Public-notice bill advances after AG amendments; critics warn of digital-access and accessibility gaps

The House Committee on Labor voted to pass HB 2388 on Feb. 19 after adopting Attorney General amendments that preserve certain statutory exemptions and add a savings clause. The amendments retain exemptions in HRS chapters 103D, 103F, 127A and 523A, and add technical and style changes, including a defective effective date.

Deputy Attorney General Jun Min Lee told the committee the AG’s office identified implementation issues and recommended keeping existing exemptions to avoid unintended consequences. County clerks and procurement officials testified they support flexibility in notice formats for cost reasons—Moana Lutte, county clerk for Maui County, said her office’s public-notice budget rose from $60,000 to $75,000 and that switching to online notice could be more efficient.

Attorney Peter Fritz testified in opposition and urged the committee to hold the bill. Fritz raised three primary concerns: fragmentation of notice locations that would force citizens to check multiple agency sites; the digital divide affecting kupuna and households without broadband; and accessibility problems when agencies post image-based PDFs incompatible with screen readers. Fritz urged mandatory dual notice (print and digital), a centralized portal, WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) compliance, and tamper-proof archiving similar to newspapers.

The committee adopted AG language to preserve listed exemptions and added a savings clause confirming the bill would not supersede more specific statutory notice requirements; the committee moved the bill forward with amendments.

The record contains extensive public testimony, agency comments, and the committee’s acceptance of the AG’s recommended fixes.