REPORT TITLE:
Department of Public Safety


DESCRIPTION:
Transfers administration and supervision of parole field services
to the Department of Public Safety.  Requires the Hawaii paroling
authority to require program alternatives to incarceration as
conditions to parole for selected parolees.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                            479         
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY. 


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

 1      SECTION 1.  Section 26-14.6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended to read as follows:
 
 3      "§26-14.6  Department of public safety.(a)  The department
 
 4 of public safety shall be headed by a single executive to be
 
 5 known as the director of public safety.
 
 6      (b)  The department of public safety shall be responsible
 
 7 for the formulation and implementation of state policies and
 
 8 objectives for correctional, parole supervision, security, law
 
 9 enforcement, and public safety programs and functions, for the
 
10 administration and maintenance of all public or private
 
11 correctional facilities and services, for the service of process,
 
12 and for the security of state buildings.
 
13      (c)  Effective July 1, 1990, the Hawaii paroling authority
 
14 and the crime victim compensation commission are placed within
 
15 the department of public safety for administrative purposes only.
 
16      (d)  Effective July 1, 1990, the functions and authority
 
17 heretofore exercised by:
 
18      (1)  The department of corrections relating to adult
 
19           corrections and the intake service centers;
 
20      (2)  The judiciary relating to the sheriff's office and
 

 
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 1           judiciary security personnel; and
 
 2      (3)  The department of the attorney general relating to
 
 3           state law enforcement officers and narcotics
 
 4           enforcement investigators with the narcotics
 
 5           enforcement division,
 
 6 shall be transferred to the department of public safety.
 
 7      (e)  Effective July 1, 1990, the functions and authority
 
 8 heretofore exercised by the department of health pursuant to
 
 9 chapters 329 and 329C, with the exception of sections 329-2,
 
10 329-3, and 329-4(3) to (8), shall be transferred to the
 
11 department of public safety.
 
12      (f)  Effective July 1, 1990, the functions, authority, and
 
13 obligations, together with the limitations imposed thereon and
 
14 the privileges and immunities conferred thereby, exercised by a
 
15 "sheriff", "sheriffs", a "sheriff's deputy", "sheriff's
 
16 deputies", a "deputy sheriff", "deputy sheriffs", or a "deputy",
 
17 under sections 21-8, 47-18, 88-51, 105-4, 134-11, 134-51,
 
18 183D-11, 187A-14, 201G-55, 201G-74, 231-25, 281-108, 281-111,
 
19 286-52, 286-52.5, 321-1, 322-6, 325-9, 325-80, 353-11, 383-71,
 
20 438-5, 445-37, 482E-4, 485-6, 501-42, 501-171, 501-218, 521-78,
 
21 578-4, 584-6, 587-33, 603-29, 604-6.2, 606-14, 607-2, 607-4,
 
22 607-8, 633-8, 634-11, 634-12, 634-21, 634-22, 651-33, 651-37,
 
23 651-51, 654-2, 655-2, 657-13, 660-16, 666-11, 666-21, 803-23,
 

 
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 1 803-34, 803-35, 804-14, 804-18, 804-41, 805-1, 806-71, and 832-23
 
 2 shall be exercised to the same extent by the department of public
 
 3 safety.
 
 4      (g)  Effective January 1, 1993, the functions and authority
 
 5 heretofore exercised by the attorney general and the department
 
 6 of the attorney general relating to the executive security
 
 7 officers shall be transferred to the department of public safety.
 
 8      (h)  Effective January 1, 1993, the functions and authority
 
 9 heretofore exercised by the superintendent of education and the
 
10 department of education relating to after hours security
 
11 contracts at its facilities, including the security functions
 
12 being performed by employees of the public library system as well
 
13 as the contractual security services for the libraries, shall be
 
14 transferred to the department of public safety.
 
15      (i)  Effective January 1, 1993, the functions and authority
 
16 heretofore exercised by the director of health and the department
 
17 of health relating to uniformed security employees and security
 
18 contracts at various state hospitals throughout the State shall
 
19 be transferred to the department of public safety.
 
20      (j)  Effective January 1, 1993, the functions and authority
 
21 heretofore exercised by the director of human services and the
 
22 department of human services relating to contractual security
 
23 guard services shall be transferred to the department of public
 

 
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 1 safety.
 
 2      (k)  Effective July 1, 1994, the functions and authority
 
 3 heretofore exercised by the adjutant general relating to security
 
 4 for national guard and state civil defense facilities in the
 
 5 Diamond Head complex, for after work hours, shall be transferred
 
 6 to the department of public safety. 
 
 7      (l)  Effective July 1, 1999, the functions and authority
 
 8 heretofore exercised by the Hawaii paroling authority relating to
 
 9 the parole officer and assistant parole officers shall be
 
10 transferred to the department of public safety."
 
11      SECTION 2.  Section 353C-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
12 amended to read as follows:
 
13      "§353C-2 Director of public safety; powers and duties.  The
 
14 director [of public safety] shall administer the public safety
 
15 programs of the department [of public safety] and shall be
 
16 responsible for the formulation and implementation of state goals
 
17 and objectives for correctional, parole supervision, and law
 
18 enforcement programs, including ensuring that correctional
 
19 facilities and correctional services meet the present and future
 
20 needs of persons committed to the correctional facilities.  In
 
21 the administration of these programs, the director may:
 
22      (1)  Preserve the public peace, prevent crime, detect and
 
23           arrest offenders against the law, protect the rights of
 

 
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 1           persons and property, and enforce and prevent violation
 
 2           of all laws and administrative rules of the State as
 
 3           the director deems to be necessary or desirable or upon
 
 4           request, to assist other state officers or agencies
 
 5           that have primary administrative responsibility over
 
 6           specific subject matters or programs;
 
 7      (2)  Train, equip, maintain, and supervise the force of
 
 8           public safety officers, including law enforcement
 
 9           [and], correctional, and parole personnel, and other
 
10           employees of the department;
 
11      (3)  Serve process both in civil and criminal proceedings;
 
12      (4)  Perform other duties as may be required by law;
 
13      (5)  Adopt, pursuant to chapter 91, rules that are necessary
 
14           or desirable for the administration of public safety
 
15           programs; and
 
16      (6)  Enter into contracts in behalf of the department and
 
17           take all actions deemed necessary and appropriate for
 
18           the proper and efficient administration of the
 
19           department."
 
20      SECTION 3.  Section 353C-5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
21 amended to read as follows:
 
22      "§353C-5 Criminal history record checks.  The department
 
23 shall develop standards to assure the reputable and responsible
 

 
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 1 characters of staff members of its correctional facilities which
 
 2 shall include but not be limited to criminal history record
 
 3 checks.  For the purposes of this section[, "staff member"]:
 
 4      "Staff member" means any employee of the department [of
 
 5 public safety] who is directly involved with the treatment and
 
 6 care of persons committed to or paroled from a facility or who
 
 7 possesses police powers including the power of arrest[, and
 
 8 "prospective staff member"]. 
 
 9      "Prospective staff member" means any applicant for a job in
 
10 the department [of public safety] that is directly involved with
 
11 the treatment and care of persons committed to or paroled from a
 
12 facility or that requires the exercise of police powers including
 
13 the power to arrest in the performance of its duties.
 
14      Every staff member and prospective staff member shall submit
 
15 a statement under penalty of unsworn falsification to authorities
 
16 indicating whether the staff member or prospective staff member
 
17 was ever convicted of a crime other than a minor traffic
 
18 violation involving a fine of [fifty dollars] $50 or less and
 
19 providing consent to the department to conduct a criminal history
 
20 record check and to obtain other criminal history record
 
21 information for verification.  The staff member shall be
 
22 fingerprinted for the purpose of complying with the criminal
 
23 history record check.  The prospective staff member shall be
 

 
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 1 fingerprinted and the criminal history record check shall be
 
 2 completed prior to beginning employment.
 
 3      The department shall obtain criminal history record
 
 4 information through the Hawaii criminal justice data center on
 
 5 all staff and prospective staff members of the department [of
 
 6 public safety].  The Hawaii criminal justice data center may
 
 7 assess prospective staff members a reasonable fee for each
 
 8 criminal history record check conducted.  The information
 
 9 obtained shall be used exclusively for the stated purpose for
 
10 which it was obtained, and shall be subject to such federal laws
 
11 and federal regulations as may be now or hereafter adopted.
 
12      The department may deny employment to a prospective staff
 
13 member who was convicted of a crime other than a minor traffic
 
14 violation involving a fine of [fifty dollars] $50 or less and if
 
15 the department finds from the prospective staff member's criminal
 
16 history record that the prospective staff member poses a risk to
 
17 the health, safety, security, or well-being of inmates under
 
18 supervision and confinement, paroled prisoners, other staff, or
 
19 the public at large.
 
20      Staff members shall not be subject to termination based on
 
21 findings in their criminal records except for those whose
 
22 conviction of a crime occurred after May 8, 1989, or under
 
23 circumstances in which a staff member is [[]a[]] fugitive from
 

 
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 1 justice.  The convictions of staff members subject to termination
 
 2 must be for crimes other than a minor traffic violation involving
 
 3 a fine of [fifty dollars] $50 or less, and the staff member must
 
 4 pose a risk to the health, safety, security, or well-being of
 
 5 inmates under supervision and confinement, paroled prisoners,
 
 6 other staff, or the public at large."
 
 7     SECTION 4.  Section 353-62, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 8 amended to read as follows:
 
 9     "§353-62  Hawaii paroling authority; responsibilities and
 
10 duties; operations; records, reports, staff.(a)  In addition to
 
11 any other responsibility or duty prescribed by law for the Hawaii
 
12 paroling authority, the paroling authority shall:
 
13     (1)   Serve as the central paroling authority for the State;
 
14     (2)   In selecting individuals for parole, consider for
 
15           parole all committed persons, except in cases where the
 
16           penalty of life imprisonment not subject to parole has
 
17           been imposed, regardless of the nature of the offense
 
18           committed;
 
19     (3)   Determine the time at which parole shall be granted to
 
20           any eligible individual as that time at which maximum
 
21           benefits of the correctional institutions to the
 
22           individual have been reached and the element of risk to
 
23           the community is minimal;
 

 
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 1      (4)  Establish rules of operation to determine conditions of
 
 2 parole applicable to any individual granted parole;
 
 3     [(5)  Provide continuing custody, control, and supervision of
 
 4 paroled individuals;
 
 5      (6)]  (5)  Revoke or suspend parole and provide for the
 
 6            authorization of return to a correctional institution
 
 7            for any individual who violates parole or any
 
 8            condition of parole when, in the opinion of the Hawaii
 
 9            paroling authority, the violation presents a risk to
 
10            community safety or a significant deviation from any
 
11            condition of parole;
 
12     [(7)]  (6)  Discharge an individual from parole when
 
13            supervision is no longer needed;
 
14     [(8)]  (7)  Interpret the parole program to the public in
 
15            order to develop a broad base of public understanding
 
16            and support; and
 
17     [(9)] (8)  Recommend to the legislature sound parole
 
18           legislation and recommend to the governor sound parole
 
19           administration.
 
20      (b)  In its operations, the paroling authority shall:
 
21      (1)  Keep and maintain a record of all meetings and
 
22           proceedings;
 
23      (2)  Send a detailed report of its operations to the
 

 
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 1           governor every three months;
 
 2      (3)  In [promulgating] adopting rules, conform to chapter
 
 3           91;
 
 4      (4)  In all matters act by a majority of its members; and
 
 5      (5)  Appoint an administrative secretary and such other
 
 6           clerical and other assistants as may be necessary
 
 7           within the limits of available appropriations, subject
 
 8           to any applicable salary classification and civil
 
 9           service schedules, laws, and rules." 
 
10      SECTION 5.  Section 353-63.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
11 amended to read as follows:
 
12      "[[]§353-63.5[]]  Intermediate sanctions; eligibility;
 
13 criteria and conditions.  (a)  The Hawaii paroling authority
 
14 shall [implement] require, as a condition of parole or as an
 
15 amended condition of parole, alternative programs that place,
 
16 control, supervise, and treat selected parolees in lieu of
 
17 incarceration.
 
18      [(b)  The authority may impose participation in alternative
 
19 programs as a condition of parole or as an amended condition of
 
20 parole.
 
21      (c)](b)  As used in this section, "alternative programs"
 
22 mean programs which, from time to time, are created and funded by
 
23 legislative appropriation or federal grant naming [the Hawaii
 

 
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 1 paroling authority or] the department [of public safety on behalf
 
 2 of the Hawaii paroling authority as the expending agency] and
 
 3 which are intended to provide an alternative to incarceration.
 
 4 Alternative programs may include:
 
 5      (1)  Home detention, curfew using electronic monitoring and
 
 6           surveillance, or both;
 
 7      (2)  Intensive supervision, residential supervision, work-
 
 8           furlough, and structured educational or vocational
 
 9           programs;
 
10      (3)  Therapeutic residential and nonresidential programs;
 
11           and
 
12      (4)  Similar programs created and designated as alternative
 
13           programs by the legislature, the chairperson of the
 
14           Hawaii paroling authority, or the director [of public
 
15           safety] for parolees who do not pose significant risks
 
16           to the community."
 
17      SECTION 6.  Section 353-71, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
18 amended to read as follows:
 
19      "§353-71  Parole officer and assistant parole officers.  The
 
20 [Hawaii paroling authority] director may appoint and remove at
 
21 pleasure a parole officer and assistant parole officers as may be
 
22 necessary, who shall receive such compensation as shall be
 
23 provided by law.  The duties of the parole officer shall be as
 
24 follows:
 

 
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 1      (1)  To keep a record of all paroled prisoners; to add from
 
 2           time to time thereafter information concerning the
 
 3           employment and wages of each paroled prisoner, together
 
 4           with the name of the paroled prisoner's employer and
 
 5           such details concerning the paroled prisoner's health,
 
 6           conduct, and environment as may come to the attention
 
 7           of the parole officer either from reports made to the
 
 8           parole officer or through the parole officer's own
 
 9           personal investigation;
 
10      (2)  To receive reports from paroled prisoners as may be
 
11           required by the rules and regulations of the paroling
 
12           authority and to check such reports by personal
 
13           investigations and by conferences with the employers of
 
14           such prisoners and such other persons as can give
 
15           information concerning the habits, work, and
 
16           environment of such prisoners;
 
17      (3)  To investigate and keep informed upon the habits, work,
 
18           wages, and environment of such prisoners, if any there
 
19           be, as are not required to report to the parole
 
20           officer;
 
21      (4)  To make such other investigations, secure such other
 
22           information and data, perform such other duties and
 
23           make such other reports, in addition to those which may
 

 
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 1           be required by law, as may be required by the [paroling
 
 2           authority;] director;
 
 3      (5)  To make a report once in each month to the [paroling
 
 4           authority,] director, together with such additional
 
 5           reports as the circumstances call for, concerning the
 
 6           prisoners on parole and their conduct and environment;
 
 7           and
 
 8      (6)  As far as practicable, to assist in obtaining suitable
 
 9           employment for paroled prisoners and otherwise assist
 
10           in rehabilitation of such paroled prisoners.
 
11      Each assistant parole officer shall have such of the powers
 
12 and duties of the parole officer [hereinabove provided for] as
 
13 shall be prescribed by the [paroling authority] director.
 
14      The director shall ensure that reports required by this
 
15 section are transmitted on a timely basis to the Hawaii paroling
 
16 authority."
 
17      SECTION 7.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
18 New statutory material is underscored.
 
19      SECTION 8.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 1999.
 
20 
 
21                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________