HB2047 HD2

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the aha moku advisory committee was established to bring together traditional Hawaiian knowledge and modern natural resource management practices based on the traditional aha kiole.

The legislature further finds that section 171-4.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, which establishes the aha moku advisory committee, has not been updated since its adoption in 2012. Revisions to the statute are required to set and clarify accountability and transparency standards to optimize the benefit of the aha moku program to the Native Hawaiian community, while ensuring alignment with natural resource management priorities and the original intent and purpose of the establishment of the aha moku advisory committee within state government.

The legislature also finds that the aha moku advisory committee has not consistently fulfilled requirements established by statute or administrative rules, including annual reporting and compliance with open meeting laws.

The purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Establish clear procedures for the recruitment, appointment, evaluation, and removal of the executive director of the aha moku advisory committee;

(2) Clarify that the chairperson of the board of land and natural resources shall exercise appointment, oversight, and administrative authority over the executive director of the aha moku advisory committee; and

(3) Strengthen and reinforce reporting and meeting requirements applicable to the aha moku advisory committee.

SECTION 2. Chapter 171, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to part I to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§171- Aha moku advisory committee; executive director.

(a) The chairperson may appoint an executive director for the aha moku advisory committee, subject to confirmation from the board, who shall be exempt from chapter 76. The chairperson shall be responsible for the management, supervision, and oversight of the executive director, shall evaluate the performance of the executive director, and shall ensure the executive director carries out the statutory responsibilities of the position.

(b) To be eligible for appointment as executive director of the aha moku advisory committee, an applicant for the position shall possess the following minimum qualifications:

(1) Demonstrated knowledge of Native Hawaiian traditional and customary practices related to natural resource management, including familiarity with the aha moku system or comparable place-based management frameworks;

(2) Demonstrated experience working with Native Hawaiian communities, cultural practitioners, or community-based natural resource management organizations;

(3) Experience in program administration, organizational leadership, or project management;

(4) The ability to work collaboratively with state agencies, boards, commissions, and community stakeholders;

(5) Demonstrated understanding of environmental laws, policies, and governance systems or the ability to acquire such understanding within a reasonable period following appointment;

(6) Demonstrated understanding of Hawaii's open meeting laws; and

(7) Any additional qualifications established by the department that are consistent with the duties of the aha moku advisory committee.

(c) The executive director of the aha moku advisory committee shall serve a term of four years and may be reappointed by the chairperson to subsequent terms.

(d) The executive director of the aha moku advisory committee may hire an administrative or executive assistant to assist the executive director in carrying out the duties of the aha moku advisory committee.

(e) The chairperson shall conduct a performance review of the executive director of the aha moku advisory committee on an annual basis and before any reappointment. The performance review shall include:

(1) An evaluation of the executive director's performance in carrying out statutory duties and program objectives;

(2) Consideration of input from the aha moku councils of each island, relevant state agencies, and the public; and

(3) A summary of accomplishments, challenges, and future priorities.

(f) At the conclusion of each four-year term, the chairperson may:

(1) Reappoint the executive director of the aha moku advisory committee, subject to the completion of a satisfactory performance review required under subsection (e); or

(2) Appoint a new executive director from among the qualified applicants of the open recruitment process conducted pursuant to subsection (h);

provided that any appointment or reappointment of the executive director shall be subject to confirmation by the board.

(g) The chairperson may remove the executive director of the aha moku advisory committee for cause; provided that the board shall be notified in writing within ten days of the removal.

(h) In the event of a vacancy or anticipated vacancy in the position of executive director of the aha moku advisory committee, the department shall conduct an open recruitment process to fill the vacancy. The open recruitment process shall include, at a minimum:

(1) Public notice of the vacancy or anticipated vacancy;

(2) A description of the duties, minimum qualifications, and term of appointment; and

(3) A reasonable application period."

SECTION 3. 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, 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[.]; and

(44) The executive director of the aha moku advisory committee.

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 4. Section 171-4.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§171-4.5[]] Aha moku advisory committee; established. (a) There is established the aha moku advisory committee to be placed within the department [~~of land and natural resources~~] for administrative purposes. The committee may advise the chairperson [~~of the board of land and natural resources~~] in carrying out the purposes of this section.

(b) The committee shall consist of eight members appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate from a list of nominations submitted by the aha moku councils of each island. Oversight of the aha moku advisory committee shall be by the chairperson [~~of the board of land and natural resources~~]. The committee members shall select the committee chairperson from among the members.

(c) The members shall not receive compensation for their service, but shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses, including travel expenses, incurred while participating in meetings and events approved in advance by the chairperson [~~of the board of land and natural resources~~].

[The aha moku advisory committee may hire an executive director who shall be exempt from chapter 76. The executive director may hire an administrative or executive assistant to assist the executive director in accomplishing the purposes of the aha moku advisory committee.]

(d) The aha moku advisory committee may provide advice on the following:

(1) Integrating indigenous resource management practices with western management practices in each moku;

(2) Identifying a comprehensive set of indigenous practices for natural resource management;

(3) Fostering the understanding and practical use of native Hawaiian resource knowledge, methodology, and expertise;

(4) Sustaining the State's marine, land, cultural, agricultural, and natural resources;

(5) Providing community education and fostering cultural awareness on the benefits of the aha moku system;

(6) Fostering protection and conservation of the State's natural resources; and

(7) Developing an administrative structure that oversees the aha moku system.

(e) Any formal position, recommendation, or advisory action of the committee shall be adopted at a duly noticed public meeting at which a quorum is present. A quorum shall be a majority of the members to which the aha moku advisory committee is entitled. The concurrence of a simple majority of the committee members present shall be necessary to approve any action of the committee.

[~~(e)~~] (f) The committee shall submit an annual report in English and Hawaiian to the legislature, governor, and [~~the~~] chairperson [~~of the board of land and natural resources~~] no later than twenty days prior to the convening of each regular [~~legislative~~] session. The annual report shall include [a]:

(1) A description of the activities of the committee;

(2) Copies of or electronic links to all testimony submitted to the committee and the agenda and minutes for each committee meeting;

(3) A description of the issues considered by the committee and the positions taken by each committee member;

(4) A summary of each committee member's activities, including how the public was informed and engaged by the member, and the issues that were brought forward or addressed through the aha moku process;

(5) A list of itemized expenditures; and

(6) A list of all recommendations made by the committee and the resulting action taken by the department over the course of the prior year."

SECTION 5. (a) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the chairperson of the aha moku advisory committee shall initiate an open recruitment process for the position of executive director of the aha moku advisory committee within six months of the effective date of this Act and shall appoint an executive director within twelve months of the effective date of this Act.

(b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the individual serving as the executive director of the aha moku advisory committee on the effective date of this Act shall be eligible to apply for appointment as the executive director of the aha moku advisory committee through the open recruitment process established pursuant to subsection (a); provided that the individual:

(1) Submits a written application through the open recruitment process established pursuant to subsection (a);

(2) Satisfies the minimum qualifications established under section 171- , Hawaii Revised Statutes, for the position; and

(3) Has received a satisfactory performance review from the chairperson of the board of land and natural resources under section 171- , Hawaii Revised Statutes.

(c) An application submitted pursuant to subsection (b) shall be evaluated together with all other applications submitted through the open recruitment process, and the applicant serving as executive director on the effective date of this Act shall not receive any preference or special consideration by virtue of prior service.

(d) The executive director of the aha moku advisory committee serving on the effective date of this Act may continue to serve on an interim basis from the effective date of this Act until the appointment of an executive director pursuant to this Act as long as the executive director serving on the effective date of this Act meets the qualifications required for the position, or unless sooner removed by the chairperson of the board of land and natural resources.

(e) The position of executive director of the aha moku advisory committee shall be deemed vacant if the individual serving as the executive director serving on the effective date of this Act fails to meet the eligibility requirements set forth in subsection (b) or is removed pursuant to subsection (d).

SECTION 6. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 7. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 3000.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	2047
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026		H.D. 2
STATE OF HAWAII