HR 159: URGING THE CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU, COUNTY OF MAUI, COUNTY OF HAWAII, AND COUNTY OF KAUAI TO CREATE AND MAINTAIN A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF HURRICANE REFUGES AND SHELTERS ELECTRONICALLY ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC.

HOUSE RESOLUTION

URGING THE CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU, COUNTY OF MAUI, COUNTY OF HAWAII, AND COUNTY OF KAUAI TO CREATE AND MAINTAIN A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF HURRICANE REFUGES AND SHELTERS ELECTRONICALLY ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC.

     WHEREAS, the intensity and severity of extreme weather events is increasing globally, with the Hawaiian island chain facing growing threats of major storm system impacts; and

     WHEREAS, despite Hawaii's rising risk of experiencing extreme weather events, electronically accessible information is severely lacking as it relates to locations where the public can seek refuge at a moment's notice and continued shelter in the time following a disruptive weather event; and

     WHEREAS, as few public buildings meet minimum requirements to qualify as hurricane refuges and shelters, there are limited options in each county for the public to evacuate, while demand is likely to exceed available inventory; and

     WHEREAS, at present no county offers a comprehensive electronically accessible list on a government-run website that provides crucial information such as the category of hurricane the facility is able to sustain, capacity limits, accommodations for access and functional needs individuals, or the ability to shelter pets; and

     WHEREAS, to ensure information is both up-to-date for government entities maintaining refuges and shelters and for members of the public who may need to access this information, it is critical to take a more focused approach towards aggregating and making data available; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the City and County of Honolulu, County of Maui, County of Hawaii, and County of Kauai are urged to inventory all designated emergency refuges and shelters and document their ability to withstand a category one hurricane or higher; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City and County of Honolulu, County of Maui, County of Hawaii, and County of Kauai are urged to publish an electronic list accessible to the public on a government-run website to include the following criteria, at minimum:

     (1)  Location of a possible shelter or refuge area including the name of the facility, address, and relevant site-specific instructions;

     (2)  Category of hurricane the shelter or refuge area is able to sustain;

     (3)  Capacity limit;

     (4)  Pet-friendliness designation; and

     (5)  Access and functional needs accommodation designation; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that these electronic lists published by the City and County of Honolulu, County of Maui, County of Hawaii, and County of Kauai include disclaimers that these refuges and shelters may not necessarily be open during a particular emergency as the designating of emergency refuges and shelters will be determined and announced at the time such an emergency is declared; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED each county is urged to collaborate with the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to publish a statewide list of shelters and refuge areas and their respective hurricane ratings; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Administrator of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency; Director of the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Emergency Management; Administrator of the Maui Emergency Management Agency; Administrator of the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency; and Administrator of the Kauai Emergency Management Agency.

Report Title: 

Emergency Management; Hurricane Shelters; Publicly Available Information

HOUSE RESOLUTION

URGING THE CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU, COUNTY OF MAUI, COUNTY OF HAWAII, AND COUNTY OF KAUAI TO CREATE AND MAINTAIN A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF HURRICANE REFUGES AND SHELTERS ELECTRONICALLY ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC.

     WHEREAS, the intensity and severity of extreme weather events is increasing globally, with the Hawaiian island chain facing growing threats of major storm system impacts; and

     WHEREAS, despite Hawaii's rising risk of experiencing extreme weather events, electronically accessible information is severely lacking as it relates to locations where the public can seek refuge at a moment's notice and continued shelter in the time following a disruptive weather event; and

     WHEREAS, as few public buildings meet minimum requirements to qualify as hurricane refuges and shelters, there are limited options in each county for the public to evacuate, while demand is likely to exceed available inventory; and

     WHEREAS, at present no county offers a comprehensive electronically accessible list on a government-run website that provides crucial information such as the category of hurricane the facility is able to sustain, capacity limits, accommodations for special needs individuals, or the ability to shelter pets; and

     WHEREAS, to ensure information is both up-to-date for government entities maintaining refuges and shelters and for members of the public who may need to access this information, it is critical to take a more focused approach towards aggregating and making data available; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the City and County of Honolulu, County of Maui, County of Hawaii, and County of Kauai are urged to inventory all designated emergency refuges and shelters and document their ability to withstand a category one hurricane or higher; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City and County of Honolulu, County of Maui, County of Hawaii, and County of Kauai are urged to publish an electronic list accessible to the public on a government-run website to include the following criteria, at minimum:

     (1)  Location of a possible shelter or refuge area including the name of the facility, address, and relevant site-specific instructions;

     (2)  Category of hurricane the shelter or refuge area is able to sustain;

     (3)  Capacity limit;

     (4)  Pet-friendliness designation; and

     (5)  Special needs accommodation designation; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED each county is urged to collaborate with the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to publish a statewide list of shelters and refuge areas and their respective hurricane ratings; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Administrator of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency; Director of the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Emergency Management; Administrator of the Maui Emergency Management Agency; Administrator of the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency; and Administrator of the Kauai Emergency Management Agency.

Report Title: 

Emergency Management; Hurricane Shelters; Publicly Available Information

STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1887

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2025

RE:   H.R. No. 159

      H.D. 1

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Madame:

     Your Committee on Public Safety, to which was referred H.R. No. 159 entitled:

"HOUSE RESOLUTION URGING THE CITY AND COUNTY OF HONOLULU, COUNTY OF MAUI, COUNTY OF HAWAII, AND COUNTY OF KAUAI TO CREATE AND MAINTAIN A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF HURRICANE REFUGES AND SHELTERS ELECTRONICALLY ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to ensure up-to-date information about hurricane refuges and shelters is available to the public electronically, on a government-run website, with the following minimum criteria: facility name, address, relevant site-specific instructions; category of hurricane the shelter or refuge area can sustain; capacity limit; pet-friendliness designation; and special needs accommodation designation.  

     Your Committee received testimony from the Department of Education providing comments, and testimony in support from the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Hawaii Climate Change Health Working Group, and three individuals.

Your Committee recognizes Hawaii's rising risk of experiencing extreme weather events, the importance of electronically accessible information so that the public can seek refuge at a moment's notice, and the current lack of a comprehensive list of hurricane refuges and shelters throughout the entire state. Your committee also finds that though an electronically accessible listing of all emergency refuges and shelters is critical, there needs to be a disclaimer explaining that not all locations will necessarily be opened during a particular emergency because the designating of emergency refuges and shelters are determined and announced at the time an emergency is declared.

Your committee also concurs with the appropriateness of changing the outdated term “special needs” to “access and functional needs” as recommended by the State Council on Developmental Disabilities.

            Your committee has amended this measure by:  

(1)     Requesting the counties include disclaimers to the electronically accessible list of refuges and shelters that makes it clear that not all locations will necessarily be opened because the designating of emergency refuges and shelters will be determined and announced at the time an emergency is declared; and  

(2)     Replacing all “special needs” language with “access and functional needs”. 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Public Safety that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.R. No. 159, as amended herein, and recommends its adoption in the form attached hereto as H.R. No. 159, H.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Public Safety,