HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES H.C.R. NO. 61 THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025 STATE OF HAWAII HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION requesting A study EXAMINING how certain other jurisdictions produce fiscal notes.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES H.C.R. NO. 61
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H.C.R. NO.
61
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII
HOUSE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
requesting A study EXAMINING how certain other jurisdictions produce fiscal notes.
WHEREAS, the Hawaii State Constitution assigns the authority to appropriate funds to the Hawaii State Legislature; and WHEREAS, during each Regular Session, the Legislature considers hundreds of spending- and tax-related bills that may have an impact on the State's budget; and WHEREAS, members of the Hawaii State Legislature would benefit from having accurate and useful information about the fiscal impacts of those bills; and WHEREAS, in many other states, legislators analyzing fiscal measures may refer to fiscal notes, which are written reports that project the budget impacts of some or all bills; and WHEREAS, among the states that use fiscal notes, the procedures used to produce the notes and the information contained within the reports differ dramatically from state to state; and WHEREAS, for example, in most states, fiscal notes are produced by a nonpartisan legislative fiscal office, while in other states, fiscal notes are produced by an executive branch agency that is involved in development of the executive budget, or in a few states, by a legislative committee; and WHEREAS, similarly, some states require fiscal notes to be produced for every bill that may have a significant financial impact, while other states produce fiscal notes only for select bills or upon the request of legislators; and WHEREAS, some states project the costs of legislation for a single fiscal year, while other states project the costs of legislation for multiple fiscal years; for example, projections in twelve states and the District of Columbia include four or more years; and WHEREAS, some states require fiscal notes to be updated each time a bill is amended during the legislative process, while other states do not require such revisions; and WHEREAS, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, in its report entitled "Better Cost Estimates, Better Budgets," noted that Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Oregon, Texas, and the District of Columbia meet all of its best practices criteria in the production of fiscal notes, because those jurisdictions: (1) Prepare fiscal notes for all bills and revise the fiscal notes as the bills move through the legislative process; (2) Create fiscal notes in a manner that is free from partisan pressure; (3) Project the long-term fiscal impacts of proposed legislation; and (4) Make fiscal notes accessible to the public; and WHEREAS, presently, the Hawaii State Legislature's budget committees work with the executive branch to estimate the fiscal impacts of legislative proposals; however, there are no formal fiscal notes produced; and WHEREAS, although Act 127, Session Laws of Hawaii 1990, established an Office of the Legislative Analyst under chapter 21F, Hawaii Revised Statutes, as a separate fiscal policy office in the legislative branch, it has never been funded; and WHEREAS, according to section 21F-7(a), Hawaii Revised Statutes, the purposes of the Office of the Legislative Analyst include: (1) Providing the Legislature with research and analysis of current and projected state revenues and expenditures; (2) Researching economic and fiscal policy; (3) Providing economic reports and studies on the state of Hawaii's economy; (4) Conducting budget and tax studies and providing general fiscal and budgetary information; (5) Reviewing the operation of state programs to appraise the implementation of state laws regarding the expenditure of funds and recommending means to improve efficiency; and (6) Recommending changes in the mix of revenue sources for programs, in the percentage of state expenditures devoted to major programs, and in the role of the Legislature in overseeing state government expenditures and revenue projections; and WHEREAS, section 21F-8, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires state agencies to comply with requests of the Office of the Legislative Analyst for information, data, estimates, and statistics, and requires the heads of certain agencies to provide the Office of the Legislative Analyst with full and free access to information, data, estimates, and statistics on the state budget, revenue, and expenditures; and WHEREAS, accordingly, it would be beneficial to study how other states generate fiscal notes to determine which state model, if any, would work best for Hawaii; now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the Senate concurring, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to study how Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Oregon, Texas, and the District of Columbia produce fiscal notes; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, for each jurisdiction examined, the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to analyze: (1) The statute, rule, or other authority governing the preparation of fiscal notes; (2) The types of bills for which fiscal notes are produced; (3) At what points during the legislative process fiscal notes are produced and revised; (4) The type of information included in the fiscal note; (5) The entity responsible for producing the fiscal note; (6) The time period for which the jurisdiction must project financial impacts; and (7) Any other matters that the Legislative Reference Bureau believes may be helpful or significant for the purposes of the study; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2026; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau. OFFERED BY: _____________________________
WHEREAS, the Hawaii State Constitution assigns the authority to appropriate funds to the Hawaii State Legislature; and
WHEREAS, during each Regular Session, the Legislature considers hundreds of spending- and tax-related bills that may have an impact on the State's budget; and
WHEREAS, members of the Hawaii State Legislature would benefit from having accurate and useful information about the fiscal impacts of those bills; and
WHEREAS, in many other states, legislators analyzing fiscal measures may refer to fiscal notes, which are written reports that project the budget impacts of some or all bills; and
WHEREAS, among the states that use fiscal notes, the procedures used to produce the notes and the information contained within the reports differ dramatically from state to state; and
WHEREAS, for example, in most states, fiscal notes are produced by a nonpartisan legislative fiscal office, while in other states, fiscal notes are produced by an executive branch agency that is involved in development of the executive budget, or in a few states, by a legislative committee; and
WHEREAS, similarly, some states require fiscal notes to be produced for every bill that may have a significant financial impact, while other states produce fiscal notes only for select bills or upon the request of legislators; and
WHEREAS, some states project the costs of legislation for a single fiscal year, while other states project the costs of legislation for multiple fiscal years; for example, projections in twelve states and the District of Columbia include four or more years; and
WHEREAS, some states require fiscal notes to be updated each time a bill is amended during the legislative process, while other states do not require such revisions; and
WHEREAS, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, in its report entitled "Better Cost Estimates, Better Budgets," noted that Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Oregon, Texas, and the District of Columbia meet all of its best practices criteria in the production of fiscal notes, because those jurisdictions:
(1) Prepare fiscal notes for all bills and revise the fiscal notes as the bills move through the legislative process;
(2) Create fiscal notes in a manner that is free from partisan pressure;
(3) Project the long-term fiscal impacts of proposed legislation; and
(4) Make fiscal notes accessible to the public; and
WHEREAS, presently, the Hawaii State Legislature's budget committees work with the executive branch to estimate the fiscal impacts of legislative proposals; however, there are no formal fiscal notes produced; and
WHEREAS, although Act 127, Session Laws of Hawaii 1990, established an Office of the Legislative Analyst under chapter 21F, Hawaii Revised Statutes, as a separate fiscal policy office in the legislative branch, it has never been funded; and
WHEREAS, according to section 21F-7(a), Hawaii Revised Statutes, the purposes of the Office of the Legislative Analyst include:
(1) Providing the Legislature with research and analysis of current and projected state revenues and expenditures;
(2) Researching economic and fiscal policy;
(3) Providing economic reports and studies on the state of Hawaii's economy;
(4) Conducting budget and tax studies and providing general fiscal and budgetary information;
(5) Reviewing the operation of state programs to appraise the implementation of state laws regarding the expenditure of funds and recommending means to improve efficiency; and
(6) Recommending changes in the mix of revenue sources for programs, in the percentage of state expenditures devoted to major programs, and in the role of the Legislature in overseeing state government expenditures and revenue projections; and
WHEREAS, section 21F-8, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires state agencies to comply with requests of the Office of the Legislative Analyst for information, data, estimates, and statistics, and requires the heads of certain agencies to provide the Office of the Legislative Analyst with full and free access to information, data, estimates, and statistics on the state budget, revenue, and expenditures; and
WHEREAS, accordingly, it would be beneficial to study how other states generate fiscal notes to determine which state model, if any, would work best for Hawaii; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the Senate concurring, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to study how Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Oregon, Texas, and the District of Columbia produce fiscal notes; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, for each jurisdiction examined, the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to analyze:
(1) The statute, rule, or other authority governing the preparation of fiscal notes;
(2) The types of bills for which fiscal notes are produced;
(3) At what points during the legislative process fiscal notes are produced and revised;
(4) The type of information included in the fiscal note;
(5) The entity responsible for producing the fiscal note;
(6) The time period for which the jurisdiction must project financial impacts; and
(7) Any other matters that the Legislative Reference Bureau believes may be helpful or significant for the purposes of the study; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2026; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau.
OFFERED BY: _____________________________
OFFERED BY:
_____________________________
Report Title: LRB; Fiscal Notes; Study; Other Jurisdictions
Report Title:
LRB; Fiscal Notes; Study; Other Jurisdictions