SB679 HD2

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that disaster preparedness should be a top priority for Hawaii, given our isolation and our vulnerability to a host of disasters, both natural and man-made. The purpose of this Act is to create the office of the director of disaster preparedness and a disaster preparedness commission whose sole focus shall be to develop and implement a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan for the state of Hawaii. The legislature realizes that although disaster preparedness is the responsibility of all, there is a need to unify all of the various efforts to facilitate better communication and planning between the agencies. The director and commission are charged with the responsibility of preparing Hawaii's residents, their property and pets, and our visitors, for any natural or man-made disaster, excluding acts of terrorism, which may affect the state at any time. Disasters are a matter of fact for our islands, be it the constant threat of earthquakes, oil spills, and hurricanes or the long-term threat of rising sea levels from climate change. Our state must therefore be prepared for the worst.

SECTION 2. The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

“Chapter

disaster preparedness

§ -1 Definitions. As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Commission" means the disaster preparedness commission.

"Director" means the director of the office of disaster preparedness.

"Disaster" means any natural or man-made catastrophe, excluding terrorist activities, which are the purview of the department of defense pursuant to chapter 128, the occurrence of which is unanticipated or difficult to predict, that results in significant property damage, hardship, suffering, or loss of life within the state.

"Disaster preparedness" means the preparation for and the carrying out of all emergency functions, other than functions for which military forces are primarily responsible, to minimize damage caused by a disaster or natural hazard. These functions include without limitation firefighting services, police services, medical and health services, rescue operations, engineering, siren warning services, communications, evacuation of persons from stricken areas, temporary shelter, temporary housing, temporary restoration of public utility services, and other functions related to civilian protection, together with all other activities necessary or incidental to the preparation for and carrying out of the foregoing functions.

"Natural hazard" means hurricane, storm, flood, tsunami, tidal wave, rise of ocean level, wind-driven water, earthquake, volcanic activity, lava flow, rockslide, earthslide, wildfire, or other natural disaster.

§ -2 Office of the director of disaster preparedness established. There is established in the department of accounting and general services the office of the director of disaster preparedness. The director shall have expertise in emergency management. The director shall be nominated and, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, appointed by the governor. The director shall serve for a period of six years and thereafter until a successor is appointed. The salary of the director shall be set at a rate no greater than $ a year and shall not be diminished during the director's term of office unless by general law applying to all salaried officers of the State. If the director dies, resigns, becomes ineligible to serve, or is removed or suspended from office, the first assistant to the director shall become the acting director until a new director is appointed for a full term.

§ -3 Duties of the director. (a) The director shall develop a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan for the State of Hawaii. The disaster preparedness plan shall include but not be limited to:

(1) The identification of natural hazards;

(2) The designation of natural hazard impact zones;

(3) Priorities for natural hazard mitigation;

(4) Policies, requirements, and incentives to mitigate the problems caused by natural hazards, such as state or county building codes, land use policies, and retrofitting incentives such as tax credits; and

(5) Plans for best responses to natural and other disasters to minimize costs attributed to those disasters and protect the interests of the state's residents and their possessions and pets, and visitors to the state, including plans ensuring the reliability of communication networks and power supplies for major state airports, health care facilities, commercial harbors, temporary shelters, and other essential services.

(b) In performing the director's duties under this chapter, the director shall prepare and coordinate comprehensive plans and programs for disaster preparedness. The director shall annually submit to the governor and the legislature proposed legislation that develops and implements a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan for Hawaii no later than twenty days before the convening of each regular session of the legislature.

(c) The director shall report annually to the governor and the legislature no later than twenty days before the convening of each regular session of the legislature on the status of the disaster preparedness plan.

§ -4 Disaster preparedness commission established; selection of advisory committees. (a) There is established a disaster preparedness commission within the department of accounting and general services for administrative purposes only. The commission shall consist of eight members as follows:

(1) One member appointed by the governor;

(2) One member appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;

(3) One member appointed by the president of the senate;

(4) Four members appointed by the mayors of the counties of Honolulu, Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai, each of whom shall appoint one member; and

(5) The director of civil defense or the director's designee, who shall serve as a non-voting member of the commission.

The commission shall select one of its members to serve as chairperson. No member of the commission shall receive any compensation for commission services; provided that members shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred in the performance of commission duties.

(b) The commission members shall have expertise in one or more of the following nonexclusive disciplines:

(1) Seismology;

(2) Tsunamis;

(3) Hurricanes;

(4) Flood control;

(5) Volcanic activity;

(6) Geology;

(7) Coastal zone management;

(8) Environmental studies or protection;

(9) Climate and sea level change;

(10) Emergency management;

(11) Risk analysis;

(12) Hazard analysis;

(13) Waste management;

(14) Structural engineering;

(15) Architecture;

(16) Sheltering;

(17) Construction; and

(18) Communications.

(c) The commission shall advise and assist the director in developing a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan for the state. The commission's duties in this regard shall include without limitation:

(1) Working with the state office of planning to determine and develop the best geospatial data resources and tools to carry out the duties listed herein, as well as develop flood zone maps for state planning based upon historical and anticipated occurrence, frequency, and intensity;

(2) Defining natural hazard impact zones for the state;

(3) Developing land use policies in accordance with the natural hazard impact zones;

(4) Reviewing and making appropriate recommendations regarding state or county building codes;

(5) Ensuring the reliability of the state's power supplies, including back-up generators for emergency power at major state airports, commercial harbors, and designated local primary radio stations;

(6) Recommending tax credits for retrofit of structures;

(7) Working with appropriate agencies, both state and county, to develop an emergency plan to expedite the placement of new sirens, updating existing sirens, and the placement of other warning devices, with priority given to land areas at high risk from natural hazards, so that vital information is timely disseminated to the public;

(8) Working with appropriate agencies and organizations to expand radio, video, and other means of communication into areas of the state not served by these mediums;

(9) Working with the department of agriculture and the department of land and natural resources to ensure the integrity of the state's dams and reservoirs;

(10) Working with the department of health to assess the structural integrity of all state hospitals in Hawaii, and these assessments shall be conducted by one or more registered professional engineers qualified to conduct structural analyses on existing structures and knowledgeable about the effects of hurricanes, earthquakes, and other disasters, with each facility to be rated on its ability to survive the likely effects of hurricanes and earthquakes of various intensities, and other disasters, and the results of the assessment shall be provided to state hospitals to support preparation of risk-based disaster plans, and such findings and recommendations shall also be incorporated into the director's annual report to the governor and legislature no later than twenty days before the convening of each regular session of the legislature;

(11) Working with the department of health in conjunction with health care facilities to develop disaster plans that will provide emergency shelter for patients and staff, as well as a plan to meet the medical needs of their patients during a disaster;

(12) Working with the department of transportation and the department of defense to develop a plan to protect Hawaii's ports of entry when emergency access by foreign flag ships or aircraft is sought, including a plan for such contingencies as when vessels carry munitions and weapons;

(13) Working with the department of human services and the University of Hawaii's school of social work and other university departments and programs to develop a more coordinated case management response to deal with social problems that emanate from disasters;

(14) Working with the state's consular corps so they can inform foreign citizens about the nature of the emergency, including but not limited to working with radio stations KZOO (Japanese) and KNDI (all other foreign languages) on broadcasting emergency messages to non-English-speaking residents and visitors;

(15) Working with the department of transportation to develop alternate transportation routes in the event that major roads become inaccessible; and

(16) Conducting a comprehensive review of other issues that threaten the safety of Hawaii's residents and visitors, their possessions and pets, and recommending a strategic course of action that would strengthen Hawaii's disaster response system.

(d) The commission may engage employees necessary to perform its duties, including working groups and administrative personnel, as provided in section 26-35."

SECTION 3. Chapter 321, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§321- Assisted living facilities; safety. No later than July 1, 2008, any assisted living facility that accepts or retains any individual with physical, cognitive, or other impairment that prevents the individual from safely evacuating the facility independently, shall provide necessary assistance for the resident to reach a point of safety. Each facility shall:

(1) Maintain sufficient staff on its premises twenty-four-hours-a-day seven-days-a-week who are able to assist in evacuations;

(2) Include an individualized evacuation plan in the service plan of each resident;

(3) Provide routine fire drills and record keeping demonstrating each facility's evacuation capability;

(4) Provide evacuation and fire safety training for staff and residents;

(5) Promptly report all fires and other emergent incidents to fire safety and facility-licensing agencies having authority over such matters;

(6) Establish points of safety within the facility and outside the facility;

(7) Be equipped with an automatic sprinkler system, smoke compartments, and smoke alarms in compliance with adopted Fire Life Safety Codes as determined by the authority having jurisdiction over such matters;

(8) Establish procedures to provide residents with the opportunity to explore the facility, and if appropriate, its grounds; and

(9) Use a personal electronic monitoring device for any resident whose physician recommends the use of such a device."

SECTION 4. Section 127-10, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§127-10 Disaster relief during suspension of preceding sections. During any period in which sections 127-1 to 127-9 are not in effect, the governor and political subdivisions may exercise any and all of their powers that relate to disasters resulting from enemy attacks, [~~in order~~] to provide other disaster relief. All provisions of law that relate to disasters resulting from enemy attacks during such period are made applicable to other disaster relief, including without limitation, provisions making or authorizing appropriations or expenditures.

As used in this section, "other disaster relief" means the preparation for and the carrying out of all functions, other than functions performed by the director of the office of disaster preparedness and the disaster preparedness commission under chapter or functions for which military forces are primarily responsible, to minimize and repair injury and damage resulting from disasters caused by fire, flood, tidal wave, volcanic eruption, earthquake, or other natural causes and major disasters caused by acts of man, including but not limited to[,] massive oil spills, nuclear accidents, airplane crashes, and civil disturbances."

SECTION 5. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009 for the salary of the director of disaster preparedness and other current expenses, including those of the disaster preparedness commission and support personnel.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of budget and finance for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 6. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009 to fund the community emergency response team program training and support on the island of Maui.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the county of Maui for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 7. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008, to operate the University of Hawaii school of social work's long-term case management training program for victims of major disasters, and to expand the program to the entire state, using University of Hawaii campuses on the neighbor islands, with particular focus on Kauai, Maui, and Hawaii as training sites.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the University of Hawaii for the purposes of 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 on July 1, 2020.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	679
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007		S.D. 2
STATE OF HAWAII		H.D. 2