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HB1144 • 2026

RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT IN THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION PROGRAM.

RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT IN THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION PROGRAM.

Labor
Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor
NAKAMURA (Introduced by request of another party)
Last action
2026-02-02
Official status
Re-Referred to WLA/LBT, WAM.
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide details on whether the bill affects existing duties and responsibilities, nor does it specify requirements for new hires beyond being non-civil service professional or technical staff.

Rules for Hiring Staff in State Historic Preservation Program

This bill allows the Department of Land and Natural Resources to hire non-civil service professional and technical staff for its State Historic Preservation Program.

What This Bill Does

  • Allows the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) to employ non-civil service workers in the State Historic Preservation Program.

Who It Names or Affects

  • The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR).
  • Non-civil service workers hired by DLNR for the State Historic Preservation Program.

Terms To Know

Civil Service
A system that hires government employees based on merit rather than political affiliation.
Professional and Technical Staff
Workers with specialized skills or knowledge in their field, such as historians or archaeologists.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how many non-civil service workers can be hired.
  • It is unclear what the effective date of July 1, 3000 means; it may be a placeholder for future implementation.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HD1

1

Hawaii published version HD1

Plain English: The amendment changes a requirement in Hawaii Revised Statutes to allow more flexibility in hiring staff for historic preservation activities.

  • Changes 'shall' to 'may' in the clause that allows employment of professional and technical staff, making it optional rather than mandatory.
  • The amendment text is truncated and does not provide full context about all changes made. The summary focuses only on the provided section.
HD2

3

Hawaii published version HD2

Plain English: The amendment modifies Hawaii Revised Statutes section 76-16 to include positions related to employment in the State Historic Preservation Program as exceptions to normal civil service recruitment procedures.

  • Adds a new subsection (13)(D) that includes positions filled by persons entering the workforce or transitioning into other careers under programs such as the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and similar state programs.
  • The amendment text is incomplete, making it difficult to fully understand all changes intended.
  • Specific details about how this new subsection will affect employment in the State Historic Preservation Program are not provided.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-02 S

    Re-Referred to WLA/LBT, WAM.

  2. 2025-12-08 D

    Carried over to 2026 Regular Session.

  3. 2025-03-04 S

    Referred to WTL/LBT, WAM.

  4. 2025-03-04 S

    Passed First Reading.

  5. 2025-03-04 S

    Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 147).

  6. 2025-02-28 H

    Passed Third Reading with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Cochran, Pierick, Templo, Ward excused (4). Transmitted to Senate.

  7. 2025-02-28 H

    Reported from FIN (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 976), recommending passage on Third Reading.

  8. 2025-02-24 H

    The committee on FIN recommend that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes were as follows: 14 Ayes: Representative(s) Yamashita, Takenouchi, Grandinetti, Holt, Keohokapu-Lee Loy, Kitagawa, Kusch, Lamosao, Lee, M., Miyake, Morikawa, Templo, Alcos, Reyes Oda; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 2 Excused: Representative(s) Hussey, Ward.

  9. 2025-02-21 H

    Bill scheduled to be heard by FIN on Monday, 02-24-25 2:00PM in House conference room 308 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.

  10. 2025-02-14 H

    Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on FIN as amended in HD 2 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Cochran, Matayoshi, Poepoe, Ward excused (4).

  11. 2025-02-14 H

    Reported from LAB (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 657) as amended in HD 2, recommending referral to FIN.

  12. 2025-02-11 H

    The committee on LAB recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 6 Ayes: Representative(s) Sayama, Lee, M., Garrett, Kapela, Kong, Reyes Oda; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.

  13. 2025-02-07 H

    Bill scheduled to be heard by LAB on Tuesday, 02-11-25 9:00AM in House conference room 309 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.

  14. 2025-01-30 H

    Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on LAB with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Cochran, Ward excused (2).

  15. 2025-01-30 H

    Reported from WAL (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 19) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to LAB.

  16. 2025-01-28 H

    The committee on WAL recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 9 Ayes: Representative(s) Hashem, Lamosao, Belatti, Ichiyama, Iwamoto, Morikawa, Poepoe, Shimizu, Souza; Ayes with reservations: none; Noes: none; and 1 Excused: Representative(s) Woodson.

  17. 2025-01-24 H

    Bill scheduled to be heard by WAL on Tuesday, 01-28-25 9:00AM in House conference room 411 VIA VIDEOCONFERENCE.

  18. 2025-01-23 H

    Referred to WAL, LAB, FIN, referral sheet 3

  19. 2025-01-23 H

    Introduced and Pass First Reading.

  20. 2025-01-21 H

    Pending introduction.

Official Summary Text

RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT IN THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION PROGRAM.
DLNR; State Historic Preservation Program; Employees
Allows the Department of Land and Natural Resources to employ non-civil service professional and technical staff in its State Historic Preservation Program. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD2)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HB1144

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1144

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT IN THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION
PROGRAM.

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

����
SECTION 1.
�
Section 6E-3, Hawaii
Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

����
"
�6E-3
�
Historic preservation program
.
�
There is established within the department a
division to administer a comprehensive historic preservation program, which
shall include but not be limited to the following:

����
(1)
�
Development
of an ongoing program of historical, architectural, and archaeological research
and development, including surveys, excavations, scientific recording,
interpretation, signage, and publications on the State's historical and
cultural resources;

����
(2)
�
Acquisition
of historic or cultural properties, real or personal, in fee or in any lesser
interest, by gift, purchase, condemnation, devise, bequest, land exchange, or
other means; preservation, restoration, administration, or transference of the
property; and the charging of reasonable admissions to that property;

(3)
�
Development of a statewide survey and
inventory to identify and document historic properties, aviation artifacts, and
burial sites, including all those owned by the State and the counties;

����
(4)
�
Preparation
of information for the Hawaii register of historic places and listing on the
national register of historic places;

����
(5)
�
Preparation,
review, and revisions of a state historic preservation plan, including budget
requirements and land use recommendations;

����
(6)
�
Application
for and receipt of gifts, grants, technical assistance, and other funding from
public and private sources for the purposes of this chapter;

����
(7)
�
Provision
of technical and financial assistance to the counties and public and private
agencies involved in historic preservation activities;

����
(8)
�
Coordination
of activities of the counties in accordance with the state plan for historic
preservation;

����
(9)
�
Stimulation
of public interest in historic preservation, including the development and
implementation of interpretive programs for historic properties listed on or
eligible for the Hawaii register of historic places;

���
(10)
�
Coordination
of the evaluation and management of burial sites as provided in section 6E-43;

���
(11)
�
Acquisition
of burial sites in fee or in any lesser interest, by gift, purchase,
condemnation, devise, bequest, land exchange, or other means, to be held in
trust;

���
(12)
�
Submittal
of an annual report to the governor and legislature detailing the
accomplishments of the year, recommendations for changes in the state plan or
future programs relating to historic preservation, and an accounting of all
income, expenditures, and the fund balance of the Hawaii historic preservation
special fund;

���
(13)
�
Regulation
of archaeological activities throughout the State;

���
(14)
�
Employment
of sufficient professional and technical staff for the purposes of this chapter
which [
shall
]
may
be in accordance with chapter 76;

���
(15)
�
The
charging of fees to be determined by the department that are proportional to
the nature and complexity of the projects or services provided, and adjusted
from time to time to ensure that the proceeds, together with all other fines,
income, and penalties collected under this chapter, do not surpass the annual
operating costs of the comprehensive historic preservation program;

���
(16)
�
Adoption
of rules in accordance with chapter 91, necessary to carry out the purposes of
this chapter; and

���
(17)
�
Development
and adoption, in consultation with the office of Hawaiian affairs native
historic preservation council, of rules governing permits for access by native
Hawaiians and Hawaiians to cultural, historic, and pre-contact sites and
monuments."

����
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;

���������
(C)
�
The
special assistant to the state librarian and one secretary for the special
assistant to the state librarian; and

���������
(D)
�
Members
of the faculty of the [
University
]
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
]

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
]

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)[
]
]
�
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
]

[
[
](41)[
]
]
�
The administrator for the law enforcement
standards board[
.
]
; and

���
(42)
�
Professional
and technical staff within the state historic preservation division of the
department of land and natural resources.

����
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.
�

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

����
SECTION
4.
�
This Act shall take effect
upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

BY REQUEST

Report Title:

DLNR; State Historic Preservation Program; Employees

Description:

Amend sections 6E-3 and 76-16(b), HRS, to allow the Department
of Land and Natural Resources to employ both civil service and non-civil
service professional and technical staff in its State Historic Preservation Program.

The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.