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All-nighters at the Capitol may be a thing of the past if Thursday’s opening conference committee hearing on the state budget is any indication.

When House and Senate lawmakers sat down to hash out differences between their respective versions of the budget, officials said it marked the first time conference work had begun this early in the session.

Senate Ways and Means Chair David Ige credits the new House leadership for the commitment to avoid the last-minute “chaos” that usually ensues. Just last year, lawmakers had to stretch their deadline to 3 a.m. before passing the budget.

That practice happened under the reign of former House Speaker Calvin Say and Finance Chair Marcus Oshiro. They’ve been relegated to the sidelines this session since Joe Souki took over as speaker and Sylvia Luke now heads the money committee.

With the legislative session set to end May 2 and uncertainty over the impact of federal budget cuts, lawmakers said it’s important to spend as much time as possible deliberating on how to dole out the billions of dollars the state collects in taxes to fund dozens of projects, hundreds of programs and thousands of jobs. They said it also helps them improve transparency and avoid making mistakes that happen when it’s rushed.

Ige said after the morning hearing that this year’s approach to the budget is what the Senate has wanted for awhile, but it’s the first time the House has been amenable to the request.

Luke, the House Finance chair, said the joint committee of 30 representatives and senators agrees on two-thirds of the overall state budget, which is more than normal at this point in negotiations. She thanked the senators — who wore matching blue polo shirts in a friendly show of solidarity — for their early concessions, adding that the House will be willing to reciprocate.

More Money for Pensions, Food Inspectors and Charter Schools

Early agreement came on decisions to pre-pay public employee health and retirement benefits, add jobs to increase food inspections and continue work to control invasive species.

The conference committee put $100 million in the budget for fiscal year 2014 and $117.4 million for the following year toward unfunded liabilities. The amount exceeds Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s executive request of $200 million over the biennium, but officials say it will take a lot more to make the funds solvent again.

Hawaii is $16.3 billion behind in financing its Employers-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund and owes $8 billion for its Employees’ Retirement System. The state would need to pay $500 million a year for the next 30 years to catch up.

Ige said the House and Senate are committed this session to passing legislation — most likely — that will make it a statutory requirement for county and state employers to fully fund the benefits promised to thousands of public workers.

Luke said the Legislature is making a statement that it’s committed to addressing the state’s unfunded liabilities issue, which threatens to lower bond ratings and make public works projects cost more.

The House and Senate have also agreed to create 15 new positions at a cost of $1.24 million for the State Public Charter School Commission. This fully funds the executive budget request, giving charter schools the resources needed to conduct audits and handled contracts, Ige said.

The conference committee has agreed to give the Hawaii Invasive Species Council $750,000 each of the next two years so it can continue its work combatting coqui frogs, axis deer, weeds and ants.

“All of our communities have been impacted by invasive species,” Ige said.

The House was willing to agree to the Senate plan to put $1 million to help the state build a health information exchange so Hawaii is ready to implement the federal Affordable Care Act. This secure electronic network will let healthcare providers transmit patient medical information more efficiently, which Ige said is key to reducing healthcare costs.

Lawmakers also agreed on three new positions for animal disease inspectors and eight new food sanitation jobs. They said these will control the spread of livestock diseases, help reduce the high number of food safety violations and fund an electronic food permitting database.

Bigger ticket items involving state infrastructure sailed through too.

For the Department of Transportation, Honolulu International Airport will receive more than $50 million in improvements over the next two years. Ige said this funding is important given it’s the entry point for most visitors.

State harbors will see $26 million in improvements over the biennium and highways will get $160 million worth of work, Ige said.

No Agreement Yet on Vacant Positions, Preschool Program

There’s still discord over whether to fund almost 1,000 vacant positions. The House wants to eliminate these to create a more transparent budget, but department heads say they rely on that money to pay for vacation buy-outs and overtime among other unexpected costs.

The Senate reinserted the funding for the vacancies in the it approved last week. But Ige said he views the House position as the “next evolution.”

He said after the House last month passed its $23.3 billion budget — roughly $600 million less than the governor’s initial request — state department heads came to him with concerns over the elimination of vacant positions.

Whether the final budget includes them or not, Ige said the House decision spurred an important discussion that reverberated through the Capitol.

“We’re still talking,” he said.

The House and Senate also disagree on funding an early childhood education program. Abercrombie in support of his bold plan, which he said is bolstered by President Barack Obama’s “Preschool for All” initiative.

Abercrombie’s is proposing an early learning program to serve 17,000 4-year-olds by 2021. To get it started, he asked the Legislature for $2.9 million next year and $28.2 million the following year.

The House didn’t include any funding for the program in its budget. The Senate budgeted $1.6 million for 2014 and $20.9 million for 2015.

See a list of the budget items that were resolved in conference Thursday by clicking . To view the budget in its entirety, click .

The conference committee will resume its work on the budget at 2:30 p.m. Friday.