please proceed. This is an administrative bill to repeal an existing task force that completed the study that they were asked to to complete. We have numerous other task force moving and there's numerous task force and commissions. All these Members who also chair departments or run NGOs are committed to.

So the Members of the task force are also asking for it to be repealed because it has completed its purpose and there are again many other venues for these issues being worked on.

And I also just want to clarify, you know, that it is not fair to imply that the Members of the Committee on EEP or the subsequent committees that heard this bill are, you know, devaluing the work that needs to be done on climate and all of the things that were mentioned by the previous Speaker.

This is simply one of many, many, you know, task force working groups that we always have ongoing in the state that was passed without a sunset date. And that's why we should generally think about if working groups and commissions and et cetera should have sunset dates.

Because to have every working group and every task force and every Commission that we've ever created by this Legislature go on forever would mean that nobody who works on any of, you know, in our departments could get any other work done. And that would not be a good place to be.

Moving on to HB number 1065. HB number 1120. HB number 1152 and HB number 1379. Representative Morikawa for the vote.

[Roll Call]

Representative Garcia.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. On the measures before us, all minority Members vote aye, with the exception of the following. On page four, House Bill 477, Senate Draft 2, House Draft 1. Reps. Alcos, Garcia, Matsumoto, Muraoka, Shimizu, Reyes Oda, and Pierick vote no.

Have all votes been cast? Said bills pass final reading. Item number eight, announcements. Members, are there any announcements? Representative Morikawa.

Madam Speaker, I move that this House stands adjourned until 11:30 AM tomorrow.

Representative Garcia.

Madam Speaker, I second the motion.

All those in favor say aye. All those opposed say no. The motion is carried. The House stands adjourned until 11:30 AM tomorrow.