Bill > HB944

This bill seeks to enhance the role of neighborhood boards in local government budget processes by creating a systematic approach for community input on capital improvement projects and operating budget priorities. The legislation requires neighborhood boards to follow a uniform process for soliciting suggestions from residents, which includes holding public meetings, providing community notice, and voting on a package of recommendations to submit to the county mayor. Each county mayor will then be obligated to review these recommendations and provide a written response explaining whether each suggestion will be included in the proposed budget and why. The county council must then consider these recommendations, the mayor's responses, and the county's overall fiscal health when finalizing the budget. If the mayor does not respond to a specific recommendation, the county council is required to include that recommendation in the budget, subject to potential amendments. The bill recognizes neighborhood boards as important local decision-making bodies that can help represent residents' most basic concerns, such as street parking, crime statistics, bus routes, and park facilities, and aims to give these boards a more formal role in the budgeting process.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=HB&billnumber=944&year=2026