Hawaii caps what government can charge to find your records

Relating To Fees For Public Records Under Chapter 92f.

Introduced· 2025-01-16

Who's it for

Who's it for: Everyday People

What it means for you

8/10Helps you

Good for everyday people ·

Plain‑English summary, cross‑checked against the official bill text.

Hawaii would limit how much it costs to ask the government for documents about itself, capping search fees at $5 per 15 minutes and review fees at $7.50 per 15 minutes, and letting people skip those charges if the disclosure serves the public interest.

Our take

What we think, in plain words.

Right now, Hawaii agencies can charge whatever they want to find and review your records, which means poor people and watchdogs often can't afford to hold government accountable. This bill would put a price ceiling on those fees and create a 'public interest waiver', if you're digging into something that helps the public understand how government actually works (not just your own private records), you might not have to pay at all. That's a big deal because it means local journalists, nonprofits, and ordinary citizens could actually afford to investigate city hall. The catch: the bill doesn't set a hard rule, the Office of Information Practices still has to write the actual rules, and 'public interest' can be fuzzy. But right now there's no cap and no waiver option at all, so this moves the needle toward transparency. This is moving quietly through committees (JHA and Finance) and has broad Democratic backing, but it hasn't gotten much attention yet. If you care about government staying honest, now is the time to let your rep know this matters.

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The facts

What the bill actually says, no spin.

Hawaii agencies can currently charge unlimited amounts to search, review, and segregate (separate out secret stuff from public stuff) in government records
The bill caps search fees at $5 per 15 minutes and review fees at $7.50 per 15 minutes
It would create a 'public interest waiver' so requesters don't pay if the disclosure helps the public understand how government works and isn't mainly for profit
The waiver looks at six factors: what the request is about, how informative the records are, how much the public would learn, how significant that learning is, whether there's a commercial interest, and what the main reason for disclosure is
The bill mirrors the federal Freedom of Information Act's public-interest standard
The Office of Information Practices (a state office that handles records disputes) would write the actual rules