AI Frontier Institute

Relating To Artificial Intelligence.

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Hawaii S.B. 2923 (33rd Legislature, 2026) would enact the Hawaii Artificial Intelligence Safety and Regulation Act by adding a new chapter to the Hawaii Revised Statutes. Under Section 4 of that new chapter (§-4), no person may deploy an AI product in Hawaii without first submitting affirmative proof of the product's safety to a newly created Office of Artificial Intelligence Safety and Regulation. The Office is established within the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs under §-11, headed by a governor-appointed executive director (four-year term, senate-confirmed) who is exempt from state civil-service rules (chapter 76). Guided by the 'precautionary principle' defined in §-3, the executive director's duties under §-13 include identifying and assessing AI risks, developing and enforcing regulations, setting data-privacy and transparency standards, conducting periodic risk assessments and audits, maintaining a public incident-reporting system, and adopting rules under chapter 91. Section §-14 requires a risk-based approach: higher-risk AI applications face a higher burden of proof before deployment, and the Office must maintain a framework categorizing AI systems by risk level. The executive director must submit an annual report to the director, governor, and legislature at least 20 days before each regular session (§-15). Violations of the chapter or Office rules carry civil fines per day per offense under §-21, and the attorney general or executive director of the Office of Consumer Protection may investigate and bring civil enforcement actions under §-22. Section 2 amends HRS §26-9(e) to exempt Office personnel from standard DCCA personnel rules. Section 3 appropriates an unspecified sum from general revenues for fiscal year 2026-2027 to establish the Office. The Act would take effect July 1, 2026 (Section 5).

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