Bill > SB1081

This bill requires the Department of Budget and Finance to conduct a comprehensive feasibility study on establishing a Legislative Budget Office (LBO), which would provide neutral, nonpartisan fiscal analysis of proposed legislation. The study must examine the costs of creating the office, including resources, staffing, and implementation timeline, and consider the LBO's potential duties such as preparing detailed fiscal analyses of bills, estimating their potential revenue or expenditure impacts, distributing these analyses to legislators and committee members, requesting information from state agencies, and making fiscal reports publicly available online. The bill also repeals the existing (but previously unfunded) Joint Legislative Budget Committee and Office of the Legislative Analyst, and provides an appropriation to fund the feasibility study. The department is required to submit a report with findings and recommendations to the legislature before the 2027 regular session, with the goal of creating a more transparent and informed legislative process by providing lawmakers and the public with objective, professional fiscal impact assessments of proposed legislation. The bill is notably set to take effect on January 1, 2491, which appears to be a placeholder or potential typographical error.

Budget and Finance, Government Affairs

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=SB&billnumber=1081&year=2026