HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

492

TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2011

H.D. 2

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO PUBLIC SAFETY.

 

 

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

 


     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that Auditor Report No. 10-06, Audit of the Department of Public Safety, Sheriff Division, dated June 2010, found several operational deficiencies with the sheriff division of the department of public safety.

     The purpose of this Act is to protect the public safety and security by ensuring that these deficiencies are corrected effectively and efficiently.

     SECTION 2.  Section 353C-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "§353C-2  Director of public safety; powers and duties.  [[](a)[]]  The director [of public safety] shall administer the public safety programs of the department [of public safety] 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] Shall 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)  May, upon request, assist other state officers or agencies that have primary administrative responsibility over specific subject matters or programs;

    [(2) Train,] (3)  Shall train, equip, maintain, and supervise the force of public safety officers, including law enforcement and correctional personnel, and other employees of the department;

    [(3)  Serve] (4)  Shall serve process [both] in both civil and criminal proceedings;

    [(4)  Perform] (5)  Shall perform other duties as may be required by law;

    [(5)  Adopt,] (6)  Shall adopt pursuant to chapter 91, rules that are necessary or desirable for the administration of public safety programs; and

    [(6)  Enter] (7)  Shall enter into contracts [in] on behalf of the department and take all actions deemed necessary and appropriate for the proper and efficient administration of the department.

  [[](b)[]]  The department [of public safety] shall report to the legislature not later than twenty days prior to the [commencement] convening of the 2008 regular session, and every session thereafter, with its achievements, continuing improvements, and ongoing problems in providing the appropriate mental health care to committed persons under its jurisdiction."

     SECTION 3.  (a)  The department of public safety shall develop and implement a comprehensive strategic plan to correct the deficiencies in the sheriff division that were reported in Auditor Report No. 10-06, Audit of the Department of Public Safety, Sheriff Division, dated June 2010.  The plan shall, among other things:

     (1)  Pursue accreditation for the sheriff division from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. to ensure that proper law enforcement policies and procedures are enacted and followed;

     (2)  Correct inefficiencies in the warrant process, including:

         (A)  Reducing the backlog of warrants to be served by the sheriff division;

         (B)  Improving the sheriff division's radio system to provide adequate and reliable communications coverage for on-duty officers in line with applicable law enforcement standards of the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc.; and

         (C)  Relocating the receiving desk from Halawa correctional facility to address the problem of having to process a defendant in one location and retrieve warrants from another location miles away, and to facilitate the process applicable to persons who are voluntarily turning themselves in;

         and

     (3)  Address departmental leadership concerns by, among other things, developing and implementing internal controls, in accordance with the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission's internal control-integrated framework, to provide assurance of effectiveness and efficiency of sheriff division operations in meeting the division's goals and objectives.

     (b)  In conjunction with the comprehensive strategic plan, the department shall, among other things:

     (1)  Perform a risk assessment of each section of the sheriff division that, at a minimum, meets the requirements of Act 100, Session Laws of Hawaii 1999, and propose statutory amendments to align the duties and functions of the department and the sheriff division with the findings of the risk assessment; and

     (2)  Adopt rules for the sheriff division, pursuant to chapter 91, Hawaii Revised Statutes, that are necessary to enable the sheriff division to fulfill its duties and functions.

     (c)  The departments of public safety and transportation shall address the concerns raised by the auditor in Auditor Report No. 10-06, dated June 2010, relating to the provision of security for the State's airports under the jurisdiction of the department of transportation.  This includes concerns regarding the provision of deputy sheriffs to neighbor island airports, the autonomy of the sheriff division's airports section, and the ability of the sheriff division's airports section to respond to emergencies outside the airport area.

     (d)  No later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2012, the department of public safety shall submit to the legislature a report that includes a strategic plan on how it has corrected, or plans to correct, the deficiencies pointed out in Auditor Report No. 10-06 and this section.  The report shall include, among other things:

     (1)  A status report of the department of public safety's actions to correct the deficiencies or plan to correct the deficiencies;

     (2)  The department of public safety's comprehensive strategic plan;

     (3)  The cost allocations necessary to meet the goals of the strategic plan; and

     (4)  The department of public safety's findings and recommendations on the scope of functions of the department of public safety, including recommended statutory amendments to be enacted in the regular session of 2012. 

The report shall also include the cost of each strategic goal, and information required in part II of Act 100, Session Laws of Hawaii 1999, regarding the inclusion of a statement of goals, how each goal will be accomplished, an action plan with an implementation timetable, and a process to measure the performance of the programs and services.

     SECTION 4.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.



 

 

Report Title:

Department of Public Safety; Sheriff's Division; Appropriation

 

Description:

Addresses the operational deficiencies of the sheriff division of the department of public safety that were highlighted in the auditor's audit of the division.  (HB492 HD2)

 

 

 

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