[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":44,"_46":47,"_48":49,"_50":51,"_52":53,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":59,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":65,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6364201,"mediaKeyId","2165131-d1aa5064d829c6e83539e69a458384d0","parentId",2165131,"title","Committees hear broad wildfire plan; bill creating stronger State Fire Marshal office draws requests for more detail","audioSeconds",0,"startMs",5734000,"endMs","viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2165131-d1aa5064d829c6e83539e69a458384d0&start=5734&end=5734","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2165131-d1aa5064d829c6e83539e69a458384d0/thumbnail_5734000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6364201/Hawaii/Committees-hear-broad-wildfire-plan-bill-creating-stronger-State-Fire-Marshal-office-draws-requests-for-more-detail","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6364201-4ae78ffece6d094553479e7d2ce9d9bf/orig.mp4?Expires=1771155424&Signature=gG~cvENDk6vFC29N04Q-WnW4g~JE9cufPT6o6x2IHdpl1yA99MbAuUveqjhe2szjknjyNOqQFXGNt8AjDKpI-eMbALe3wr2VzBzrYTXcVeReVw1vQkKeF50C-JFk3MyB~2TyCieXmFfcL1orXdQ9bZ3d6QkhLMZRAFTdgl-Yc-FKOyzHBK9r94IKJ79YaRTRjYYMgukcxzserTSrRpZPDS0wZGbUysQudMhgq5zhEmfUXzPsTbG~gtCpBRuvsa8dqg99w~sKTHUcmoFqQImR8U4K7ytudr59MUM-dGU-I3ZJxs9sp8mVHLkDnpz9Gryi16XsWMEyj7GF1BWqg4xFBg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","House Committee on Water & Land","date","2025-01-25T04:03:06Z","article","House committees on Jan. 29 heard detailed testimony on proposals to expand statewide wildfire prevention and to establish a more empowered State Fire Marshal office, and advanced a narrower wildfire-fuel reduction measure for committee approval.

Why it matters: Testimony focused on implementing recommendations in the Fire Safety Research Institute's phase-three report and on how to structure and fund a statewide office able to set codes, manage data and coordinate wildfire response. Witnesses urged a clear governance structure, data collection capacity and advice from a broad advisory body before the state assigns broad code-making authority to a new office.

Major General Steven Logan, speaking for the Department of Defense, said his office would be open to housing an attached State Fire Marshal function but emphasized the need for coordination with counties and the State Fire Council. \"The purpose of the bill would be then move it under DOD, subsequently, acquire the funding, hire the state fire marshal,\" Logan said; he added the administration would continue outreach to county chiefs.

Nonprofit wildfire experts urged more specifics before finalizing the office's powers. Elizabeth Pickett, co-executive director of the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, said the group studied other states and compiled lessons learned. \"One of the best practices is to have a diverse steering committee or advisory board ... so that by the time the state fire marshal provides a directive, it has been vetted and understood within the greater context of all the other goals that also need to be achieved,\" Pickett said. She told lawmakers that consistent statewide data collection and hazard mapping are essential to target limited mitigation funds.

Agency and industry backers emphasized the need for resources. Michael Walker, DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife's statewide fire-protection forester, told the committee the department supports the measure in part but sought clarification on liability, staffing and the authority to perform fuel-reduction projects on lands not set aside to DLNR. Hawaiian Electric and other private-sector witnesses voiced support for an empowered marshal who can coordinate utility wildfire safety and mitigation work.

The committee moved House Bill 1113, focused on community fuel reduction and defensible space, forward with amendments. The chair explained the committee's recommendation to strike part 1 of the measure (which would have enacted broad new duties) and to retain part 2 (community fuel-reduction projects). Both the Public Safety and Water & Land panels adopted the amended recommendation.

Key details and concerns
- Advisory and vetting process: Multiple witnesses recommended a standing, multi-stakeholder advisory body (state fire chiefs, county planners, utilities, environmental and housing representatives) to review directives before statewide adoption.
- Data and mapping: HWMO and DLNR urged the state marshal office to include sustained funding for hazard mapping and a consistent data-collection system so Hawaii can qualify for federal grants and prioritize mitigation work.
- Placement and authorities: Some members asked whether the marshal's office should sit in DOD, DLNR, or elsewhere. Witnesses noted examples across other states and said both alignment with emergency management and with natural-resource/fire expertise have trade-offs.
- Implementation and hiring: The State Fire Council reported it is already reviewing applications for a marshal position under last session's law; members asked whether hiring should be paused until the office's authorities and placement are resolved.

Votes and next steps
- House Bill 1113 (defensible-space and community fuel reduction, as amended): Committee chairs recommended striking part 1 and retaining part 2; both committees adopted the recommendation and moved the measure with a placeholder appropriation and an effective date set to July 1, 3000 for committee-report drafting. Outcome: approved by committees; exact appropriation amount not specified in committee report.
- House Bill 1064 (stand-up/placement of a State Fire Marshal office and related code changes): deferred for further work; the chair asked for technical amendment proposals and outreach to county and statewide stakeholders.

What stakeholders said: HWMO and fire-safety advocates emphasized the importance of early community engagement. \"We have done a deep dive...to learn best practices and watch-outs,\" Pickett said, offering to submit a compendium of lessons learned from Oregon, Colorado and other states.

Ending: Committees moved a narrower, actionable fuels-reduction measure forward while asking agencies and stakeholders to refine the structure, authority, and resourcing plan for a State Fire Marshal office before broader code-making or enforcement authorities are finalized.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","PBS Public Hearing - Wed Jan 29, 2025 @ 9:00 AM HST","oneSentenceSummary","Lawmakers heard extensive testimony on a draft State Fire Marshal office and statewide wildfire prevention steps, including defensible-space rules and community fuel-reduction projects; the legislature advanced a separate wildfire fuel-reduction bill while preserving more complex structural and jurisdiction issues for later work.","taxTitle","House Committee on Water & Land, House of Representatives, Legislative , Hawaii","taxId",25724,"location","Hawaii","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_46":81,"_48":82,"_50":83,"_52":84,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":85,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":86,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},6364205,"Committee advances change to emergency management hiring; defers other preparedness bills",9156,442000,9598000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2165131-d1aa5064d829c6e83539e69a458384d0&start=442&end=9598","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2165131-d1aa5064d829c6e83539e69a458384d0/thumbnail_442000.jpg","/articles/6364205/Hawaii/Committee-advances-change-to-emergency-management-hiring-defers-other-preparedness-bills","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6364205-0ad8572daa69ffd961da96cfc297f49e/orig.mp4?Expires=1771155424&Signature=CCVR1uIxSaVH7UDna5wOc5axUD1Q3t6Dfal0ckGGA-vU4DfX0Su2Ely4hHS4pSJERWos1ldtUi29-l7tf9kyYrZLstxUSQClXXqvYasNHE1BUjyoWluy3gS8k-tEC~4AzcPVEWXOZPpmm5OI8PgXLJZris6eQwIgUDwV17d8zwaQ77UNwvUDQLU21Pj6QKhRrFrXFqpqUp3ASP5RaRyE5WBVdMEnrGDjCUO5NQ5b4wyOukGTrzMKzlPqzog3TQrDeXe8wQhZFkdgGhQcXrVbqviWaTe1nKXBO3oZD-JlQQRgBr6OyJ98ItlE3P8Bx16zNJDCDUrPVI7IQ9AMVPi-Hw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The House committees advanced a reclassification measure for Hawaii Emergency Management Agency supervisory positions and deferred most other emergency-preparedness bills for further work.

In a voice and roll-call sequence on Jan. 29, the House moved House Bill 10-59, a department-backed request to convert certain Emergency Management Specialist (EMS) positions (levels 5 and 6) from civil service to exempt status, out of committee with the chair's recommendation and technical amendments noted. Chair Belotti announced the committee would defer decision making on the other emergency-management bills to a later agenda.

Why it matters: Agency managers said lengthy hiring processes and low advertised pay have left supervisory EMS posts vacant and hampered operations. Supporters argued reclassification would let the agency use grant funds to supplement salaries and recruit experienced supervisors quickly. Opponents said exempt status removes civil-service protections and urged that the repricing and hiring processes for civil-service posts be fixed instead.

Hawaii Emergency Management Agency (HIEMA) Administrator James Barrows described persistent vacancies at the EMS 5 and EMS 6 levels and said the agency has tried existing civil-service options without success. \"For the two years I've been at HIEMA, I've been able to hire in civil service four people,\" Barrows said. \"Of the 45 civil-service slots, nine are vacant at the EMS 6 and 5 levels.\" He added that the agency planned to offset some of the salary cost using FEMA mitigation and public-assistance grant funds.

The Hawaii Government Employees Association told lawmakers that exempt employees are at-will and lose grievance protections. An HGEA representative urged the committee to use Act 234's repricing tools and to shorten hiring timelines rather than broadly convert civil-service positions to exempt status.

On other measures, the committee took extended testimony and questions but deferred decisions. Topics included:
- Community readiness centers (House Bill 10-60): HIEMA described a pilot plan to establish \"readiness centers\" that would act as local hubs for backup communications, power, and modest emergency supplies. Barrows said the agency hopes to identify 10 communities to start, with an eventual statewide target of about 100. \"Ideally for every community throughout the state,\" he said, adding the administration expects to begin with 10 communities under a federal grant and expand from there.
- Shelter inventory (House Bill 883) and hurricane-shelter hardening (House Bill 357, House Bill 358, and related measures): Agency witnesses said counties currently maintain shelter assessments and that HIEMA can publish consolidated information without new law if the committee wants it done quickly. Testifiers and state officials debated the cost of hardening public buildings: Barrows and other witnesses estimated $12 million to harden a typical school cafeteria to withstand a category-3 storm and said a category-5 retrofit could more than double that cost.
- Grants to fortify low-income housing (House Bill 353): Public-health and disaster-preparedness witnesses supported targeted grants. Dr. Keoni Dudley described proposed grant amounts ranging \"between $25,000 and $50,000\" for single-family retrofits and up to $10,000 per apartment unit for sliding doors and windows.

No final votes were taken on the deferred bills. Chair Belotti said decision making on those measures would be scheduled for the end of the 10:30 a.m. agenda on Friday, Jan. 31, giving members time to propose technical amendments.

Votes at a glance
- House Bill 10-59 (convert EMS 5/6 positions to exempt): Committee action adopted; motion to pass with amendments approved (committee recorded ayes by chair, vice chair, Representatives Hashem, Ichiyama, LaMasao, Morikawa, Poli Poi, Shimizu and Souza; Representative Woodson excused). Outcome: approved.
- House Bill 10-60 (community readiness centers): deferred for later decision making.
- House Bill 883 (shelter inventory): deferred for later decision making.
- House Bill 357 (hurricane shelter retrofit funding): deferred for later decision making.
- House Bill 353 (grants for low-income owner/condo retrofits): deferred for later decision making.
- House Bill 358 (public buildings built to withstand Category 5 winds): deferred for later decision making.

What lawmakers said: Representative Belotti, the committee chair, said she wants members to submit amendment proposals over the next day. Major General Steven Logan of the Department of Defense and HIEMA witnesses said they would continue outreach to county fire and emergency chiefs before final committee action.

Next steps: The committee scheduled decision-making on most emergency-preparedness bills for the end of the Friday, Jan. 31, session. Lawmakers asked the Labor Committee to examine implementation of the state's repricing statute as part of the record on the EMS reclassification bill.

Ending: Members left the hearing with multiple follow-up tasks: draft technical amendments, gather cost estimates for hardening projects, and have agency and stakeholder talks about the scope and administration of community readiness centers and shelter inventories.","Lawmakers approved a measure to let Hawaii Emergency Management Agency reclassify certain supervisory emergency management positions as exempt to fill vacancies; debate continued on community readiness centers, shelter inventories, and retrofit grants, with decision-making for most bills deferred to a later session.","actionData","errors"]

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Committees hear broad wildfire plan; bill creating stronger State Fire Marshal office draws requests for more detail

Committee advances change to emergency management hiring; defers other preparedness bills