Report Title:

Government; department of law enforcement and corrections

Description:

Splits the department of public safety into the department of law enforcement and department of corrections.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1222

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2003

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to the executive departments of state government.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Chapter

LAW ENFORCEMENT

§ -A Definitions. Whenever used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Department" means the department of law enforcement.

"Director" means the director of law enforcement.

§ -B Director of law enforcement; powers and duties. The director of law enforcement shall administer the public safety programs of the department of law enforcement and shall be responsible for the formulation and implementation of state goals and objectives for law enforcement programs. In the administration of these programs, the director may:

(1) Preserve the public peace, prevent crime, detect and arrest offenders against the law, protect the rights of persons and property, and enforce and prevent violation of all laws and administrative rules of the State as the director deems to be necessary or desirable or upon request, to assist other state officers or agencies that have primary administrative responsibility over specific subject matters or programs;

(2) Train, equip, maintain, and supervise the force of public safety officers, including law enforcement personnel, and other employees of the department;

(3) Authorize individuals to serve process both in civil and criminal proceedings;

(4) Perform other duties as may be required by law;

(5) Adopt, pursuant to chapter 91, rules that are necessary or desirable for the administration of public safety programs; and

(6) Enter into contracts in behalf of the department and take all actions deemed necessary and appropriate for the proper and efficient administration of the department.

§ -C Deputy directors; appointment. The director shall appoint, without regard to chapter 76, a deputy director to serve at the director's pleasure. Unless otherwise assigned by the director, the deputy director shall assist the director in overseeing the law enforcement programs of the department.

§ -D Appointment of employees with police powers and other employees. (a) The director may appoint employees to be law enforcement officers who shall have all of the powers of police officers, including the power of arrest; provided that the director may establish and assign the employees to positions or categories of positions that may have differing titles, specific duties, and limitations upon the exercise of police powers.

(b) The director may appoint, without regard to chapter 76, other personnel necessary to carry out the functions of the department.

(c) The state law enforcement officers shall be responsible for public safety in state buildings as well as the personal protection of government officials and employees while in the conduct of their duties. The duties of state law enforcement officers shall also include the service of process, including subpoenas, warrants, and other legal documents, and other duties as the director may assign, including the performance of duties of other public safety officers within the department.

§ -E Criminal history record checks. The department shall develop standards to assure the reputable and responsible characters of its employees which shall include but not be limited to criminal history record checks. For the purposes of this section, "employee" means any employee of the department of law enforcement and "prospective employee" means any applicant for a job in the department of law enforcement.

Every employee and prospective employee shall submit a statement under penalty of unsworn falsification to authorities indicating whether the employee or prospective employee was ever convicted of a crime other than a minor traffic violation involving a fine of $250 or less and providing consent to the department to conduct a criminal history record check and to obtain other criminal history record information for verification. The employee shall be fingerprinted for the purpose of complying with the criminal history record check. The prospective employee shall be fingerprinted and the criminal history record check shall be completed prior to beginning employment.

The department shall obtain criminal history record information through the Hawaii criminal justice data center on all employees and prospective employees of the department of law enforcement. The Hawaii criminal justice data center may assess prospective employees a reasonable fee for each criminal history record check conducted. The information obtained shall be used exclusively for the stated purpose for which it was obtained, and shall be subject to such federal laws and federal regulations as may be now or hereafter adopted.

The department may deny employment to a prospective employee who was convicted of a crime other than a minor traffic violation involving a fine of $250 or less and if the department finds from the prospective employee's criminal history record that the prospective employee poses a risk to the health, safety, security, or well-being of the public at large.

Employees shall not be subject to termination based on findings in their criminal records except for those whose conviction of a crime occurred after May 8, 1989, or under circumstances in which an employee is a fugitive from justice. The convictions of employees subject to termination must be for crimes other than a minor traffic violation involving a fine of $250 or less, and the employee must pose a risk to the health, safety, security, or well-being of other staff or the public at large.

§ -F Parking fees, exemption. Notwithstanding any other law, rule, or provision to the contrary, special service deputies of the department of law enforcement are exempt from all state and county parking meter fees and county time parking restrictions while in the performance of their official duties, including attendance at court; provided that this exemption shall:

(1) Apply exclusively to state-owned law enforcement vehicles assigned to the department of law enforcement; and

(2) Not apply to private individuals retained by the department on a contractual basis to serve civil process in any capacity."

SECTION 2. Chapter 26, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§26-__ Department of corrections. (a) The department of corrections shall be headed by a single executive to be known as the director of corrections.

(b) The department of corrections shall be responsible for the formulation and implementation of state policies and objectives for correctional programs and functions, and for the administration and maintenance of all public or private correctional facilities and services.

(c) Effective July 1, 2004, the Hawaii paroling authority and the crime victim compensation commission are placed within the department of corrections for administrative purposes only."

SECTION 3. Section 26-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§26-4 Structure of government. Under the supervision of the governor, all executive and administrative offices, departments, and instrumentalities of the state government and their respective functions, powers, and duties shall be allocated among and within the following principal departments that are hereby established:

(1) Department of human resources development (Section 26-5)

(2) Department of accounting and general services (Section 26-6)

(3) Department of the attorney general (Section 26-7)

(4) Department of budget and finance (Section 26-8)

(5) Department of commerce and consumer affairs (Section 26-9)

(6) Department of taxation (Section 26-10)

(7) University of Hawaii (Section 26-11)

(8) Department of education (Section 26-12)

(9) Department of health (Section 26-13)

(10) Department of human services (Section 26-14)

(11) Department of land and natural resources (Section 26-15)

(12) Department of agriculture (Section 26-16)

(13) Department of Hawaiian home lands (Section 26-17)

(14) Department of business, economic development, and tourism (Section 26-18)

(15) Department of transportation (Section 26-19)

(16) Department of labor and industrial relations (Section 26-20)

(17) Department of defense (Section 26-21)

(18) Department of [public safety] law enforcement (Section 26-14.6)[.]

(19) Department of corrections (Section 26- )."

SECTION 4. Section 26-14.6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§26-14.6 Department of [public safety.] law enforcement. (a) The department of [public safety] law enforcement shall be headed by a single executive to be known as the director of [public safety.] law enforcement.

(b) The department of [public safety] law enforcement shall be responsible for the formulation and implementation of state policies and objectives for [correctional,] security, law enforcement, and public safety programs and functions[, for the administration and maintenance of all public or private correctional facilities and services, for the service of process, and] for the security of [state] the State and its buildings.

[(c) Effective July 1, 1990, the Hawaii paroling authority and the crime victim compensation commission are placed within the department of public safety for administrative purposes only.

(d) Effective July 1, 1990, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by:

(1) The department of corrections relating to adult corrections and the intake service centers;

(2) The judiciary relating to the sheriff's office and judiciary security personnel; and

(3) The department of the attorney general relating to state law enforcement officers and narcotics enforcement investigators with the narcotics enforcement division,

shall be transferred to the department of public safety.

(e) Effective July 1, 1990, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the department of health pursuant to chapters 329 and 329C, with the exception of sections 329-2, 329-3, and 329-4(3) to (8), shall be transferred to the department of public safety.

(f) Effective July 1, 1990, the functions, authority, and obligations, together with the limitations imposed thereon and the privileges and immunities conferred thereby, exercised by a "sheriff", "sheriffs", a "sheriff's deputy", "sheriff's deputies", a "deputy sheriff", "deputy sheriffs", or a "deputy", under sections 21-8, 47-18, 88-51, 105-4, 134-11, 134-51, 183D-11, 187A-14, 201G-55, 201G-74, 231-25, 281-108, 281-111, 286-52, 286-52.5, 321-1, 322-6, 325-9, 325-80, 353-11, 383-71, 438-5, 445-37, 482E-4, 485-6, 501-42, 501-171, 501-218, 521-78, 578-4, 584-6, 587-33, 603-29, 604-6.2, 606-14, 607-2, 607-4, 607-8, 633-8, 634-11, 634-12, 634-21, 634-22, 651-33, 651-37, 651-51, 654-2, 655-2, 657-13, 660-16, 666-11, 666-21, 803-23, 803-34, 803-35, 804-14, 804-18, 804-41, 805-1, 806-71, and 832-23 shall be exercised to the same extent by the department of public safety.

(g) Effective January 1, 1993, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the attorney general and the department of the attorney general relating to the executive security officers shall be transferred to the department of public safety.

(h) Effective July 1, 1999, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the director of public safety and the department of public safety relating to after hours security contracts at department of education facilities, except for the security functions being performed by employees of the public library system as well as the contractual security services for the libraries, shall be transferred to the department of education.]

[(i)] (c) Effective January 1, 1993, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the director of health and the department of health relating to uniformed security employees and security contracts at various state hospitals throughout the State shall be transferred to the department of [public safety.] law enforcement.

[(j) Effective January 1, 1993, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the director of human services and the department of human services relating to contractual security guard services shall be transferred to the department of public safety.

(k) Effective July 1, 1994, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the adjutant general relating to security for national guard and state civil defense facilities in the Diamond Head complex, for after work hours, shall be transferred to the department of public safety.]

(l) Effective July 1, 2002, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the director of public safety and the department of public safety relating to after hours security contracts at department of education facilities, including all security functions being performed by employees of the public library system, as well as the contractual security services for the libraries, shall be transferred to the department of education and the public library system as appropriate.]

(d) Effective July 1, 2004, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the department of education and the public library system relating to after hours security contracts at department of education facilities, including all security functions being performed by employees of the public library system, as well as the contractual security services for the libraries, shall be transferred to the department of law enforcement.

(e) Effective July 1, 2004, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the department of public safety relating to security for national guard and state civil defense facilities in the Diamond Head complex, for after work hours, shall be transferred to the department of law enforcement.

(f) Effective July 1, 2004, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the director of public safety and the department of public safety relating to contractual security guard services shall be transferred to the department of law enforcement.

(g) Effective July 1, 2004, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the director of public safety and the department of the public safety relating to the executive security officers shall be transferred to the department of law enforcement.

(h) Effective July 1, 2004, the functions, authority, and obligations, together with the limitations imposed thereon and the privileges and immunities conferred thereby, exercised by a "sheriff", "sheriffs", a "sheriff's deputy", "sheriff's deputies", a "deputy sheriff", "deputy sheriffs", or a "deputy", under sections 21-8, 47-18, 88-51, 105-4, 134-11, 134-51, 183D-11, 187A-14, 201G-55, 201G-74, 231-25, 281-108, 281-111, 286-52, 286-52.5, 321-1, 322-6, 325-9, 325-80, 353-11, 383-71, 438-5, 445-37, 482E-4, 485-6, 501-42, 501-171, 501-218, 521-78, 578-4, 584-6, 587-33, 603-29, 604-6.2, 606-14, 607-2, 607-4, 607-8, 633-8, 634-11, 634-12, 634-21, 634-22, 651-33, 651-37, 651-51, 654-2, 655-2, 657-13, 660-16, 666-11, 666-21, 803-23, 803-34, 803-35, 804-14, 804-18, 804-41, 805-1, 806-71, and 832-23 shall be exercised to the same extent by the department of law enforcement.

(i) Effective July 1, 2004, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by the department of public safety pursuant to chapters 329 and 329C, with the exception of sections 329-2, 329-3, and 329-4(3) to (8), shall be transferred to the department of law enforcement.

(j) Effective July 1, 2004, the functions and authority heretofore exercised by:

(1) The department of public safety relating to the sheriff's office and judiciary security personnel; and

(2) The department of public safety relating to state law enforcement officers and narcotics enforcement investigators with the narcotics enforcement division,

shall be transferred to the department of law enforcement."

SECTION 5. Chapter 353C, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"CHAPTER 353C

[PUBLIC SAFETY] CORRECTIONS

[[]§353C-1[]] Definitions. Whenever used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Department" means the department of [public safety.] corrections.

"Director" means the director of [public safety.] corrections.

§353C-2 Director of [public safety;] corrections; powers and duties. The director of [public safety] corrections shall administer the [public safety] corrections programs of the department of [public safety] corrections and shall be responsible for the formulation and implementation of state goals and objectives for correctional [and law enforcement] programs, including ensuring that correctional facilities and correctional services meet the present and future needs of persons committed to the correctional facilities. In the administration of these programs, the director may:

[(1) Preserve the public peace, prevent crime, detect and arrest offenders against the law, protect the rights of persons and property, and enforce and prevent violation of all laws and administrative rules of the State as the director deems to be necessary or desirable or upon request, to assist other state officers or agencies that have primary administrative responsibility over specific subject matters or programs;

(2)] (1) Train, equip, maintain, and supervise the force of [public safety] corrections officers, including [law enforcement and] correctional personnel, and other employees of the department;

[(3) Serve process both in civil and criminal proceedings;

(4)] (2) Perform other duties as may be required by law;

[(5)] (3) Adopt, pursuant to chapter 91, rules that are necessary or desirable for the administration of [public safety] corrections programs; and

[(6)] (4) Enter into contracts in behalf of the department and take all actions deemed necessary and appropriate for the proper and efficient administration of the department.

[[]§353C-3[]] Deputy directors; appointment. The director shall appoint, without regard to chapter 76, [three] a deputy [directors] director to serve at the director's pleasure. Unless otherwise assigned by the director, [one] the deputy director shall [oversee] assist the director in overseeing the correctional programs and facilities of the department[, one deputy director shall oversee the law enforcement programs of the department, and one deputy director shall oversee administration of the department].

§353C-4 Appointment of employees with police powers and other employees. (a) The director may appoint employees to be [public safety] corrections officers or investigators who shall have all of the powers of police officers; provided that the director may establish and assign the employees to positions or categories of positions that may have differing titles, specific duties, and limitations upon the exercise of police powers.

(b) The director may appoint, without regard to chapter 76, other personnel necessary to carry out the functions of the department.

(c) The state law enforcement officers transferred from the department of the attorney general by Act 211, Session Laws of Hawaii 1989, shall be responsible for public safety in state buildings as well as the personal protection of government officials and employees while in the conduct of their duties. The duties of state law enforcement officers shall also include the service of process, including subpoenas, warrants, and other legal documents, and other duties as the director may assign, including the performance of duties of other public safety officers within the department. State law enforcement officers shall have all of the powers of police officers, including the power of arrest.]

[[]§353C-4.5[]] Correctional health care program. There is established a correctional health care program within the department. The administrator of the correctional health care program and physicians who provide care to inmates shall be appointed by the director without regard to [[]chapter 76[]].

§353C-5 Criminal history record checks. The department shall develop standards to assure the reputable and responsible characters of staff members of its correctional facilities which shall include but not be limited to criminal history record checks. For the purposes of this section, "staff member" means any employee of the department of [public safety] corrections who is directly involved with the treatment and care of persons committed to a facility or who possesses police powers including the power of arrest, and "prospective staff member" means any applicant for a job in the department of [public safety] corrections that is directly involved with the treatment and care of persons committed to a facility or that requires the exercise of police powers including the power to arrest in the performance of its duties.

Every staff member and prospective staff member shall submit a statement under penalty of unsworn falsification to authorities indicating whether the staff member or prospective staff member was ever convicted of a crime other than a minor traffic violation involving a fine of [$50] $250 or less and providing consent to the department to conduct a criminal history record check and to obtain other criminal history record information for verification. The staff member shall be fingerprinted for the purpose of complying with the criminal history record check. The prospective staff member shall be fingerprinted and the criminal history record check shall be completed prior to beginning employment.

The department shall obtain criminal history record information through the Hawaii criminal justice data center on all staff and prospective staff members of the department of [public safety.] corrections. The Hawaii criminal justice data center may assess prospective staff members a reasonable fee for each criminal history record check conducted. The information obtained shall be used exclusively for the stated purpose for which it was obtained, and shall be subject to such federal laws and federal regulations as may be now or hereafter adopted.

The department may deny employment to a prospective staff member who was convicted of a crime other than a minor traffic violation involving a fine of [$50] $250 or less and if the department finds from the prospective staff member's criminal history record that the prospective staff member poses a risk to the health, safety, security, or well-being of inmates under supervision and confinement, other staff, or the public at large.

Staff members shall not be subject to termination based on findings in their criminal records except for those whose conviction of a crime occurred after May 8, 1989, or under circumstances in which a staff member is [[]a[]] fugitive from justice. The convictions of staff members subject to termination must be for crimes other than a minor traffic violation involving a fine of [$50] $250 or less, and the staff member must pose a risk to the health, safety, security, or well-being of inmates under supervision and confinement, other staff, or the public at large.

[[§353C-6] Parking fees, exemption. Notwithstanding any other law, rule, or provision to the contrary, special service deputies of the department of public safety are exempt from all state and county parking meter fees and county time parking restrictions while in the performance of their official duties, including attendance at court; provided that this exemption shall:

(1) Apply exclusively to state owned law enforcement vehicles assigned to the department of public safety; and

(2) Not apply to private individuals retained by the department on a contractual basis to serve civil process in any capacity.]

[[]§353C-7[]] Federal reimbursement maximization special fund. (a) There is established in the state treasury the federal reimbursement maximization special fund, into which shall be deposited all federal reimbursements received by the department relating to the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program. Unless otherwise provided by law, all other receipts shall immediately be deposited to the credit of the general fund of the State.

(b) Moneys in the federal reimbursement maximization special fund shall be used by the department to meet the state match requirement for federal grants and costs associated with federal grant reporting requirements, including administrative expenses such as the creation and hiring of temporary staff; and for any other purpose deemed necessary by the department for maintaining existing federal grants as well as pursuing federal grants.

(c) The department shall prepare and submit an annual report on the status of the federal reimbursement maximization special fund to the legislature no later than twenty days before the convening of each regular session. The annual report shall include but not be limited to a description of the use of the funds."

SECTION 6. All rules, policies, guidelines, and other material adopted or developed by the department of public safety to implement provisions of the Hawaii Revised Statutes which are reenacted or made applicable to the department of corrections or the department of law enforcement by this Act, shall remain in full force and effect until amended or repealed by the department of corrections or the department of law enforcement pursuant to chapter 91, Hawaii Revised Statutes. In the interim, every reference to the department of public safety or director of public safety in those rules, policies, procedures, guidelines, and other material is amended to refer to the department of corrections, the director of corrections, the department of law enforcement, or the director of law enforcement as appropriate.

SECTION 7. In codifying the new sections added by section 1 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act that are added to the Hawaii Revised Statutes.

SECTION 8. All rights, powers, functions, and duties of the department of public safety are transferred to the department of law enforcement and department of corrections, as set forth within this Act.

All officers and employees whose functions are transferred by this Act shall be transferred with their functions and shall continue to perform their regular duties upon their transfer, subject to the state personnel laws and this Act.

No officer or employee of the State having tenure shall suffer any loss of salary, seniority, prior service credit, vacation, sick leave, or other employee benefit or privilege as a consequence of this Act, and such officer or employee may be transferred or appointed to a civil service position without the necessity of examination; provided that the officer or employee possesses the minimum qualifications for the position to which transferred or appointed; and provided that subsequent changes in status may be made pursuant to applicable civil service and compensation laws.

An officer or employee of the State who does not have tenure and who may be transferred or appointed to a civil service position as a consequence of this Act shall become a civil service employee without the loss of salary, seniority, prior service credit, vacation, sick leave, or other employee benefits or privileges and without the necessity of examination; provided that such officer or employee possesses the minimum qualifications for the position to which transferred or appointed.

If an office or position held by an officer or employee having tenure is abolished, the officer or employee shall not thereby be separated from public employment, but shall remain in the employment of the State with the same pay and classification and shall be transferred to some other office or position for which the officer or employee is eligible under the personnel laws of the State as determined by the head of the department or the governor.

SECTION 9. All appropriations, records, equipment, machines, files, supplies, contracts, books, papers, documents, maps, and other personal property heretofore made, used, acquired, or held by the department of public safety relating to the functions transferred to the department of law enforcement and department of corrections shall be transferred with the functions to which they relate.

SECTION 10. All contracts and agreements entered into with the department of public safety prior to the effective date of this Act shall be remain valid subsequent to the enactment of this Act. Contracts and agreements entered into with the department of public safety shall be assigned to either the department of law enforcement or department of corrections based on the subject matter of the contract and the powers and duties transferred to each department by this Act.

SECTION 11. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 12. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2004.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

BY REQUEST