Senate Bill 2784 was finally deferred Monday during the Senate Labor and Technology Committee hearing after being deferred twice last week.

State Sen. Henry Aquino (D, Pearl City-­Waipahu-West Loch), who chairs the committee, said, “I do believe that this needs to be an ongoing discussion.”

He said he wants to continue the discussion on whether this bill would affect restaurants and the hiring of back-of-house staff along with the possible consequences of increased menu prices.

Aquino said he wants to “find other ways to help tipped employees and others on the lower pay scale via tax credits or some other continued discussion outside of this bill, which could include a phased elimination of the credit in the future.”

State Sen. Kurt Fevella (R, Ewa Beach-Ocean Pointe-Iroquois Point) asked Aquino to have the committee look into the issue of tipped employees more following its deferral.

Fevella, during SB 2784’s first hearing, was vocal Wednesday on his pushback on this bill, saying that he was upset that restaurant industries take advantage of employees through the tip credit.

Aquino said he will continue to open up the discussion to both employers and employees to come up with a solution, and appreciated all the input he received.

“I believe it’s only fair that we continue this discussion outside of the bill,” Aquino said.