HI SB2315

Exempts women who are breastfeeding or expressing breast milk from jury duty for two years from the birth of the child.

Adds breastfeeding mothers as a new category of persons eligible to claim exemption from jury service under Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 612-6.

Recognizes health benefits of breastfeeding for infants and mothers, and notes that only 26.4% of Hawaiian babies are exclusively breastfeeding at six months as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Acknowledges that jury duty creates hardship for breastfeeding mothers due to mother-child separation and lack of access to pumping supplies, and notes that seventeen states already provide similar exemptions.

Takes effect on March 1, 2017.