HI SR64

Requests the State Auditor to conduct a performance audit of the Hawaii State Building Code Council, with findings due 20 days before the 2027 legislative session.

The Council has been effectively inactive since the Governor's September 15, 2023 emergency proclamation on affordable housing suspended certain provisions of law related to it, recognizing the Council had become a barrier to housing production.

The audit would evaluate the efficiency of the three-year code adoption cycle, the Council's impact on regulatory consistency among counties, its effects on construction costs and housing production, and its historical performance.

The audit would examine alternative governance structures, including whether counties should manage and fund the code adoption process instead of the state, and whether the Council should be modified, restructured, or repealed.

The State Auditor is requested to consult with the Department of Accounting and General Services, Governor's Housing Team, all four county planning departments, and construction industry stakeholders.