Hawaii 2024 Regular Session

Hawaii Senate Bill SB2059 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	THE SENATE S.B. NO. 2059 THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024 STATE OF HAWAII A BILL FOR AN ACT relating to accessibility. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
2	2
3	3	THE SENATE S.B. NO. 2059
4	4	THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
5	5	STATE OF HAWAII
6	6
7	7	THE SENATE
8	8
9	9	S.B. NO.
10	10
11	11	2059
12	12
13	13	THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024
14	14
15	15
16	16
17	17	STATE OF HAWAII
18	18
19	19
20	20
21	21
22	22
23	23
24	24
25	25
26	26
27	27
28	28
29	29
30	30
31	31	A BILL FOR AN ACT
32	32
33	33
34	34
35	35
36	36
37	37	relating to accessibility.
38	38
39	39
40	40
41	41
42	42
43	43	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
44	44
45	45
46	46
47	47	SECTION 1. The legislature finds that, in 2004, Allyson Bain, a fourteen-year-old who had a flare-up of her Crohn's disease, was shopping with her mother at a large retail establishment in Illinois when she experienced a sudden need to use the restroom. There were no public restrooms nearby and Ms. Bain was denied access to the employee-only restroom of the establishment, causing her to soil herself. Thereafter, Ms. Bain and her mother worked with their state representative to introduce and pass a bill to permit customers access to employee-only bathrooms if the customer has an eligible medical condition requiring immediate access to a toilet. Illinois became the first state to enact the Restroom Access Act, informally known as Ally's Law, in 2005. The legislature further finds that individuals with certain medical conditions, including but not limited to Crohn's disease and inflammatory bowel disease, may experience urgent restroom needs. Since the passage of Ally's law in Illinois, numerous states have passed similar legislation, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. Ally's law falls under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The purpose of this Act is to join those states that have adopted Ally's law and require any retail establishment operating within the State that has an employee-only restroom to permit a customer suffering from an eligible medical condition to use that restroom during normal business hours under certain conditions. SECTION 2. Chapter 321, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to part I to be appropriately designated and to read as follows: "§321- Retail establishment; customer access to employee toilet facility; eligible medical condition. (a) A retail establishment that has a toilet facility for its employees shall allow a customer to use that facility during normal business hours; provided that the following conditions are met: (1) The customer requesting the use of the employee toilet facility suffers from an eligible medical condition and provides the retail establishment with proof of an eligible medical condition, in the form of: (A) A statement signed by a physician; or (B) A specially issued card from a health organization or state health agency; (2) Three or more employees of the retail establishment are working and physically present on the premises of the retail establishment at the time the customer requests use of the employee toilet facility; (3) The retail establishment does not normally make a restroom available to the public; (4) The employee toilet facility is reasonably safe and is not located in an area where providing access would create an obvious health or safety risk to the customer or an obvious security risk to the retail establishment; and (5) A public restroom is not immediately accessible to the customer. (b) A retail establishment or an employee of a retail establishment shall not be civilly liable for damages arising from any act or omission in allowing a customer who has an eligible medical condition to use an employee toilet facility that is not a public restroom; provided that the act or omission is: (1) Not negligent; (2) Occurs in an area of the retail establishment that is not accessible to the public; and (3) Results in an injury to or death of the customer or any individual other than an employee accompanying the customer. (c) A retail establishment shall not be required to make any physical changes to an employee toilet facility for the purposes of this section. (d) Any retail establishment or employee of a retail establishment who violates this section shall be fined not more than $100 for each violation. (e) For the purposes of this section: "Customer" means an individual who is lawfully on the premises of a retail establishment. "Eligible medical condition" means Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, any other inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, or any other medical condition that requires immediate access to a toilet facility. "Physician" means an individual authorized to practice medicine or osteopathy under the laws of any state. "Retail establishment" means a place of business open to the general public for the sale of goods or services. "Retail establishment" does not include a fuel filling or service station, with a structure of eight hundred square feet or less, that has an employee toilet facility located within that structure." SECTION 3. New statutory material is underscored. SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval. INTRODUCED BY: _____________________________
48	48
49	49	SECTION 1. The legislature finds that, in 2004, Allyson Bain, a fourteen-year-old who had a flare-up of her Crohn's disease, was shopping with her mother at a large retail establishment in Illinois when she experienced a sudden need to use the restroom. There were no public restrooms nearby and Ms. Bain was denied access to the employee-only restroom of the establishment, causing her to soil herself. Thereafter, Ms. Bain and her mother worked with their state representative to introduce and pass a bill to permit customers access to employee-only bathrooms if the customer has an eligible medical condition requiring immediate access to a toilet. Illinois became the first state to enact the Restroom Access Act, informally known as Ally's Law, in 2005.
50	50
51	51	The legislature further finds that individuals with certain medical conditions, including but not limited to Crohn's disease and inflammatory bowel disease, may experience urgent restroom needs. Since the passage of Ally's law in Illinois, numerous states have passed similar legislation, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. Ally's law falls under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
52	52
53	53	The purpose of this Act is to join those states that have adopted Ally's law and require any retail establishment operating within the State that has an employee-only restroom to permit a customer suffering from an eligible medical condition to use that restroom during normal business hours under certain conditions.
54	54
55	55	SECTION 2. Chapter 321, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to part I to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:
56	56
57	57	"§321- Retail establishment; customer access to employee toilet facility; eligible medical condition. (a) A retail establishment that has a toilet facility for its employees shall allow a customer to use that facility during normal business hours; provided that the following conditions are met:
58	58
59	59	(1) The customer requesting the use of the employee toilet facility suffers from an eligible medical condition and provides the retail establishment with proof of an eligible medical condition, in the form of:
60	60
61	61	(A) A statement signed by a physician; or
62	62
63	63	(B) A specially issued card from a health organization or state health agency;
64	64
65	65	(2) Three or more employees of the retail establishment are working and physically present on the premises of the retail establishment at the time the customer requests use of the employee toilet facility;
66	66
67	67	(3) The retail establishment does not normally make a restroom available to the public;
68	68
69	69	(4) The employee toilet facility is reasonably safe and is not located in an area where providing access would create an obvious health or safety risk to the customer or an obvious security risk to the retail establishment; and
70	70
71	71	(5) A public restroom is not immediately accessible to the customer.
72	72
73	73	(b) A retail establishment or an employee of a retail establishment shall not be civilly liable for damages arising from any act or omission in allowing a customer who has an eligible medical condition to use an employee toilet facility that is not a public restroom; provided that the act or omission is:
74	74
75	75	(1) Not negligent;
76	76
77	77	(2) Occurs in an area of the retail establishment that is not accessible to the public; and
78	78
79	79	(3) Results in an injury to or death of the customer or any individual other than an employee accompanying the customer.
80	80
81	81	(c) A retail establishment shall not be required to make any physical changes to an employee toilet facility for the purposes of this section.
82	82
83	83	(d) Any retail establishment or employee of a retail establishment who violates this section shall be fined not more than $100 for each violation.
84	84
85	85	(e) For the purposes of this section:
86	86
87	87	"Customer" means an individual who is lawfully on the premises of a retail establishment.
88	88
89	89	"Eligible medical condition" means Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, any other inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, or any other medical condition that requires immediate access to a toilet facility.
90	90
91	91	"Physician" means an individual authorized to practice medicine or osteopathy under the laws of any state.
92	92
93	93	"Retail establishment" means a place of business open to the general public for the sale of goods or services. "Retail establishment" does not include a fuel filling or service station, with a structure of eight hundred square feet or less, that has an employee toilet facility located within that structure."
94	94
95	95	SECTION 3. New statutory material is underscored.
96	96
97	97	SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
98	98
99	99
100	100
101	101	INTRODUCED BY: _____________________________
102	102
103	103	INTRODUCED BY:
104	104
105	105	_____________________________
106	106
107	107
108	108
109	109
110	110
111	111	Report Title: Ally's Law; The Restroom Access Act; Retail Establishments; Customer Access to Employee Toilet Facilities; Eligible Medical Condition Description: Requires a retail establishment with an employee toilet facility to allow a customer suffering from an eligible medical condition to use that restroom during normal business hours, under certain conditions. Exempts a retail establishment and employees from civil liability in allowing an eligible customer to use an employee toilet facility in certain circumstances. Establishes fines. The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
112	112
113	113
114	114
115	115
116	116
117	117
118	118
119	119	Report Title:
120	120
121	121	Ally's Law; The Restroom Access Act; Retail Establishments; Customer Access to Employee Toilet Facilities; Eligible Medical Condition
122	122
123	123
124	124
125	125	Description:
126	126
127	127	Requires a retail establishment with an employee toilet facility to allow a customer suffering from an eligible medical condition to use that restroom during normal business hours, under certain conditions. Exempts a retail establishment and employees from civil liability in allowing an eligible customer to use an employee toilet facility in certain circumstances. Establishes fines.
128	128
129	129
130	130
131	131
132	132
133	133
134	134
135	135	The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.