HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H.R. NO.
123
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII
HOUSE RESOLUTION
urging state departments and agencies to include dedicated day care facilities for adults and children when designing state buildings that will employ or house two hundred fifty or more persons.
WHEREAS, access to affordable childcare and elder care services remains a significant challenge for working families across the State; and
WHEREAS, Hawaii has some of the highest childcare costs in the United States, with the average annual cost of center-based infant care estimated at approximately $22,585, and toddler care averaging about $17,925 per year; and
WHEREAS, these childcare costs place a substantial financial burden on families and represent more than twenty percent of the State's median household income, far exceeding the United States Department of Health and Human Services affordability benchmark of seven percent of family income; and
WHEREAS, Hawaii also faces a severe shortage of licensed childcare providers and early childhood educators, with workforce shortages estimated between twenty-five to thirty percent, limiting the availability of regulated care statewide; and
WHEREAS, existing licensed childcare providers in Hawaii currently have the capacity to serve approximately 19,597 children under the age of five; however, more than fifty-six thousand children under the age of five live in households where all available parents work, meaning that only about one-third of children needing care can be served by licensed childcare providers; and
WHEREAS, limited capacity and workforce shortages have resulted in long wait lists for childcare programs, with many families unable to secure care for infants and toddlers; and
WHEREAS, Hawaii is also experiencing a rapidly aging population, increasing the need for adult day care services that provide supervision, health monitoring, meals, and social engagement for older adults who have working family caregivers; and
WHEREAS, the high cost of land, construction, and commercial leases remains one of the greatest barriers preventing childcare centers and adult day care providers from expanding services across the State; and
WHEREAS, incorporating dedicated care facility spaces into state buildings and public facilities will enable the State to expand access to childcare and adult day care services; and
WHEREAS, the availability of day care facilities for children and adults near workplaces can improve employee productivity, reduce absenteeism, and support recruitment and retention within the State workforce; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that state departments and agencies are urged to include dedicated day care facilities for adults and children when designing state buildings that will employ or house two hundred fifty or more persons; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body urges state departments and agencies to evaluate opportunities to establish partnerships with licensed childcare and adult day care providers to operate services within state facilities employing or housing more than two hundred fifty persons; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this body encourages state departments and agencies responsible for facility planning and capital improvement projects to consider integrating dedicated spaces for licensed childcare and adult day care providers when feasible; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor; Director of Human Services; Director of Health; Comptroller; Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity; Attorney General; Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; Director of Corrections and Rehabilitation; Director of Law Enforcement; Adjutant General; Superintendent of Education; Chairman of the Hawaiian Homes Commission; Director of Human Resources Development; Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court; Director of Labor and Industrial Relations; Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; Director of Taxation; Director of Transportation; Administrator of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs; and President of the University of Hawaiʻi.
OFFERED BY:
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Report Title:
State Facilities; Childcare; Adult Day Care