SB3111

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the Hawai`i emergency management agency is responsible for safeguarding the people of Hawai`i before, during, and after natural or human-caused disasters. Hawaii's geographic isolation, reliance on fragile lifelines, and exposure to extreme weather events, wildfires, tsunamis, and other hazards necessitate a fully staffed, capable emergency management agency at all times.

The legislature further finds that Hawai`i emergency management agency has relied extensively on temporary special project positions to carry out its duties during declared emergencies. While these positions were originally intended to address short-term needs, the realities of long-term disaster recovery, including those associated with the 2023 Maui wildfires, demonstrate that these responsibilities often extend for years rather than months.

The legislature additionally finds that instability within the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the current federal administration creates significant uncertainty in both staffing and funding support for Hawai`i. Leadership transitions, funding disruptions, and shifting policy priorities at the federal level place the State at risk of losing critical personnel and institutional expertise if Hawai`i emergency management agency remains dependent on temporary positions. The State cannot afford to allow disaster preparedness, response, or recovery operations to be compromised due to unpredictable federal actions.

Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to authorize the Hawai`i emergency management agency to convert the Hawai`i emergency management agency's temporary special project positions into permanent positions exempt from civil service under chapters 76, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to ensure workforce stability, strengthen the retention of trained personnel, and preserve institutional knowledge, thereby maintaining continuous operational capacity to protect lives, property, and the environment.

SECTION 2. Section 76-16, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

"(b) The civil service to which this chapter applies shall comprise all positions in the State now existing or hereafter established and embrace all personal services performed for the State, except the following:

(1) Commissioned and enlisted personnel of the Hawaii National Guard and positions in the Hawaii National Guard that are required by state or federal laws or regulations or orders of the National Guard to be filled from those commissioned or enlisted personnel;

(2) Positions filled by persons employed by contract where the director of human resources development has certified that the service is special or unique or is essential to the public interest and that, because of circumstances surrounding its fulfillment, personnel to perform the service cannot be obtained through normal civil service recruitment procedures. Any contract may be for any period not exceeding one year;

(3) Positions that must be filled without delay to comply with a court order or decree if the director determines that recruitment through normal recruitment civil service procedures would result in delay or noncompliance, such as the Felix-Cayetano consent decree;

(4) Positions filled by the legislature or by either house or any committee thereof;

(5) Employees in the office of the governor and office of the lieutenant governor, and household employees at Washington Place;

(6) Positions filled by popular vote;

(7) Department heads, officers, and members of any board, commission, or other state agency whose appointments are made by the governor or are required by law to be confirmed by the senate;

(8) Judges, referees, receivers, masters, jurors, notaries public, land court examiners, court commissioners, and attorneys appointed by a state court for a special temporary service;

(9) One bailiff for the chief justice of the supreme court who shall have the powers and duties of a court officer and bailiff under section 606-14; one secretary or clerk for each justice of the supreme court, each judge of the intermediate appellate court, and each judge of the circuit court; one secretary for the judicial council; one deputy administrative director of the courts; three law clerks for the chief justice of the supreme court, two law clerks for each associate justice of the supreme court and each judge of the intermediate appellate court, one law clerk for each judge of the circuit court, two additional law clerks for the civil administrative judge of the circuit court of the first circuit, two additional law clerks for the criminal administrative judge of the circuit court of the first circuit, one additional law clerk for the senior judge of the family court of the first circuit, two additional law clerks for the civil motions judge of the circuit court of the first circuit, two additional law clerks for the criminal motions judge of the circuit court of the first circuit, and two law clerks for the administrative judge of the district court of the first circuit; and one private secretary for the administrative director of the courts, the deputy administrative director of the courts, each department head, each deputy or first assistant, and each additional deputy, or assistant deputy, or assistant defined in paragraph (16);

(10) First deputy and deputy attorneys general, the administrative services manager of the department of the attorney general, one secretary for the administrative services manager, an administrator and any support staff for the criminal and juvenile justice resources coordination functions, and law clerks;

(11) (A) Teachers, principals, vice-principals, complex area superintendents, deputy and assistant superintendents, other certificated personnel, and no more than twenty noncertificated administrative, professional, and technical personnel not engaged in instructional work;

(B) Effective July 1, 2003, teaching assistants, educational assistants, bilingual or bicultural school-home assistants, school psychologists, psychological examiners, speech pathologists, athletic health care trainers, alternative school work study assistants, alternative school educational or supportive services specialists, alternative school project coordinators, and communications aides in the department of education;

(D) Members of the faculty of the university of Hawaii, including research workers, extension agents, personnel engaged in instructional work, and administrative, professional, and technical personnel of the university;

(12) Employees engaged in special, research, or demonstration projects approved by the governor;

(13) (A) Positions filled by inmates, patients of state institutions, and persons with severe physical or mental disabilities participating in the work experience training programs;

(B) Positions filled with students in accordance with guidelines for established state employment programs; and

(C) Positions that provide work experience training or temporary public service employment that are filled by persons entering the workforce or persons transitioning into other careers under programs such as the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998, as amended, or the Senior Community Service Employment Program of the Employment and Training Administration of the United States Department of Labor, or under other similar state programs;

(14) A custodian or guide at Iolani Palace, the Royal Mausoleum, and Hulihee Palace;

(15) Positions filled by persons employed on a fee, contract, or piecework basis, who may lawfully perform their duties concurrently with their private business or profession or other private employment and whose duties require only a portion of their time, if it is impracticable to ascertain or anticipate the portion of time to be devoted to the service of the State;

(16) Positions of first deputies or first assistants of each department head appointed under or in the manner provided in section 6, article V, of the Hawaii State Constitution; three additional deputies or assistants either in charge of the highways, harbors, and airports divisions or other functions within the department of transportation as may be assigned by the director of transportation, with the approval of the governor; one additional deputy in the department of human services either in charge of welfare or other functions within the department as may be assigned by the director of human services; four additional deputies in the department of health, each in charge of one of the following: behavioral health, environmental health, hospitals, and health resources administration, including other functions within the department as may be assigned by the director of health, with the approval of the governor; two additional deputies in charge of the law enforcement programs, administration, or other functions within the department of law enforcement as may be assigned by the director of law enforcement, with the approval of the governor; three additional deputies each in charge of the correctional institutions, rehabilitation services and programs, and administration or other functions within the department of corrections and rehabilitation as may be assigned by the director of corrections and rehabilitation, with the approval of the governor; two administrative assistants to the state librarian; and an administrative assistant to the superintendent of education;

(17) Positions specifically exempted from this part by any other law; provided that:

(A) Any exemption created after July 1, 2014, shall expire three years after its enactment unless affirmatively extended by an act of the legislature; and

(B) All of the positions defined by paragraph (9) shall be included in the position classification plan;

(18) Positions in the state foster grandparent program and positions for temporary employment of senior citizens in occupations in which there is a severe personnel shortage or in special projects;

(19) Household employees at the official residence of the president of the university of Hawaii;

(20) Employees in the department of education engaged in the supervision of students during meal periods in the distribution, collection, and counting of meal tickets, and in the cleaning of classrooms after school hours on a less than half-time basis;

(21) Employees hired under the tenant hire program of the Hawaii public housing authority; provided that no more than twenty-six per cent of the authority's workforce in any housing project maintained or operated by the authority shall be hired under the tenant hire program;

(22) Positions of the federally funded expanded food and nutrition program of the university of Hawaii that require the hiring of nutrition program assistants who live in the areas they serve;

(23) Positions filled by persons with severe disabilities who are certified by the state vocational rehabilitation office that they are able to perform safely the duties of the positions;

(24) The sheriff;

(25) A gender and other fairness coordinator hired by the judiciary;

(26) Positions in the Hawaii National Guard youth and adult education programs;

(27) In the Hawaii state energy office in the department of business, economic development, and tourism, all energy program managers, energy program specialists, energy program assistants, and energy analysts;

(28) Administrative appeals hearing officers in the department of human services;

(29) In the Med-QUEST division of the department of human services, the division administrator, finance officer, health care services branch administrator, medical director, and clinical standards administrator;

(30) In the director's office of the department of human services, the enterprise officer, information security and privacy compliance officer, security and privacy compliance engineer, security and privacy compliance analyst, information technology implementation manager, assistant information technology implementation manager, resource manager, community or project development director, policy director, special assistant to the director, and limited English proficiency project manager or coordinator;

(31) The Alzheimer's disease and related dementia services coordinator in the executive office on aging;

(32) In the Hawaii emergency management agency, the executive officer, public information officer, civil defense administrative officer, branch chiefs, special project positions created for Federal Emergency Management Agency funded disaster recovery operations, and emergency operations center state warning point personnel; provided that for state warning point personnel, the director shall determine that recruitment through normal civil service recruitment procedures would result in delay or noncompliance;

(33) The executive director and seven full-time administrative positions of the school facilities authority;

(34) Positions in the Mauna Kea stewardship and oversight authority;

(35) In the office of homeland security of the department of law enforcement, the statewide interoperable communications coordinator;

(36) In the social services division of the department of human services, the business technology analyst;

(37) The executive director and staff of the 911 board;

(38) The software developer supervisor and senior software developers in the department of taxation;

(39) In the department of law enforcement, five Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., coordinator positions;

(40) The state fire marshal and deputy state fire marshal in the office of the state fire marshal;

(41) The administrator for the law enforcement standards board;

(42) In the office of the director of taxation, the data privacy officer and tax business analysts; and

[[](43)[]] All positions filled by the Hawaii tourism authority within the department of business, economic development, and tourism.

The director shall determine the applicability of this section to specific positions.

Nothing in this section shall be deemed to affect the civil service status of any incumbent as it existed on July 1, 1955."

SECTION 3. Section 127A-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§127A-3 Hawaii emergency management agency. (a) There is established within the department of defense the Hawaii emergency management agency. The adjutant general shall serve as the director of Hawaii emergency management and, subject to the direction and control of the governor, shall oversee the agency.

(b) There shall be an administrator of emergency management who shall be appointed, and may be removed, by the director, and who shall have at least three years of experience leading emergency management efforts at the local, state, or federal level. The administrator of emergency management shall be the civilian head of and responsible for the day-to-day operations of the agency. The administrator of emergency management shall report to the director. The administrator of emergency management shall, in the absence of the director, have all the duties and responsibilities of the director, and shall report directly to the governor. The administrator of emergency management shall not be subject to chapter 76.

(c) The administrator may, from funds allotted therefor, employ technical, clerical, administrative, and other personnel and make such expenditures as may be necessary.

(d) The administrator shall coordinate the activities of the agency with all county emergency management agencies, other state agencies, other states, or federal agencies involved in emergency management activities, and all organizations for emergency management within the State, whether public or private, and shall maintain liaison and cooperate with all county emergency management agencies, other state agencies, other states, or federal agencies involved in emergency management activities as provided in this chapter.

(e) The agency shall perform emergency management functions within the territorial limits of the State. In performing its duties, the agency shall:

(1) Prepare a state comprehensive emergency management plan, which shall be integrated into and coordinated with the emergency management plans of the federal government. The plan shall be integrated by a continuous, integrated comprehensive emergency management program. The plan shall contain provisions to ensure that the State prepares for, mitigates against, responds to, and recovers from emergencies and minor, major, and catastrophic disasters. In preparing and maintaining the plan, the agency shall work closely with agencies and organizations with emergency management responsibilities;

(2) Assign lead and support responsibilities to state agencies and personnel for emergency management functions and other support activities;

(3) Adopt standards and requirements for county emergency management plans. The standards and requirements shall ensure that county plans are coordinated and consistent with the state comprehensive emergency management plan;

(4) Make recommendations to the legislature, building code organizations, and counties for zoning, building, and other land use controls; and other preparedness, prevention, and mitigation measures designed to eliminate emergencies or reduce their impact;

(5) Anticipate trends and promote innovations that will enhance the emergency management system;

(6) Institute statewide public awareness programs. This shall include intensive public educational campaigns on emergency preparedness issues, including but not limited to the personal responsibility of individual citizens to be self-sufficient for up to fourteen days following a natural or human-caused disaster;

(7) Coordinate federal, state, and local emergency management activities and take all other steps, including the partial or full mobilization of emergency management forces and organizations in advance of an actual emergency, to ensure the availability of adequately trained and equipped forces of emergency management personnel before, during, and after emergencies and disasters;

(8) Implement training programs to improve the ability of state and local emergency management personnel to prepare and implement emergency management plans and programs. This shall include a continuous training program for agencies and individuals that will be called on to perform key roles in state and local post-disaster response and recovery efforts and for local government personnel on federal and state post-disaster response and recovery strategies and procedures;

(9) Adopt standards and requirements for state agency emergency operating procedures and periodically review emergency operating procedures of state agencies and recommend revisions as needed to ensure consistency with the state comprehensive emergency management plan and program; and

(10) Coordinate, in advance whenever possible, such executive orders, proclamations, and rules for issuance by the governor as are necessary or appropriate for coping with emergencies and disasters.

(f) The agency, with the approval of the governor and subject to positions authorized by the legislature, may establish permanent special project positions exempt from chapters 76 that are created for Federal Emergency Management Agency funded disaster recovery operations.

Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the department of defense may authorize overtime compensation for these special project positions; provided that the compensation shall be subject to the availability of funds and consistent with the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended.

The agency shall submit an annual report to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of each regular session. The report shall include:

(1) A list of all special project positions under this subsection that are exempt from chapter 76;

(2) The justification for the exempt status of each position; and

(3) Recommendations on whether any positions should be converted to civil service, including anticipated timelines for conversion, if applicable."

SECTION 4. There are established within the Hawai`i emergency management agency permanent full-time equivalent special project positions pursuant to section 127A-3(f), Hawaii Revised Statutes. The number and classification of these exempt positions shall initially correspond to the temporary special project positions, created for Federal Emergency Management Agency funded disaster recovery operations, that are in existence on June 30, 2026, including but not limited to positions in disaster recovery, grants management, planning, logistics, mitigation, and operations.

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act, upon its approval, shall take effect on July 1, 2026.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

BY REQUEST

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	3111
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII