Senate Standing Committee on Labor and Technology

Okay.

Good afternoon. It's Friday, March 7, at the state capitol, conference room 224. We have a number of governor's messages for consideration. This meeting is being streamed live on YouTube. In the unlikely event that we have to abruptly end this hearing due to technical difficulties and the CIO is here, the committee will reconvene.

The committee will reconvene to discuss any outstanding business at 3:01pm on Monday, March 10th, in conference room 224. And a public notice will be posted on the website. Okay. There will be a one minute time limit. There are 200, over 200 pieces of testimony. So if called, we would appreciate if you stand on your testimony. Okay. GMs.

Just as a side note, GM 581 as well as GM 690 are one in the same. Okay. So we'll take up the two at the same time. Okay. Okay. We will allow each nominee to make an opening statement followed by received testimony by entities in support or opposition.

Okay.

With Q&A to follow. Okay, thank you very much everyone. Up first we have governor's message 660. Okay. Submitting for consideration and confirmation to the Hawaii Technology Development Corporation nominee Kelly Ueoka for a term to expire on June 30th, 2028. Okay. Up first we have the nominee.

Aloha Chair, Vice Chair, members of the committee. Thank you so much for allowing me to testify. And I just wanted to open up by saying I really appreciate this. And I've been participating at HTDC for a while now and I think, you know, with technology, it's the impact it could have on our state.

You know, to create equitability for local jobs is really powerful. And, you know, it's unfortunate that I can only serve on one board. I was most recently the performance measures chair for the Workforce Development Council. And of course the mission, my mission personally and through my organization is to create equitability in technology jobs for local people.

And you know, I had spent years prior and then right after COVID to implement a workforce development program that took on anyone with a high school degree. And we offered them a salary equivalent of about 50k with zero technology experience.

And we also offered them the opportunity to earn an industry recognized credential so that they could then either find employment with Pacxa, perhaps even with my competitors and or other partners here locally. And you know, what happened after the pandemic? I started to see a lot of our young talent, sight unseen, leave Hawaii.

And that is in direct opposition of my mission to keep the young talent here and potentially even work for larger organizations like Microsoft and Oracle and our other partners while residing in Hawaii. And so I really appreciate this opportunity.

I think through the Hawaii Technology Development Corporation there's an opportunity to do some really great things for our industry and maybe for others too, because as I've noticed through my work over the last 15 years at Pacxa, every company and organization we've worked with has somehow transformed into a technology firm.

Whether that's willing or not, the impact of technology on every local organization is fairly big. So we'd like to help. And I think through HTDC and the good work that's already been done alongside partnerships, you know, through the Entrepreneur Sandbox and other local state organizations, I think we can really make an impact. So I appreciate the opportunity.

Okay, thank you very much. Okay, up next we have Taino Hara DCCA. Okay, up next we have DBED Director.

Thank you, Chair and Senator Moriwaki. I'm going to stand in very, very strong support of Kelly who is a personal friend from Kauai. His dad is a pillar in the community and as a young man he had good values, great values. It's going to be a great opportunity for HTDC to shine with him as a board member.

And I just want to apologize to the other nominees who are here. I have to run upstairs to the Senate President's office, so I can't testify for you. But I appreciate this opportunity. Thank you, director.

Okay, up next we have Sandy Kanemori.

Good afternoon. Chair. Representing Sandy Kanemori for the Hawaii Technology Development Corporation. Ecstatic for the transfer part of Mr. Ueoka. And we are looking forward to his participation in his hard work working with us to develop the tech industry for the State of Hawaii. Thank you very much.

Okay, thank you very much. Rick Hopfer, HMSA. Okay, support. Giri Chan Pacxa. Also in support. Kim-Anh Nguyen, Blood Bank of Hawaii. In support. Craig Nakanishi. Okay. Also in support, support. Ryan Kusumoto of Parents and Children Together. In support. Peter Dames, Servco Pacific Inc. In support. Committee Members as well as members of the public.

We did receive 10 individual testimonies in support. Any others wishing to testify? Okay, thank you very much. Okay, Any others wishing to testify? Okay. Seeing Non. Any questions? Okay, thank you very much. Okay, any others wish you to testify? Governor's message 660. Seeing none. Members, any questions?

Mr. Ling?

Oh, yes, please.

I know you've served for a few months or is it a few months on, on the high tech Hawaii Technology Development Corps? And I know that you were on the workforce development console and so you were looking at workforce development.

I'm just wondering what you see as the challenges for the Hawaii Technology Development Board, which is to develop the economy and so you keep the companies here so that we can have jobs. And I'm just wondering what you think you can do and to bring that and have a thriving infotech high tech industry.

Yeah, absolutely. Thank you, Appreciate that question.

I think one of the problems with Hawaii has always been visibility with some, some of the other larger technology industry firms such as Amazon Web Services, Google, Microsoft and I think through HTTC and with the Tokyo support, we can kind of enable visibility into those companies to have them make a greater impact here.

And of course there's cost to it. And with the shift in technology, Paxco was one of the firms that helped the state Executive branch moved from a technology called Lotus Notes into Microsoft Office 365, which is a, it was a, it was a leapfrog, if you will.

So we went straight from probably the most antiquated technology into probably the most modern technology. And so having visibility and attracting these other firms to help support our mission, you know, to help Hawaii grow the economy.

True technical services and, and of course also while defending digital estate through advanced cyber defense protection mechanisms, I think is something that can really be affected through HDC. What I'm talking about is fairly commoditized and I think once we are able to articulate the message that can attract a lot of interest from other large technology providers stateside.

Do you see a lot of state infusion into funding or is there enough critical mass but they're not supported in terms of elevating them to a lot more visibility?

Yeah, no, thank you for that too. I was very impressed with the way HDC had already gone about accelerating funding for some of these entrepreneurial startups that have a technological advantage. But I think there needs to be a little bit more consideration for targeted infusion on a larger scale that can help all organizations in Hawaii.

Especially when I talk about the cyber defense aspects of the state we need to protect. I mean, in the Pacific Command is headquartered here, so. Yeah.

Thank you, Chair.

Any concerns regarding federal funding impacts? I know that there's some funding sleeve it out for the next 5, 6 years or so. I mean, is there any concern regarding that?

Oh yes, absolutely. So with the changing landscape in the administration, I'm hopeful that, you know, we can again through visibility with what Hawaii is doing. And a lot of times Hawaii is advanced, but we're not making it known enough, I think.

And, you know, there was an infrastructure Modernization act from the previous administration that said there's no legacy technology system to be allowed over the next 10 years. And I really hope that we can continue to look at how to modernize those antiquated systems. In fact, in my opinion, 10 years might be a bit too long.

Thank you very much. Any other questions?

Thank you.

Thank you very much. And thank you for your willingness to serve. Okay, up next we have Governor's message 529 submitting for consideration and confirmation to the Hoisting Machine Operators Advisory Board nominee is Fonokalafi Misi for a term to expire June 30, 2028. Okay. First, I believe we have Mr.

Misi online, not present, on zoom Chair.

Okay. Okay, thank you very much. Okay, up next we have DLIR Director. Okay, thank you very much. Up next we have HGA Randy Pereira in support.

Oh, no, that's it.

Okay. Mr. Misi.

Hi, how are you doing?

Hello. Good afternoon. Please proceed. You do have some time to make a personal statement if you'd like, before we get into the testimony and then some Q and A afterwards if there are any questions.

Just a little background about myself. Yes, please proceed. I'm. My name is Fonomici. I'm a business agent for operating Engineers Local 3. I've been a crane operator for the past 20 years. I've been on multiple projects, especially the rail. I ran multiple cranes there for seven years, and I've been a Local 3 Member for almost 17 years.

So that's a little bit about my background.

Okay, thank you very much, Mr. Misi. Please stick around if there's any questions. Okay.

Okay.

Thank you very much. Up next, we have AFL CIO Steve Ferris, Fed Randy Pereira and support we have the LW International Hawaii, Brandon Wolf, Vice President. Also in support we have Anatuyasopo operating engineers local 3. Okay. Also in support we have testimony from Christian West LW local 142. Okay. Also in support, the Christian front of UPA.

Okay, thank you very much. And support any others wishing to testify. Okay. Governor's message 529, seeing none. Any questions? Okay. No questions for you, Mr. Misi. So thank you very much. Thank you for your willingness to serve. Yeah. Okay. Thank you.

Okay, up next we have Governor's message 502 submitting for consideration to the Hawaii Workforce Development Council nominee Ken Loui.

Good afternoon. Chair Aquino. Vice Chair. Senator Mouraki. My name is Ken Loui. For the last four years, I've been on the Workforce Development Council to the last two as its Chair and oversee a family business here in Hawaii.

700 employees, most of them homegrown and looking for creating more opportunities for the rest of our younger as well as adult workers here in Hawaii. And I'm looking forward to hopefully serving as the next four years.

Okay, thank you very much, Mr. Loui. Up next, we have DBEDT Director. Yep.

On behalf of Director Thomas Chalk with the Department of Business Economic Development Tourism. On behalf of the Chair, Vice Chair. Mahalo for this opportunity to stand on the testimony as submitted in strong support of Ken Loui. Mahalo.

Okay, thank you very much. Okay, up next we have Keith Demelo.

Good afternoon, sir.

Representing the Members of the State Workforce Development Council.

Okay, thank you very much. Alan Hayashi. Written testimony support Stephen Louie. Okay. Robert Maynard. Okay. Sandra Taketa, Ren Westcoat, Brian Wong, An Chung Garrett Gu, Tuyana Scandin Ayatsi Local 665 on June.

Aloha. Chair, Vice Chair, Members of the Committee, thank you very much for the opportunity to testify. Tuiana Scanlan President, IATSE Local 665 IATSE International Trustee. Stand on our written testimony in strong support. I just want to add that I've worked alongside and brother Ken Louie and I've witnessed firsthand his organizational skills, his leadership skills.

He's been a strong asset to the Workforce Development Council and I appreciate your consideration of his confirmation.

Thank you very much. All the individuals I've read out earlier, those are all written testifiers, all in support. Any others wish you to testify on Governor's message 502. Okay.

Okay.

Thank you very much. Okay, thank you very much. Any others wishing to testify? Any question?

Thank you. So I want him to walk up again. Exercise. Thank you. So you've been the chair for four years now.

Yes.

And so you're going to go for another four. So I thank you for your service. But can you tell me, looking at Workforce Development Council, what is the vision going forward and what do you see are the biggest challenges and how you will lead the Workforce Development Council?

Thank you for that question, Senator. The last two years a bit of a challenge. So we've got to some stability now. We've had some staffing shortages. Now we've got an ED in place with some staffing. So the plan is moving forward is to execute the state plan which was drafted last year 2024.

So you know, in the, in that plan, it Outlines what our goals are, strategic visions to continue to improve the workforce, oversee the WIO funding that we hope to continue to receive.

And there's a little bit of limbo right now with Congress and to improve the work of the agcs, the One Stop Centers, to make them more effective serving our community. So those are the major initiatives that we have moving forward and hopefully achieve that.

So if there are impacts on the federal level of cuts, you have a volunteer advisory council. So how are you going to proceed given cuts or hopefully no cuts? But if there were cuts, how do you see your, your mission and strategy going forward?

Well, there are other programs, such as the apprenticeship programs that are kind of independent of federal funding. So I know my organization, others are looking to build on that apprenticeship, promote other businesses to, to take part in that program.

There's other federal programs that allow, for example in the military, a skill bridge program where militaries can, once they leave active duty, can transition over to the private sector. So continue to build on those types of programs to improve our workforce.

Thank you, Jim. Thank you very much. Okay, let's move on to the next two governor's messages, GM 581 as well as GM 690. It's not. It's just basically the same guy. So just two different terms. One to fill out the rest of this year as well as the next handful of years. But we have Jared Higashi.

All right, Aloha. Thank you very much. Chair Aquino, Senator Moriwaki and Members of the Committee. My name is Jared Higashi. I am the Vice President for the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association. And I'm pleased to come before you all today for confirmation to Hawaii's Workforce Development Council.

A big part of my job as a Vice President is to help advocate on behalf of Hawaii's tourism industry. But a big part of that being there's so much work shortage now in Hawaii across all sectors, is that we have created a major emphasis for workforce development to be a priority of ours.

And so through that, you know, we've taken on initiatives alongside mentorship programs. We have initiated high school internship programs within the private sector, within our hotels, our airlines, our ground transportation companies, and we've given out a number of scholarships to you to, to pursue further education in the tourism industry.

And so looking at this console and coming onto this console, I took a look at the Commission and I noticed that only one person I could recognize came from the visitor industry, from hospitality. And that was Eileen Caldwell, the area Director for Human Resources for Marriott. And so I thought, give her an ally. Right.

Coming into this, this council, I felt it was imperative that we had a larger voice for tourism as it is our largest private sector employer.

And so bringing some of that experience that I've garnered through my current role at HLTA and working with my President, Mufi Hanneman, who also sits on the TTAB, the Travel and Tourism Advisory Board for the national government. Last year, he sat on as their workforce Development Committee chair.

And so kind of parlaying all the experience that I've also gained from him. I look forward to serving on this council.

Thank you very much. Okay, up next we have Director Butai DLIR.

DLIR stands in support.

Okay, thank you very much. Okay, we have Keith Ayashi, Superintendent, Department of Education.

Keith Ayashi I stand in support

Thank you very much.

We have Keith Demello

Council Members we give our support.

Okay, thank you. Okay. Jared Ellis. Okay. Written testimony in support. Okay. We do have late testimony from Brian Miyamoto.

Thank you, Chair. The hoy farmer was giving testimony in support.

Okay, thank you very much. Okay, up next we have Daniel Nahoopi also in support. Any others wishing to testify? Yes. Comptroller.

Chair Members, good afternoon. Keith Regan, Comptroller for the State of Hawaii, Department of Accounting and General Services. I'm here to testify in strong support of this nomination of Jared Higashi. My former role as Chief Administrative Officer of the Hawaii Tourism Authority had an opportunity to work very closely with Mr. Higashi, especially during the pandemic.

I got to see his work ethic firsthand. And I can testify that he was extremely reliable, dedicated and committed to the community. And for those reasons, I would humbly ask for your support of this nomination. I stand in strong support. Mahalo.

Thank you very much. Any others wishing to testify? Seeing none. Any questions? Oh, please introduce yourself. For the record, please. Okay.

Hello, Angela Melody Young from CARES, a grassroots movement. And so actually we went to the same high school, but I'm not going to go into that. So I'm in support of the nomination for Jared Higashi to develop the Workforce Development Council in Hawaii.

I think his experience and leadership in the tourism industry is going to be super helpful with aligning with the vision, the mission of workforce development and nurturing a diverse economy and preserving the special quality of life in Hawaii to be able to support and facilitate the development of a skill workforce to meet the needs of small businesses and industries while enhancing productivity and increasing opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship and improving business skills of the labor force.

So the small businesses in Hawaii. 99.3% of businesses in Hawaii are small businesses. And so these businesses are not owned by corporate companies like Walmart and Target.

And I think that his experience in tourism can really help with collaboration with a lot of the local markets and the entrepreneurship opportunities to bring more attention and awareness to locally grown products, to support local farmers, as well as to market internationally to raise awareness about how amazing and incredible the State of Hawaii is.

I know the clock wasn't. You know, haven't started, but I'm pretty sure it was. Okay. All right. All right, thank you very much. Okay. Any others wish you to testify? Seeing none. Any questions? No questions. No questions. zero, sure. Jared, why don't you. Come on.

I know you've been with HLTA and you've been doing a lot of work in the field, but I'm just wondering because you say there's only one other person on the workforce development console, how can you bring the diversity of the now destination management focus to the workforce development console so that it's not just, you know, just touristy things, but beyond that, how can we diversify the workforce and the industry?

Absolutely. Thank you for the question, Senator. So the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association, we don't just represent hotels, we don't just represent, you know, timeshares, but we represent airlines, ground transportation companies, we represent non profit organizations that's doing work. Right. And destination management, we are kind of a big tent. So we represent tourism across the board.

As you saw today during the tourism day at the capitol, we had all of our vendors, all of our partners out there.

And so, you know, my network, I guess, within my own organization isn't just with, you know, hotel HR Members or their GMs, but it spans, you know, across different nonprofit partners, different people who are doing work within that space. And then of course, the other partners such as HBCB and Kilohana, who's tasked with marketing and destination management.

And so, you know, pulling all of that resources together, I feel like I'm in a good position to be a collaborator, especially for this council.

Thank you. Thank you very much.

All right, thank you very much.

Okay, let's move on to the next Governor's message. GM571. Somebody for consideration, confirmation to the board of trustees of the deferred compensation plan. We have nominee Eric Nouchi.

Good afternoon, Chair, Senator, thank you again for your consideration. Again, my name is Eric Nouchi and as you can see, you know, I have, you know, over 25 years of experience as a state employee. You know, I was privileged enough to start my career actually here at the capitol working under Dwight Takamine.

So it's nice to see him again, after a while. So, yeah, then, you know. So I've had various other positions, mainly in the fiscal and budgeting area. And I currently serve as the finance officer for the Med-Quest Division.

And I really think that my experience in those positions really will really prepare me to make positive contributions to the board. You know, again, thank you for the opportunity. I welcome any questions.

Thank you very much.

Okay.

Thank you.

Okay, up next, we have DHRD. Director. Director Hashimoto,

Chair, Vice Chair, Members of the Committee. Brenna Hashimoto, Director of the Department of Human Resources Development. I stand in strong support.

Okay. Thank you very much. Okay, we have Department of Human Services Director Yamane.

I'll be brief, Senator. But I do want to add, I've known him for many years when I was first elected. So we stand as a team in strong support. Available for any questions. But, you know, he's a real good, conscientious guy, works very hard. Glad he's also with our Quest Division helping them.

So he'll be a great addition to the board. And again, we appreciate your service. Thank you.

Okay. Thank you very much. Okay, we have Kalbert Young. Okay. Deferred Compensation Chair. Okay. Also in support. Any others wishing to testify?

So Dr. Yamane took my place, as he should. Right. So, Judy Mohr Peterson, Med-Quest Administrator. I just want to say how much we appreciate Eric and his work, his dedication. There's no one that has a stronger work ethic. And he has a broad range of experience.

And he will make an excellent addition to this as a trustee to this board. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Okay. Any others wishing to testify? Okay. Seeing none. Any questions? Okay. No questions. Thank you again for your willingness to serve, Mr. Nouchi. Okay. Up next we have GM667. Okay. Also for consideration and confirmation to the Board of Trustees of the deferred compensation plan. Okay.

Nominee is Ty Nohara for a term to expire on June 30, 2029. Ms. Nohara.

Good afternoon, Chair, Senator Moriwaki. My name is Ty Nohara. I'm currently the Commissioner of Securities with the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

If given the opportunity to serve on the Deferred Comp Board, I do hope to bring my experience in securities compliance and securities regulation to assist the board in really making sound decisions that will better the plan and provide positive outcomes to the plan participants.

Thank you very much. Okay. Up next, we have DHRD Director, Director Hashimoto. Okay. Thank you very much, Director. Up next, we have Deputy Director, DCCA. Okay. And also Director of DCCA, Director Ando. Okay. In support. Okay. We have Kalbert Young. Okay. Chair of the Deferred Comp Board.

Also in support we have Dale Kobayashi, Tiffany Yajima, Riker Wada. Okay. All in support. We do have a late testimony from Kelly Wuoka. Okay, thank you very much. Any others wish you to testify? Okay, comptroller.

Chair Members, Keith Regan, Comptroller for the State of Hawaii, Department of Accounting and General Services. I'm here to offer my oral testimony in strong support of this nomination.

As someone who happened to work with Ms. Nohara at the DCCA for although a short period of time, I had the opportunity to really witness her dedication as a public servant. And I believe that given her skills, her high intelligence, her extreme capability of being able to navigate difficult, challenging situations, she would make an excellent nomination.

And I highly, humbly ask for your support of this confirmation of Ty Nohara. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Any others wishing to testify? Seeing none, any questions? Okay, let's move on to the next measure. GM560. Okay. For consideration, confirmation to the Board of Trustees of the Employees Retirement System. Okay. We have nominee David Louie for a term to expire on January 1, 2030. Up first we have Mr. Louis. Yes.

It's been a long time.

Yes. Good afternoon, Senator Morawaki. Thank you very much for the opportunity to testify. I submitted a letter to your Committee. I stand by the letter. I don't want to take a lot of time because I know how busy everybody is and it's a Friday afternoon.

But I would like to say very briefly, Hawaii has been very, very good to me. And you know, I have done my some degree of public service, not like you guys and not like the Governor who I served, but. But I've done some. And I just thought I. It would be good if I continued to contribute.

And I think the ERS is important. We got to make sure everybody's pensions are healthy and that people get money for the future. So I'm happy to take any questions. And I'm very gratified by the testimony and support that I've gotten from friends and supporters. So it's very nice of them. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Okay, up next we have the Executive Director of the ERS.

Good afternoon, Chair, Senator, Members of the Committee, I'm Thom Williams, the Executive Director of the Employees Retirement System. And I'm here to reiterate the responsibility retirement systems and my just unfathomably strong support for the honorable David Louie.

I've had an opportunity to work with Mr. Louie for a significant number of years in his professional capacity, and I could not be more impressed. And he's been so incredibly effective that I know he's going to be an enormous asset to the ERS board and I ask your favorable consideration of his nomination. Thank you so much. .

Thank you very much. Up next, we have Budget and Finance Director.

Good afternoon, Chair, Senators. Luis Salaveria, Director of Finance. As a fellow trustee with the potential.

With the nominee, David Louie, I just can't thank him enough for being able to volunteer and be a part of what is a very, very, you know, can be challenging, difficult, and the significant amount of investment that a person would have to make in order to be a trustee on the ERS board.

And, you know, I've had the opportunity to work with David in his capacity when he was part of the Administration before, and he has always presented himself to be a man of extreme integrity, vast intelligence, and quite funny too, as well. So I would strongly support his nomination for trustee for the ERS. Thank you, Chair.

Thanks Director. Up next we have Governor Abercrombie.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Nice to see you folks. Thank you. Thank you. I wanted particularly to be here today on David Louie's behalf, not just because of the personal and-

And political and professional relationship that I had with him when he left the private sector to become Attorney General, although I wanted to reference that by way of speaking to you about his character. He gave up his private practice, which was considerable and of top quality.

He had to tell his colleagues and his clients of a considerable number and his cases of considerable importance, that public service was calling to him, and he made that. I don't like to use the word sacrifice. I don't think public service is a sacrifice.

It's an honor and a privilege in our political system, at least until we get through tomorrow in Washington. And that's one of the other reasons I wanted to be here.

Not because I want to make some wise guy remark about Washington, but rather the volatility in Washington right now as manifest in stock markets and investment areas and venues which directly impact the stability of the retirement system. I believe, without any kind of hyperbole, that they bear very close watching, if not exactly being at stake right now.

We need to have on the ERS, we need to have among the trustees people not just of integrity and character, as David possesses. No question that's already been stated. But Mr. Williams and his staff, who are terrific professionals by the way, really excellent.

When those reports come in from ERS, I think you as Senators understand you never had to look twice or look over your shoulder and say, gee, what did they just do? No, no, no, it's been pretty much right on the mark. It's going to be very volatile.

We need people like David Louie to be there on the board looking out for the interests of the retirees, all the retirees, everybody in the retirement system, which includes me. So, I mean, I can speak authoritatively on that. And will you at some point?

As public servants, public officials, we are utterly, totally, completely dependent on the good judgment of the people that are the trustees of the ERS system. Mr. Williams and his staff are dependent on their good judgment. I don't think you'll find anybody more capable and more ready to meet that challenge than David Louie.

Thank you very much, Governor. Okay, up next we have Blake Oshiro. Okay, thank you very much. Kolbert Matsumoto, Michael Jr. Okay. Vincent Barfield, Lowell Chan Hoon. Okay. Bill Kaneko and Louise Ing. Okay. All in support. Any other wishing to testify. GM560. Okay. Seeing none. Members, colleagues, any questions? Thank you very much for your willingness to serve.

Thank you very much. No questions. Okay, let's move on to the next measure. GM 641. Consideration and confirmation for the Office of Enterprise Technology Services, we have the nominee Christine Sakura for a term to expire in December 2026. CIO, welcome.

Aloha. Aloha. Chair, Senator Moriwaki, Senator Ihara, members of the committee, my name is Christine Sukuda and it is my privilege to have the opportunity to testify in my capacity and my nomination as the State Chief Information Officer. I would like to acknowledge my family members that are here today in support.

They are- They are the rocks that I stand on and I can't do this work without their support. I would like to begin by thanking Governor Josh Green for his- for honoring me with this nomination.

And I am deeply grateful to Comptroller Keith Regan, to the Deputy Comptroller Myoling Silliman, for their support, their encouragement and their guidance as I've taken on the responsibilities of the state CIO and also as the Administrator of the Office of Enterprise Technology Services. And I believe you have information on my background.

I have been serving in leadership capacity for different organizations for over 25 years. I have been in the business sector and really supporting the adoption of technology specifically focused across enterprise services.

So whether that's helping organizations directly implement their technology, but more so helping multiple organizations work together like an enterprise to implement technology, that's just been something that I've gravitated to for many, many years. And it's that experience that I bring to the state to really work with the departments, work with state leadership and really enable that enterprise

enterprise system. It's. As the first Native Hawaiian woman to be nominated and serve as the state CIO. My desires to take on this role is deeply rooted in my commitment to enhancing the lives of the people of Hawaii. I aspire to be a role model for the current workforce and the future workforce.

I believe my business and technology experience, dedication to Hawaii's community, proven leadership, make me qualified to fulfill the role and duties of this- of this position. Thank you once again for this opportunity and I humbly ask for your support. Mahalo.

Thank you very much. Up next, we have Governor Josh Green. Written testimony and support. We have Director DLIR. Okay, thank you very much. Director Tommy Johnson. Corrections.

Chair, members of the committee.

Melanie Watson.

On behalf of Tommy Johnson, Director of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, we stand in strong support of nomination and confirmation of Christine Sakuda as the CIO.

Just wanted to add that this is the only CIO that ever came to our department to ask us, what are your strategic goals for IT Information Technology. No one has ever done that before. So thank you.

Thank you very much. Okay, up next, we have Director D. Her. Director Hashimoto. Okay, thank you very much. We have Superintendent Hayashi. Thank you very much. We have Comptroller Keith Regan, DAGS.

Keith Regan, Comptroller, State of Hawaii, Department of Accounting and General Services. You have my written testimony in support of Christine Sakuda for this position. I just wanted to add a couple of things, and you heard it a little bit from- from, you know, from. From DL. I'm sorry, CSD. No, PST. My apologies.

But, you know, from day one, Christine hit the ground running. From even before she officially started on August 3, she was already actively working to understand her role and her responsibilities and engaging people.

Even before August 3rd, when she actually got nominated and started her role, she made it her mission to improve the way ETS functions and supports the overall organization. Not just her team, but how she can support all of the departments throughout the State of Hawaii.

She's deeply committed to the team that she leads, and she provides strong direction and support to them. Ms. Sakuda has the special ability to bring people together, to encourage dialogue, and to facilitate sensible and effective solutions to complex challenges.

Sorry. We apologize, Comptroller.

I'll wrap up. As Director of DAGS, I found her to be very competent, capable and committed, not just to ETS and her team, but to the Department as well as the entire organization. It's for these reasons that I humbly ask for your support of Christine Sakuda as the CIO. Thank you.

Thank you very much. We have DLNR, chair. Chair Don Ching. In support, we have DCCA Deputy Director. Okay. Thank you very much. Okay. We have Director Fink, Department of Health is support. Okay. We have the Executive Office on Early Learning. Okay. Also in support, Department of Human Services. Director. He's not here. Left. Oh, he left.

Thank you very much. Director. We have Director of DBED in support. Okay. DCCA Director. Director Ando. Also in support, do Tax Deputy Director, Deputy Director Sakamoto and support, we have the Office of Elections. Okay. Scott Nagle. We have in support the BNF Director, Director Salivaria.

Chair. Thank you again, Luis Salaveria, Director of Finance. Didn't want to just stand on my testimony, but I did want to just reiterate. You know, I've had the opportunity to work with Christine in both her private capacity as well as what she's been doing now lately.

And I've had the luxury and pleasure of actually working with every single CIO the State of Hawaii has ever had from the very beginning in some way, shape or form. And I can unequivocally say that I think Christine has the potential to be the best CIO we've ever had. So thank you, chair.

Thank you, director. Up next, we have Department of Law Enforcement director, Director Lambert. His support. We have a Deputy Director of Budget and Finance. Thank you very much. We have Hawaii Public Housing Authority, Executive Director, in support. We have General Logan, Department of Defense, State of Hawaii. Okay. We have the Department of Transportation. Okay.

Both in support, we have the Chair of Department of Ag, Chair Herd. In support, State Procurement Office. Okay. Also in support, Philip Mallory. Okay. Support Director Suganuma also in support, we have Department, Department of Hawaiian Homeland. Chair Watson. In support, we have HMSA Senior Vice President Jennifer Diesman, Joshua Wish, Kolomo Collaborative.

Chair, Committee Members Joshua for Holomua all largely rest on my testimony in support. Just wanted to note I've known Ms. Sakuda in a professional and personal capacity for over a decade. I've gotten to work with her in a lot of different areas including with her time at Transform Hawaii Government. And just a couple of things to highlight.

She's had the great experience to be able to work at the intersection of both government and non government roles and I think she brings a unique perspective in how to make those things work together. She's had a ton of experience in systems change and also brings a great amount of executive leadership to the role.

I think she is in a position to do a great job. And then just briefly, I'll also note, I also one other nominee had the pleasure of working for David Louie for two years, learned a ton from him and would love to add my voice to the chorus of people in support of him.

You've got two fantastic nominees here as well as your next one in Dwight Takamine. So thank you very much.

Thank you very much. HGEA Randy Pereira, in support. We have Deborah Giles, Peter Dames, Ryan Kusmoto, all in support. We have Transform Hawaii Government. Okay, thank you very much. Hawaii State Fed AFL CIO Randy Pereira again also in support. Okay.

We have Mana Up, Melia Lani James as well as Hope Service Hawaii, both in support and Members as well as Members of the General public and audience. We do. We have received over 43 individuals written testimony, all in support. Any others wishing to testify GM641

Aloha Chair. -Inaudible

Thank you very much. Any others wishing to testify?

Okay, thank you very much. Okay, any others?

Thank you very much. I do apologize. We did receive late testimony from Hawaiian Telcom, Janine Suki, Kelly Uaoka as well as Sunshine Topping, Candice park and again Christian Fern of UPA and Sharon Sakura Fong. Okay. Any others wish you to testify? Yes. Seeing none. Members, colleagues, any questions?

Yeah, why don't you come up? I think from what we've heard that you've met with all the departments. But I know one of the challenges of state government is diverse. Everybody has their own Kuleana.

So how do you see or what have you learned to see how you might be able to have more cooperative consolidated integrated state government to serve the people better?

Thank you. Thank you, Senator for that question. I think the challenging times that we face sort of drive people to work together to explore opportunities of how can we, how can we work together to become more efficient, to become more effective?

And I think One of the ways I strive to do that is through extending myself to the Department directors, the deputies and their leadership, working with them, trying to understand what is important for them and their service to the community and what are common, common challenges across the enterprise, across the departments that ETS can host and support in order for the network to become more efficient and more effective and hopefully drive down costs and increase that efficiency.

Very good.

Thank you.

Any other questions?

I have a quick question. Thank you for being here for the numerous meetings that we've had since your appointment. One of the things that we did talk about was training, training for our IT professionals throughout state government. You know, maybe you can talk about that a little bit and how you're driving that.

Thank you. Thank you very much for that question. Training is critically important for the IT workforce. Everything is technology now. And so it's very common for people that are professionals in technology, often get their expertise from certifications, from going to classes.

And the state has my commitment in looking at opportunities to really expand those opportunities, not only for the current workforce, but to attract workforce coming into the state.

So at ETS, we actually have a couple of programs to support the workforce within ETS that are models to support certification and training for all of the software that we have, the infrastructure that we have, and we hope to partner with DHRD to see and explore opportunities of expanding that.

Yes, Senator.

I don't recall asking you about any work that you or your office may be doing regarding AI, artificial intelligence in terms of government operations.

Yes, thank you. Thank you for that. We have at ETS a Chief Data Officer, and that Data Officer works very closely with the Data Task Force. The Chief Data Officer has been in that position for maybe about a year and a half. Thank you for your support and helping the state acquire a Chief Data Officer.

And they've spent the greater part of about a year and a half working on data sharing policies, data governance policies, and now AI policies. And so AI is top of mind for everyone. When I met with all of the Department directors, everybody wants to use AI.

They want to leverage AI to support their workforce and enable their workforce to provide services to the community. So we are refining our data use policy. We are developing programs to educate the Administration about how can we use AI.

We work collaboratively with the other state, state chief information officers, offices, you know, to really understand what are they doing, how are they implementing AI responsibly and securely and safely.

Are you taking suggestions for AI applications?

We do take suggestions. We look at the software very carefully. Ultimately, at least in the past, it's been really up to the departments to decide on what tools that best suit their needs. And so it's why the guidelines are important. And the- the use guidelines also complement our cybersecurity guidelines as well as our data guidelines.

So we hope to provide frameworks that encourage responsible use of the technology.

And there must be applications done around the nation and state governments that are- that as they become developed, that can be used. Once you train an AI for a particular purpose, you can then as a short hop to apply the location differences. So, good luck.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

Just one question in that regard. So. So as you said, different departments are using AI for different degrees. And there are- there are concerns about AI and the responsible use of AI. And I'm just wondering, are you looking at standards across the board for all the departments to follow? Servo, you do it with cybersecurity.

You know, how can we standardize it so that we're protecting ourselves, but also responsibly using it and not going down the, I don't know, wayward way?

Yes. Thank you. And what I meant to say was that the Department directors are interested in using AI. So some have implemented. AI has been around for actually a long time. And so we're not new to AI. I mean, the chatbots were proliferated during the emergency response in the pandemic. So AI has really been around.

It's just kind of taken a quantum leap and it's a, it's a hot topic for all of us. And so there's a lot of interest across the departments to use AI to help, help the Department provide services better to the community.

And it is important for ITS, as in its role as IT Governance, to make sure that we develop meaningful guidelines, work with the departments, leverage the best practices that exist across the state to develop the best guidelines, and help guide the departments to use the AI responsibly. Thank you.

Okay. Any other questions? Okay. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much.

Okay. Onto the very last Governor's message, Governor's message 580. Submitting for considering confirmation as the Chair of the Hawaii Labor Relations Board. Nominee is Dwight Takamine for a term to expire on June 30, 2030. Hey, Chair. Welcome.

Thank you very much.

Thank you for your patience.

No, not at all. You run a good show over here. But Chair Aquino, Senator Moriwaki, Senator Ihara, good afternoon. With your permission, Chair, I'd like to follow Christine's example and introduce Members of our family who have joined me today.

And first, I guess my better half is Carol, who has not only, I guess, helped to ground me, but to also guide me as my life partner. And also, today, we have our son, Aaron, and our son in law, Eric, who have also joined us. Thank you for that opportunity.

I want to share with you that I feel very fortunate. I feel lucky that I was able to spend the past three decades learning about the legislative process and seeing it work from different perspectives.

It has been a tremendous educational experience to see how the process has served the needs of our community and how it has furthered the interests of the general public. I have seen how labor organizations have fought for improved rights and protections for their members.

And I have experienced being the employer of a small law firm for some 30 years. I have also had the benefit of leading the Department of Labor, with a workforce of over 500 employees statewide. These experiences have broadened my understanding of how things work in our state system.

However, what I most am grateful for are the work relationships that I have shared with you over the years. These relationships have been the heart of the many lessons that I have learned, and I appreciate how that has made me a more informed and a better person.

With that said, Chair, I will be available for questions at the appropriate time.

Thank you very much. Chair. Okay, up next, we have the Department of Labor Industrial Relations, Director. Okay. We have the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Deputy Director. We have DHRD Director, Director Hashimoto. We have DHS Director, Director Yamane.

I'm gonna come up for this.

Thank you, Committee Members. In strong support. Stand on my written testimony. I do want to say I've known the nominee for many years. And regardless of all his, his successful attempts to kill my bills in the House, as House Finance Chair and as a Senator, I'm still here in support.

Much you know that he's a strong advocate not only for labor, but for farming, as well as for the Big Island. So, in here in strong support. Thank you.

Thank you, Director. We have Lieutenant Governor, Sylvia Luke. Written testimony in support. We have the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission. Okay. Marcus Kawatachi. Okay. Support. We have Maricar Freitas of DLIR in support. We have Ann Pereira Estacio, again, of DLIR, in support. We have Hawaii State Teachers Association. Okay. Also, in support. Okay, thank you very much. Okay.

We have Eve Young, Hawaii Labor Relations Board. In support. United Public Workers in support. University of Hawaii Professional Assembly, UHPA.

Thank you very much. We have HGA. Also, for the Hawaii State Fed. AFL CIO. Randy Pereira for both entities, both in support. Auntie and Uncle Productions, Leanne Culver Richard, Executive Producer. In support. Brandon Wolf, testifying on behalf of the LW International Hawaii. Support. Physical Therapy and Rehab, Patty Tyra Tokuke, in support.

We have LW local 142. That would be President Christian West in support. You have Unite Here Local 5, Kade Watanabe, in support. We have This Whole, Era Field Director AFSCME, in support. Bronson Silva, Democratic Party of Hawaii, in support. Lake Oshiro. Okay, thank you very much. Okay, we have Clark Hiroto.

Good afternoon, Chair Aquino.

Okay, thank you very much for being here. Lowell Chanhoon.

Chair Aquino, Senators Moriwaki and Ihara, I wish to simply supplement the record with two biographical observations. In 1971, the nominee was not only the valedictorian at Monokaho High School, but he was also the quarterback of the football team. While he now lacks the athleticism of a Marcus Scenariota, I'm quite confident he is the right person for quarterback for Hawaii Labor Relations Board.

His combination of senatorial and representative experience successfully as the Director of the Department of Labor and his in the trenches experiences as a practicing Labor Lawyer make him uniquely qualified for this position. Please confirm it.

Thank you very much. Okay, up next we have Lester Seto, on Zoom.

Not present on Zoom, Chair.

Okay, thank you very much. Durazo Yamashita, Brian Kahl, Katie Benoni, Steve Hirakami, Curtis Takai, Nancy Levinson, and I believe over 43 individuals, written testimony, all in support. And we do have late testimony. Colleagues from Sisnita Moipono, in support. Conrad Hokama of Alum Side Products Inc. Sarah Anderson. Michael Litke, as well as Aaron Urasaki, all in support.

Any others wishing to testify? Governor.

I know it's been a long day and especially for all the folks waiting here for decision making, but I apologize to you and I apologize to Dwight. I did not realize his nomination was going to be up today. I guess David Louie, you know, blotted everything out for me so Dwight can take it up with him.

But I felt I needed to say a word or two. His father was my original mentor. I say that not so you say, oh, now I know who to blame, but rather, that his father was a pioneer of understanding what it was for those of us who wanted to serve in public office, to really represent everything that Hawaii was supposed to be about.

The whole idea of, of the aloha spirit, which is manifest in our laws—gentleness, harmony, caring for one another. His dad was just the embodiment of public service. So, I've known Dwight since he was a small boy.

And I want to say that if he's chosen for this position today, in my judgment, it's a culmination of a legacy of the Takemine Family, to move from the fields, the pineapple and sugar cane fields of Hawaii, generation after generation, to the Labor Relations Board to look to justice and fairness for working people.

It is a measure not just of the Takemine Family, but everything that Hawaii is all about. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Okay. Any others wishing to testify? Seeing none. Questions, colleagues? Senator San Buenaventura, special guest.

Yes, thank you. Just a small comment. I have—no, I don't really have a question. I guess you have a question. I have to because I'm on this side. So, former Senator, former Rep, former Director, Takamine, all of these titles on your name and now gonna be probably Labor Relations Appeals Board Member.

I have known—heard of your history. Takamine family, strong in labor, pioneers of our current labor laws. TDI, prepaid health care. Everything that has been pro-labor dates back to your legacy. But because of that, I guess the question is—I'm going to be devil's advocate here.

Are you going to be super pro-labor or will you be able to be an Appeals Board Member and be able to balance it?

First of all, I appreciate the question, and I don't think I can take all the credit. You are trying to

Well, your whole family though.

But it's an excellent question because we all have to follow the law, okay? And the law states that the HLRB has three members. Okay. One of the hard-working members is right here, Clark.

He, he represents management. Okay. Stacy Moniz represents labor, but the Chairman represents the public's interests. So, that's direction from the statute itself. And I hear what you say about my life experiences. Yeah, I mean, for all of us, you know, your life experience has a lot to do with the kinds of decisions you make ultimately.

And I felt very fortunate—actually that I was able to serve as part of the Abercrombie Administration heading the Department of Labor. I learned more in those four years. You know, I mean, it was so instructive.

And it wasn't just the substance of, you know, learning the programs and the benefits and all of that, but it included the kind of balancing you're talking about. It included, you know, when you make decisions that have impact on people, what kinds of factors do you take into account? How do you best strike that balance?

And I thought, for me, that was a tremendous, you know, learning experience because, okay, there you are heading a Department of over 500 people and you learn that it's not so easy being on management sides or being in the position because it takes so much to bring people together to get things done.

And you have to know the rules, right, that work to be able to do that.

So, I'm hopeful that, you know, with that experience and I guess being a struggling head of one lawyer law firm, but understanding that for small business especially, there are a lot of challenges just to be successful. I'm hopeful that those kinds of experiences will allow me to strike the right balance.

Okay, thank you very much.

Assuming you get confirmed.

Yes, yes.

I do want to express my gratitude and appreciation for your bringing your vast experience to the job from Labor Department and, you know, one of my first committees in 1987, you were the Chair of the Labor Committee, and I was on your Committee.

So, I got to see you right off the bat, and I was quite impressed. It was very thorough, very fair, very transparent. That was one of the models of working committees. So, I really want to thank you. And you've continued that all along, and even in the Senate as well. Thank you.

Thank you.

Well, I guess I will do my accolade, too. Going before you and the Labor Committee, as well as in finance, you were always fair. Hard, but fair.

But I do want to thank you for now coming full circle to be in the appellate arena, having seen how the advocates operate and their interests, but also being able to balance, as you say. I really would like to say that really appreciate your coming back to service.

Thank you.

Mr. Chair. I just have a quick question. So, what is the current caseload for any cases regarding Chapter 89, as well as any...cases?

Because I will say—excuse me, sorry, don't mean to interrupt—but there have been some real dramatic improvements to the caseload over the course of the last handful of years. So, you know, what's the caseload like at this time, Chair?

Okay.

Yeah, okay. Excellent question. And basically, you know, it's reported in our annual report to the Governor. But when, I guess when I was serving as the Director, one of the concerns with...was the backlog of cases under the previous Chair, Marcus Oshiro.

And I think there was a concerted effort made by, you know, not only the board members, but staff, to eliminate, to cut through all of that. And I think for those who get a chance to read through the last annual report, they'll see that there has been, you know, quite a bit of the backlog that was eliminated.

In fact, it's almost current now. So, you know, you're right, Chair. It's a big improvement. It took teamwork. Now, the challenge is how do we continue that?

Thank you very much. Any other questions, colleagues? I think we're going to proceed. Thank you very much, Chair. Thank you very much. So, we're going to proceed to decision making because I know everyone's looking at me like, you know, why are we having a hearing on a Friday afternoon?

But, you know, again, I think Governor's messages that we've heard today, they're all very important, very qualified. So we're going to proceed with the decision making for each one. Except for that. That one. Yeah, that pair that we had. Okay. Up first we have a GM 660 which would for consideration and confirmation.

The recommendation for GM 660 is to advise and consent. Any questions or concerns? Seeing none, Senator.

[Roll Call]

Okay, thank you very much. Moving on to Governor's message 529 for nominee Fonokalafi Nisi. Okay. The recommendation is to advise and consent. Questions or concern. Seeing on Senator Moriwaki.

Members present. Anyone voting no or referring reservation. The recommendations adopted.

Okay. Thank you very much. Moving on to GM 502 for Ken Louie. Okay. And the recommendation is to advise and consent.

Recommendation is to advise and consent. All Members present. Any voting no with reservation. Recommendation is adopted.

Okay. For GM581 as well as GMC690. Okay. Recommendation is to advise and consent. Both messages.

So for Governor's message 581 and 690. Recommendation is to advise and consent. Anyone voting no reservations. The recommendations adopted.

Okay.

Okay. Thank you very much. Moving on To Governor's message 571. Members. The recommendation is to advise and consent.

Recommendation 571. Nomination, not. 571. Recommendation is to advise and consent. All Members present. Anyone voting no with reservation. Recommendation.

Okay, thank you very much. Moving on to Governor's message 667. The recommendation is to advise and consent.

Recommendation is to advise and consent. All Members present. Anyone voting no with reservation. The recommendation.

Okay, thank you very much. Governor's message 560. Recommendation is to advise and consent.

All Members present. Anyone voting no with reservation. The recommendation is to advise and consent.

Okay. Governor's message 641. Recommendation is to advise and consent.

Okay. Recommendation. Advise and consent. Members present. Anyone voting no with reservation. The recommendation is adopt.

Okay. And for Governor's message 580. Recommendation is to advise and consent all.

Members present voting no with reservation. The recommendation is adopted.

Again, congratulations to all the nominees. Congratulations. Mahalo for your hard work and for your patience. Please stick around for picture taking. We love to take pictures here. All right, Being no further business, we adjourn.