Title 7, Public Officers And Employees

[§78-2.8] Public employees; termination. (a) If a public employee is convicted of a felony for conduct related to the public employee's duties, the public employee shall be terminated from the public employee's position. (b) If the felony conviction that results in the terminatio…

§78-20 Sureties. Whenever by any law, regulation, ordinance, rule or order of court, or any rule of any department of the state government or of any subdivision thereof, any person shall be required to give any written bond or undertaking for the performance of any contract or th…

§78-21 Limitation of liability. Except in cases of gross negligence, no public officer or employee shall be liable for damages to government property if such damages to government property were caused by the public officer or employee while performing work within the scope of the…

§78-23 Leaves of absence. (a) Employees shall be eligible for vacation leave, sick leave, and other leaves of absence, with or without pay, as negotiated under chapter 89 or adjusted under chapter 89C, as applicable. (b) When an employee is transferred from one department to anot…

[§78-23.5] Paid leave for state and county employees providing disaster relief services for the American Red Cross. (a) The governor or mayor or their respective designees may grant a state or county employee who is a certified American Red Cross disaster volunteer up to thirty d…

[§78-23.6] Leave of absence to serve as bone marrow donor or organ donor. Any officer or employee in the service of the State or any of the several counties shall be entitled to:

[§78-24] Injured employee; liability of third persons. (a) Whenever any police officer, firefighter, or any other officer or employee who is temporarily exposed to unusually hazardous conditions, or who is a member of a class, recognized by the action of pricing, to be a class ex…

§78-25 Credits for employees receiving workers' compensation benefits; wage supplement. (a) Where an employee is absent from work because of injuries incurred within the scope of the employee's employment and the employee is receiving workers' compensation benefits, the employee …

§78-26 Leave sharing program. (a) The legislature, with regard to its employees, or the chief executive of a jurisdiction may establish a leave sharing program to allow employees to donate accumulated vacation leave credits to another employee within the same jurisdiction who has…

[§78-27] Temporary inter- and intra-governmental assignments and exchanges. (a) With the approval of the respective employer, a governmental unit of this State may participate in any program of temporary inter- or intra-governmental assignments or exchanges of employees as a send…

[§78-28] In-service training programs. Each director shall monitor, make recommendations, and develop policies and guidelines for suitable in-service training programs and activities so that the quality of service rendered by government employees may be continually improved. Part…

§78-29 Incentive and service awards. (a) Each chief executive may establish incentive and service awards programs to recognize employees who contribute to the efficiency, economy, or other improvement of government operations or who perform exceptionally meritorious special acts …

[§78‑3.1] Whistleblowers; notice. (a) Upon receipt of any complaint made pursuant to section 378-70, the department of labor and industrial relations shall inform the complainant of the complainant's rights under the law. (b) The department of labor and industrial relations shall…

[§78-3.5] Experimental modernization projects. (a) It is the intent of this section to encourage and facilitate improvements in the human resource programs of the several jurisdictions. With the approval of the chief executive, the director may conduct experimental modernization …

[§78-3.6 Experimental modernization projects; county boards of water supply.] It is the intent of this section to encourage and facilitate improvements in the human resource programs of qualifying boards of water supply. With or without the approval from the chief executive, the …

[§78-30] Cafeteria plans. (a) Each chief executive may establish a wage and salary reduction benefit program which qualifies as a cafeteria plan within the meaning of section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The cafeteria plan shall allow eligible employees t…

§78-31 Paid leave; education of children. Employees shall be eligible for up to two hours of paid leave during normal business hours to attend either: provided that the time-off shall not be credited against vacation or sick leave benefits, if any; and provided further that the p…

[§78-32] Payment of approved travel costs for public officers and employees. (a) This section shall apply to all approved travel costs incurred by an officer or employee of the State or a county in connection with the official business of the respective jurisdiction. (b) Subject …

§78-4 Boards and commissions; service limited. (a) Any other provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, no person shall be allowed to serve on more than one state board or commission expressly created by a state statute or the state constitution. (b) Any prohibition in any…

§78-52 Peer support counseling; sessions. (a) Unless the context otherwise requires, for the purposes of this section: "Emergency services personnel" means any employee of an emergency services provider who is engaged in providing firefighting, water safety, and emergency medical…

[§78-53] Pretax transportation benefit program. (a) Each chief executive may establish a wage and salary reduction benefit program which qualifies as a pretax transportation benefit program within the meaning of section 132 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The pr…

§78-64 New employees; orientation on benefits and rights. (a) Each newly hired employee shall be provided a general orientation on the employee's benefits and rights within twenty calendar days of being hired. The orientation shall be conducted by the employee's respective jurisd…

[§78-65] County mayors; outside employment and emoluments prohibited. (a) Beginning November 1, 2022, as of the sixty-first calendar day after election or appointment to office, it shall be unlawful for each county mayor, while holding that office, to maintain any other employmen…

[§78-66] Employment first; persons with disabilities. (a) Employment first shall be a policy of the State and the counties. Employment services are the first choice of services that are offered for persons with disabilities receiving assistance from publicly funded systems. State…

[§78-67] Bachelor's degree requirements for state or county employment; prohibition. (a) The State or any of its departments, agencies, or political subdivisions shall not require a bachelor's degree as a condition of eligibility for hire to a position in state or county employme…

§78-7 Certain public officers prohibited from receiving certain masterships and master's fees; forfeiture. No person holding any salaried office or employment in the executive or judicial branches of the government of the State or any county thereof, or holding any executive or j…

§78-8 Persons subject to sections 78-8 to 78-11. The persons subject to sections 78-8 to 78-11 are those elected to or appointed or employed in the government of the State or any county, or in any political subdivision thereof, or appointed to or employed in any office or employm…

§78-9 Failure to appear or testify, termination of employment. If any person subject to sections 78-8 to 78-11, after lawful notice or process, wilfully refuses or fails to appear before any court or judge, any legislative committee, or any officer, board, or commission, or havin…

PART I. GENERAL PROVISIONS §84-1 Construction. This chapter shall be liberally construed to promote high standards of ethical conduct in state government. [L 1972, c 163, pt of §1]

§84-10 University of Hawaii; technology transfer activities; exemption. (a) Sections 84-12, 84-13, 84-14 to 84-16, and 84-18 shall not apply to technology transfer activities sponsored by the University of Hawaii; provided that the technology transfer activities comply with the r…

PART II. CODE OF ETHICS §84-11 Gifts. No legislator or employee shall solicit, accept, or receive, directly or indirectly, any gift, whether in the form of money, service, loan, travel, entertainment, hospitality, thing, or promise, or in any other form, under circumstances in wh…

§84-11.5 Reporting of gifts. (a) Every legislator and employee shall file a gifts disclosure statement with the state ethics commission no later than July 31 of each year if all the following conditions are met: (b) The report shall cover the period from July 1 of the preceding c…

§84-12 Confidential information. No legislator or employee shall disclose information which by law or practice is not available to the public and which the legislator or employee acquires in the course of the legislator's or employee's official duties, or use the information for …

§84-13 Fair treatment. (a) No legislator or employee shall use or attempt to use the legislator's or employee's official position to secure or grant unwarranted privileges, exemptions, advantages, contracts, or treatment, for oneself or others; including but not limited to the fo…

[§84-13.2] Nepotism; prohibition. (a) No employee shall: a paid position in the employee's employing agency; provided that this subsection shall not prohibit an employee from performing ministerial acts that may impact the relative or household member if those acts are a part of …

[§84-13.5] Washington Place; campaign activities. The governor shall not allow Washington Place to be used for any events intended to solicit funds, support, or votes for any candidate for elective public office. [L 2002, c 46, §1]

§84-14 Conflicts of interests. (a) No employee shall take any official action directly affecting: A department head who is unable to disqualify the department head's self on any matter described in paragraphs (1) and (2) will not be in violation of this subsection if the departme…

[§84-14.5] Governor; outside employment and emoluments prohibited. (a) Beginning November 1, 2022, as of the sixty-first calendar day after election or appointment to office, it shall be unlawful for the governor, while holding that office, to maintain any other employment, maint…

§84-15 Contracts. (a) A state agency shall not enter into any contract to procure or dispose of goods or services, or for construction, with a legislator, an employee, or a business in which a legislator or an employee has a controlling interest, involving services or property of…

§84-16 Contracts voidable. In addition to any other penalty provided by law, any contract entered into by the State in violation of this chapter is voidable on behalf of the State; provided that in any action to avoid a contract pursuant to this section the interests of third par…

§84-17 Requirements of disclosure. (a) For the purposes of this section, "disclosure period" refers to the period from January 1 of the preceding calendar year to the time of the filing of the employee's or legislator's disclosure of financial interests. (b) The disclosure of fin…

§84-17.5 Disclosure files; disposition. (a) All financial disclosure statements filed by a legislator, employee, or delegate to a constitutional convention shall be maintained by the state ethics commission for a period of six years from the date of the financial disclosure state…

§84-18 Restrictions on post employment. (a) No former legislator or employee shall disclose any information that by law or practice is not available to the public and that the former legislator or employee acquired in the course of the former legislator's or employee's official d…

§84-19 Violation. (a) Any favorable state action obtained in violation of the code of ethics for legislators or employees and former employees is voidable in the same manner as voidable contracts as provided for under section 84-16; and the State by the attorney general may pursu…

§84-2 Applicability. This chapter shall apply to every nominated, appointed, or elected officer, employee, and candidate to elected office of the State and for election to the constitutional convention, but excluding justices and judges; provided that in the case of elected deleg…

PART III. STATE ETHICS COMMISSION §84-21 State ethics commission established; composition. (a) There is established within the office of the auditor for administrative purposes only a commission to be known as the state ethics commission. The commission shall consist of five memb…

§84-3 Definitions. "Business" includes a corporation, a partnership, a sole proprietorship, a trust or foundation, or any other individual or organization carrying on a business, whether or not operated for profit. "Compensation" means any money, thing of value, or economic benef…

PART IV. ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT §84-31 Duties of commission; complaint, hearing, determination. (a) The ethics commission shall have the following powers and duties: (b) Charges concerning the violation of this chapter shall be in writing, signed by the person making the …

[§84-31.3] Filing of false charges. (a) Any person who knowingly and intentionally files a false charge with the commission, or any member of the commission who initiates action against any state official, state employee, or any other person covered by this chapter, knowing such …

§84-32 Procedure. (a) With respect to legislators and employees removable only by impeachment: when the ethics commission after due hearings pursuant to section 84-31(c) determines that there is sufficient cause to file a complaint against a legislator or an employee removable on…