SB3212

SECTION 1. Chapter 26, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§26-A Department of energy. (a) The department of energy shall be headed by a single executive to be known as the director of energy.

(b) The department of energy shall be responsible for the administration and implementation of chapter 196."

SECTION 2. Section 26-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§26-4 Structure of government. Under the supervision of the governor, all executive and administrative offices, departments, and instrumentalities of the state government and their respective functions, powers, and duties shall be allocated among and within the following principal departments that are hereby established:

(1) Department of human resources development (Section 26‑5)

(2) Department of accounting and general services (Section 26-6)

(3) Department of the attorney general (Section 26-7)

(4) Department of budget and finance (Section 26-8)

(5) Department of commerce and consumer affairs (Section 26-9)

(6) Department of taxation (Section 26-10)

(7) University of Hawaii (Section 26-11)

(8) Department of education (Section 26-12)

(9) Department of health (Section 26-13)

(10) Department of human services (Section 26-14)

(11) Department of land and natural resources (Section 26‑15)

(12) Department of agriculture (Section 26-16)

(13) Department of Hawaiian home lands (Section 26-17)

(14) Department of business, economic development, and tourism (Section 26-18)

(15) Department of transportation (Section 26-19)

(16) Department of labor and industrial relations (Section 26-20)

(17) Department of defense (Section 26-21)

(18) Department of public safety (Section 26-14.6)[.]

(19) Department of energy (Section 26-A)."

SECTION 3. Section 196-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§196-3 Energy resources coordinator. The director of [~~business, economic development, and tourism~~] energy shall serve as energy resources coordinator."

SECTION 4. All rights, powers, functions, and duties of the director of business, economic development and tourism pursuant to chapter 196, Hawaii Revised Statutes, are transferred to the director of energy.

All officers and employees whose functions are transferred by this Act shall be transferred with their functions and shall continue to perform their regular duties upon their transfer, subject to the state personnel laws and this Act.

No officer or employee of the State having tenure shall suffer any loss of salary, seniority, prior service credit, vacation, sick leave, or other employee benefit or privilege as a consequence of this Act, and such officer or employee may be transferred or appointed to a civil service position without the necessity of examination; provided that the officer or employee possesses the minimum qualifications for the position to which transferred or appointed; and provided that subsequent changes in status may be made pursuant to applicable civil service and compensation laws.

An officer or employee of the State who does not have tenure and who may be transferred or appointed to a civil service position as a consequence of this Act shall become a civil service employee without the loss of salary, seniority, prior service credit, vacation, sick leave, or other employee benefits or privileges and without the necessity of examination; provided that such officer or employee possesses the minimum qualifications for the position to which transferred or appointed.

If an office or position held by an officer or employee having tenure is abolished, the officer or employee shall not thereby be separated from public employment, but shall remain in the employment of the State with the same pay and classification and shall be transferred to some other office or position for which the officer or employee is eligible under the personnel laws of the State as determined by the head of the department or the governor.

SECTION 5. All appropriations, records, equipment, machines, files, supplies, contracts, books, papers, documents, maps, and other personal property heretofore made, used, acquired, or held by the department of business, economic development and tourism, relating to the functions transferred to the director of energy shall be transferred with the functions to which they relate.

SECTION 6. Federal aid, bond obligations; not impaired. It is the intent of this Act not to jeopardize the receipt of any federal aid nor to impair the obligation of the State or any agency thereof to the holders of any bond issued by the State or by any such agency, and to the extent, and only to the extent, necessary to effectuate this intent, the governor is authorized and empowered to modify the strict provisions of this Act, but shall promptly report any such modifications with the reasons therefor to the legislature at its next session thereafter for review by the legislature.

SECTION 7. Revision of existing statutes. The revisor of statutes shall substitute into chapter 196, Hawaii Revised Statutes, the appropriate department of energy or director of energy reference in all existing statutes where a department, board, commission, agency, program, or organizational segment is transferred from the department or director of business, economic, development and tourism to the department or director of energy if such existing statutory language, in chapter 196, Hawaii Revised Statutes, has not been amended by this Act.

SECTION 8. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 9. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	3212
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008
STATE OF HAWAII