Bill > HB1100

This bill updates the Neighbor Islands Blind and Visually Impaired Service Pilot Program by replacing the term "visually impaired" with "low vision" to reduce stigma, and modifies several implementation details of the program originally established by Act 253 in 2023. The bill changes the program's implementation timeline, pushing back the working group's implementation plan submission to the legislature from 2024 to 2025, and clarifies that the pilot program will cease to exist on July 30, 2029. The program aims to provide support services to blind and low vision residents on neighbor islands (defined as counties with less than 500,000 people), offering services such as peer-to-peer outreach, adjustment counseling, mobility training, technology training, daily living skills support, and advocacy assistance. The Department of Human Services will contract with a nonprofit organization to recruit and train volunteers to deliver these services, with a requirement that the organization's management team include a majority of individuals who are blind or have low vision. The bill also requires the department to submit a comprehensive report to the legislature before the 2029 legislative session, detailing the program's activities and recommending whether to extend the pilot program.

Budget and Finance, Housing and Urban Affairs

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=HB&billnumber=1100&year=2026