THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
134 |
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021 |
S.D. 1 |
|
STATE OF HAWAII |
H.D. 1 |
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO EMERGENCY POWERS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. Chapter 127A, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:
"§127A- Suspension
of certain record requests; prohibited. The governor or the mayor shall
not, through any proclamation or declaration of emergency or any rule or order adopted
pursuant to this chapter, suspend requests for:
(1) Public records pursuant
to part II of chapter 92F; or
(2) Vital records or
statistics pursuant to sections 338‑18 or 338-18.5."
SECTION 2. Section 127A-13, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
"(a) In the event of a state of emergency declared
by the governor pursuant to section 127A-14, the governor may exercise the
following additional powers pertaining to emergency management during the emergency
period:
(1) Provide
for and require the quarantine or segregation of persons who are affected with
or believed to have been exposed to any infectious, communicable, or other
disease that is, in the governor's opinion, dangerous to the public health and
safety, or persons who are the source of other contamination, in any case where,
in the governor's opinion, the existing laws are not adequate to assure the
public health and safety; provide for the care and treatment of the persons;
supplement the provisions of sections 325-32 to 325-38 concerning compulsory
immunization programs; provide for the isolation or closing of property which
is a source of contamination or is in a dangerous condition in any case where,
in the governor's opinion, the existing laws are not adequate to assure the
public health and safety, and designate as public nuisances acts, practices,
conduct, or conditions that are dangerous to the public health or safety or to
property; authorize that public nuisances be summarily abated and, if need be,
that the property be destroyed, by any police officer or authorized person, or
provide for the cleansing or repair of property, and if the cleansing or repair
is to be at the expense of the owner, the procedure therefor shall follow as
nearly as may be the provisions of section 322-2, which shall be applicable;
and further, authorize without the permission of the owners or occupants, entry
on private premises for any such purposes;
(2) Relieve
hardships and inequities, or obstructions to the public health, safety, or
welfare, found by the governor to exist in the laws and to result from the
operation of federal programs or measures taken under this chapter, by
suspending the laws, in whole or in part, or by alleviating the provisions of
laws on such terms and conditions as the governor may impose, including
licensing laws, quarantine laws, and laws relating to labels, grades, and
standards;
(3) [Suspend]
Except as provided in section 127A- , suspend any law
that impedes or tends to impede or be detrimental to the expeditious and efficient
execution of, or to conflict with, emergency functions, including laws which by
this chapter specifically are made applicable to emergency personnel;
(4) Suspend
the provisions of any regulatory law prescribing the procedures for out-of-state
utilities to conduct business in the State including any licensing laws
applicable to out-of-state utilities or their respective employees, as well as
any order, rule, or regulation of any state agency, if strict compliance with
the provisions of any such law, order, rule, or regulation would in any way
prevent, hinder, or delay necessary action of a state utility in coping with
the emergency or disaster with assistance that may be provided under a mutual assistance
agreement;
(5) In
the event of disaster or emergency beyond local control, or an event which, in
the opinion of the governor, is such as to make state operational control
necessary, or upon request of the local entity, assume direct operational control
over all or any part of the emergency management functions within the affected
area;
(6) Shut
off water mains, gas mains, electric power connections, or suspend other
services, and, to the extent permitted by or under federal law, suspend
electronic media transmission;
(7) Direct
and control the mandatory evacuation of the civilian population;
(8) Exercise
additional emergency functions to the extent necessary to prevent hoarding,
waste, or destruction of materials, supplies, commodities, accommodations,
facilities, and services, to effectuate equitable distribution thereof, or to
establish priorities therein as the public welfare may require; to investigate;
and notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, to regulate or prohibit, by
means of licensing, rationing, or otherwise, the storage, transportation, use,
possession, maintenance, furnishing, sale, or distribution thereof, and any
business or any transaction related thereto;
(9) Suspend
section 8-1, relating to state holidays, except the last paragraph relating to
holidays declared by the president, which shall remain unaffected, and in the
event of the suspension, the governor may establish state holidays by
proclamation;
(10) Adjust
the hours for voting to take into consideration the working hours of the voters
during the emergency period, and suspend those provisions of section 11-131 that
fix the hours for voting, and fix other hours by stating the same in the
election proclamation or notice, as the case may be;
(11) Assure
the continuity of service by critical infrastructure facilities, both publicly
and privately owned, by regulating or, if necessary to the continuation of the
service thereof, by taking over and operating the same; and
(12) Except as provided in section 134-7.2, whenever in the governor's opinion, the laws of the State do not adequately provide for the common defense, public health, safety, and welfare, investigate, regulate, or prohibit the storage, transportation, use, possession, maintenance, furnishing, sale, or distribution of, as well as any transaction related to, explosives, firearms, and ammunition, inflammable materials and other objects, implements, substances, businesses, or services of a hazardous or dangerous character, or particularly capable of misuse, or obstructive of or tending to obstruct law enforcement, emergency management, or military operations, including intoxicating liquor and the liquor business; and authorize the seizure and forfeiture of any such objects, implements, or substances unlawfully possessed, as provided in this chapter."
SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.
Report Title:
Public Records; Vital Statistics; Requests; Suspension Prohibited
Description:
Prohibits the governor or the mayor from suspending requests for public records or vital statistics during a declared state of emergency. Effective 7/1/2050. (HD1)
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.