RELATING TO THE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

SB747

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

747

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to the board of education
.

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

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SECTION 1.
�
Chapter 302A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding a new section to part IV, subpart C, to be appropriately
designated and to read as follows:

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"
�302A-
�
Audit office.
�
(a)
�
There is established within
the board an audit office, which shall operate independently to ensure
accountability, transparency, and efficiency in the operations, expenditures,
and programs of the department.

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(b)
�
The audit office shall have
the authority to:

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(1)
�
Conduct financial audits, including:

���������
(A)
�
Examination of accounts and
financial records of the department, including schools, programs, and
administrative divisions;

���������
(B)
�
Ensure proper use of public funds;
and

���������
(C)
�
Compliance with applicable laws and
financial accountability;

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(2)
�
Conduct performance audits,
including the evaluation of the effectiveness, efficiency, and economy of operations,
programs, and activities undertaken by the department in achieving its
established goals and objectives;

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(3)
�
Provide recommendations to improve
the financial aid and operational efficiency of the department, including
suggestions for best practices, corrective actions, and allocation of resources;

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(4)
�
Examine and inspect all accounts,
books, files, reports, and other documents of the department, including
subsidiaries, agencies, commissions, or other affiliated programs, as necessary
to conduct audits;

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(5)
�
Examine and inspect facilities,
operations, and resources under the jurisdiction of the department;

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(6)
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Administer oaths, take testimony,
and compel the production of documents as part of audit investigations; and

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(7)
�
Engage independent consultants or
experts, as needed, to perform specialized evaluations in support of audit
objectives.

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(c)
�
The audit office shall be headed by an
auditor.
�
The auditor shall oversee the
appointment of staff, who shall have expertise in auditing, accounting, or
other relevant fields.
�
Staff members
shall be exempt from chapter 76, and their salaries and costs shall be included
in the budget of the board.

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(d)
�
All audits conducted by the audit office
shall conform to government auditing standards as prescribed by the Comptroller
General of the United States.

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(e)
�
The audit office shall operate in accordance
with the principles of independence and transparency.
�
The audit office shall not be subject to the
direction or control of any other agency or department in the execution of its
duties.

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(f)
�
The audit office shall submit annual reports
of its findings and recommendations relative to the expenditures made and
financial transactions by the different school complex areas, including any
proposed legislation, to the board, superintendent, and the legislature no
later than twenty days prior to the convening of each regular session; provided
that the reports shall include audits and examinations conducted by the auditor
for the immediately preceding school year and all other audits and examinations
conducted by the auditor during the current school year.
�
Reports shall be available for public
inspection.

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The
audit office shall send certified copies of audits and examinations made by the
auditor to the governor and the director of finance copies of the reports may
also be submitted to the legislative council or any legislative interim
committee, upon request.
"

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SECTION

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

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"
(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:

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(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;

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(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;

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(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;

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

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

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(6)
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Positions
filled by popular vote;

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(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;

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(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;

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(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);

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(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;

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(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;

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(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;

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

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(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;

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

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(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;

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

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(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;

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

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(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;

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(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;

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(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

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

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(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;

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

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(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;

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(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;

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(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;

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(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;

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(24)
�
The
sheriff;

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

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

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(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;

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

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(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;

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(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;

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

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(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;

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

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

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

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

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(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

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(42)
�
Positions
in the audit office within the board of education.

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

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

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SECTION

3
.
�
There is
appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $575,000
or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2025-2026 and the same
sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2026-2027 for:

����
(1)
�
The establishment and operation of the
audit office established pursuant to section 1 of this Act; and

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(2)
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The establishment of six full-time
equivalent (6.0 FTE) positions within the audit office.

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The
sums

appropriated shall be expended
by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.

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SECTION 4.
�

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

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SECTION

5
.
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This Act shall
take effect on July 1, 2025.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

BOE; DOE;
Audit Office; Established; Reports; Positions; Appropriations

Description:

Establishes
an Audit Office within the Board of Education to audit operations and
expenditures of the Department of Education.
�

Exempts positions within the Audit Office from civil service law.
�
Requires annual reports to the
Legislature.
�
Establishes six full-time
equivalent (6.0 FTE) positions within the Audit Office.
�
Appropriates funds.

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